Chrysalis

The soul according to Buddhist adherents is usually described  as a butterfly emerging from a chrysalis...as it is said,butterflies are God's proof that there are second chances in life.

"A soul never really dies,only a body does...when it is too weak and old to continue it's journey on earth or suffers a terrible fate so intense and overwhelming that the body can't survive it,it leaves the body and goes to the afterlife,gets answers to questions about life and  life's issues and as a form of purifying the soul to achieve salvation,sent back in another form in a totally new body back to earth"

The haggardly dressed marabout with grey stubble and bald in the middle of his head with a dusty-white wrapper draped around one shoulder declared as he fiddled with his pagan objects on the ground,consisting of cowries,gold sand,some ancient coins etcetera,he looked up at dad's mom,the Adagiri matriarch and then suddenly,almost shouting,he asked her

"You've lost some sons in your lifetime,haven't you?"


He bellowed,spitting out some rotten kolanut he was chewing as I stylishly withdrew my leg to avoid it landing on my foot,the matriarch sighed and said yes,she lost seven sons in her lifetime,all wives of all seven sons let out a deep sad exhale,sharing furtive glances at each other as though a way of empathising with each other at a common grief,the Matriarch looked at all of them with an evil scorn in a response to their loud exhale and looked back at the marabout waiting for a response

"Hmmmn!"

The marabout sighed,shaking his head sadly

"Were you responsible for your sons death? Directly or indirectly?"

He asked sternly as a buzz of silent murmur whizzed amongst all of us

"NO WAY..AH...NO WAY OOO..WHOEVER SAYS AM RESPONSIBLE FOR MY SONS' DEATHS,MAY SHOPONA FIRE THEIR HEADS,MAY.."

Matriarch wailed,cursing and wagging her fingers until the marabout interjected sharply

"QUIET WOMAN! Don't you know before whom you are cursing? Huh! You say you don't have a hand in their deaths,directly or indirectly,it is fine...your third son,did he have kids before he died?"

The marabout asked as everyone looked our way before we realised we were the third son's kids, QT was the first to recover from our collective reverie and acknowledged us as the third son's children

"Ok! So you're the first son of the third son?"

The marabout asked,stretching his hand to hold QT who instinctively withdrew his arm and pointed at Karl as the first son,a wisp of  laughter  escaped my lips as I quickly covered my mouth,everyone's darting gaze fell at me,the marabout gave me a stern,ticked-off look and turned to Karl

"How come a white boy is the third son's first child?"

He asked,still looking at Karl and Karl looking boldly back at him obviously getting his mind and countenance prepared for possibly being addressed as an illegitimate child, Mom looked around her in a flash as it dawned on her that she has to do the explaining

"Urm!" She started,clearing her throat

"His name is Karl and yes he's my late husband's son,he had a relationship with a white lady while studying in the states and he is the product of that relationship"

"You said while studying in  which state?"

The marabout asked,rather confused

"Oh,I meant america,they met in america while my late husband was studying there" Mom replied,everyone smiled at the man's ignorance

"So he is an illegitimate child" the marabout declared,making Karl lower his gaze at the mention of the term,I gave him a reassuring gaze and he held my gaze with his,Mom cleared her throat and said the family had already accepted him and Karl's mom was married to the family for the purpose of making him legitimate and thereafter she divorced the family and went on to marry another man

The Marabout smiled again and shook his head,saying he would go with QT instead,he called QT to him and he hesitatingly stood up,looked at Mom's face for clues on whether to go or not since we are believers and not pagans,Mom gave him a subtle look which meant it was cool,so he dragged along slowly to meet the Marabout who promptly pulled him by the arm and chanted some incantations and whirling a pot of burning incense around him which got my mom and I worried over what it was that they were doing,suddenly the Marabout declared

"HE'S ALIVE....THE THIRD SON IS BACK ON EARTH,BORN BY ANOTHER WOMAN"

Mom couldn't help but laugh and asked if QT could be released and we should all go to have some sleep

"YOU MAKE A MOCKERY OF THE GODS WOMAN?"

The marabout screamed at Mom who didn't flinch,she looked back at him and told him to stop meddling and joking with sensitive issues about the life of a man

"I love my late husband and I wouldn't want you to sit myself and my sons here and tell us crap about reincarnation...am a muslim and I don't buy that shit"

Mom said firmly which made the Matriarch shout mom down and apologised to the marabout and asked him not to mind mom and continue

"FOR YOU ALL TO SEE AND KNOW WHERE THE THIRD SON IS..WHICH I MUST SAY,FINDING HIM WOULD OPEN THE WAY TO FINDING THE OTHER BROTHERS,I WOULD PERFORM A SACRIFICE ON THE TOMBSTONE AND ALL HIS SONS WOULD EXHUME HIS GRAVE"

The marabout said firmly to which Mom stood up defiantly with a start and declared

"NO WAY...NO WAY WOULD MY SONS DIG THE GRAVE OF THEIR FATHER,DISTURBING HIS PEACE AND THEIRS FOR SOME PAGAN SHIT,NO WAY"

"BUT HE'S MY SON AND I WANT IT DONE AS THE HEAD OF THIS FAMILY" Matriarch fumed

"AND HE WAS MY HUSBAND AND THE BOYS ARE OURS AFTER GOD" Mom retorted

"YOUR LINK WITH MY SON IS SEVERED AND ENDED UPON HIS DEATH AND THE BOYS BEAR OUR NAME...BESIDES IF YOU RESIST THIS MUCH,IT MAKES ME WONDER,DID YOU KILL YOUR HUSBAND AND FEAR MEETING HIS REINCARNATION?" Matriarch responded


The drama has just started,welcome to the Adagiri family annual reunion

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