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The Mirror

By Adwoa Anima

“Really? We’ve a meteorologist already in this school? Is it not too bright and sunny to be predicting rain?” Old Alankey fixed his big eyes on her, making her feel uncomfortable. The other prefects started giggling but she stood her grounds.

“I am very certain of the rain, sir. I can smell it though the clouds have not formed yet.”

Old Alankey sighed. “Alright Miss Morrison, if I didn’t know you well enough, I would say you are feeling lazy today but to humour both of us, we will strike a deal. If it rains as you have predicted, I’ll give you GH¢10 but if it doesn’t rain, you’ll have to score aggregate six to avoid paying me the same amount.

Do we have a deal?” Old Alankey asked, giving a broad fake smile to which she also responded with a fake broad smile of her own.

Not only did it rain as she had predicted, but her results were the best the school had had in 10 years. She scored an ‘A’ in all her nine papers. When she went to collect her results slip, she earned another GH¢20 from Old Alankey and the promise of an award at the school’s next speech and prize-giving day.

She met her father packing bags into the boot of a taxi when she returned home after collecting her results slip. She ran happily to him and proudly showed him her slip.

“Dad, I came out the best in my school, I had an ‘A’ in all my papers.” She was so excited that she couldn’t read the nonchalant look on Ekow Morrison’s face.

“Really? That’s nice and congrats. Your mum is inside, go and show it to her. Maggie, your daughter passed with distinction. That should make you happy and proud.” He shouted towards the house, entered the cab, sat down and ordered the driver to move the car.  

She stood there confused and watched as the taxi drove away but she couldn’t allow her father’s lack of enthusiasm to blight her perfect day. Probably he and mama were having one of their many fights which were becoming an uncomfortable situation in their home.

She dashed into the house and without knocking opened her mother’s bedroom door.

“Mama, I got an ‘A’ in every paper!” She squealed in delight.

“Wow, my dear, that’s good news. This calls for celebration. Let me have a look.” She gave her results slip to her mother and she smiled proudly as she read through.

“You know what? I am going to kill a fowl for you today.” Maggie promised her last daughter.

“Thanks mama. What do you think I should study in university? Medicine, law, psychology, drama, which one mama? I don’t even know what psychology entails but I don’t want to be a nurse. Effie is a nurse already and I don’t want to do same,” she started blabbing.

“I think you should study medicine. You’ll be successful there,” she advised.

“What about a nursery school teacher? I love kids and would love to work with them.”

“Ewurasi, a nursery school teacher isn’t a bad choice for a career, considering I am one myself but knowing you, your interest in that will wane soon as you won’t find it challenging after a few years. You can be a pediatrician and you can still work with children.”

“Alright, if you say so. Mama, where is dad going to?” She asked and saw her mother’s face go blank.

“He’s gone to live with Cecilia.”  It came out coolly from her lips and Ewurasi froze.

“That is not true, right? People will get to know at church and they will talk and he will lose his respect.”

“My dear, I am sure he thought this through before executing his plan so he should be the one worrying about his respect and not you, but I am sure he’ll come back soon.”

But this time her mother’s prediction about her husband was wrong. For three months, they heard nothing from him. It was Tommy who returned home and made it a point of going to look for him. When Tommy returned, they could all see the disappointment on his face.

“Dad is living with Cecilia and we have two half-brothers, Junior and Nana Kwame,” he reported.

“I know about the children.” Mama said slowly.

“And you never found it fit to tell us?” Tommy looked more hurt than anyone. Maybe the realisation that he wasn’t the only son to their father hurt him more than anything.

“I don’t know what I did wrong but after I had had Ewurasi, I realised that he had changed,” their mother said.

She felt hurt. Could she be the cause of the failure of their parent’s marriage? But their father had always said she was his little girl, and whenever she requested anything from her father, she got double?

“Tommy, can you take me to dad’s new home? I need to take money for my application forms for school.” She asked her brother when they were having dinner later.

“Alright, we’ll do that first thing tomorrow morning,” he promised.

They arrived at Esuom at 7a.m. The town was just 30 minutes drive away from Nduem where they lived. They met their father relaxing under a tree in front of his new house. He frowned when he saw them.

He called to someone in the house to bring them chairs. When they sat down, he cleared his throat and asked them how they were faring. They responded in the affirmative.

“I hope you are not here to plead with me to go back to your mother?” Dad said to Ewurasi.

“No dad, that is your decision, not mine. I just need money for my application forms to school,” She responded.

It hurt her that their father wouldn’t entertain them in his hall but preferred to sit outside with them.

“You are so grown up now. You even know the kind of decisions that adults make on their own. Well, for your information, young lady, I do not have any money to give to you to buy any forms.

I have cared for you all very well and I think I need to concentrate on other people as well.

I am sure you have been told about your younger brothers? The older one is about to enter junior high school and I intend to put him in a boarding school so all my resources are going into that. Thomas has completed his national service and should be able to take care of you now.”  When her father finished speaking, she felt goose bumps all over her. She was suddenly scared for her future.

“But dad, I just got appointed at my workplace and I’m on probation. I will gladly help look after Ewurasi but for now I don’t have that much,” Tommy protested.

“Then find something else to do, boy and act responsibly towards your mother and sisters.”  With that Ekow stood up and left them and entered the house.

They sat for a while, hoping he would come back and give them money for transport back home but after sitting for about 30 minutes and not seeing any sign of him, they left for home.

Ewurasi cried all the way home. She could not be consoled. It seemed life had just been snuffed out of her. Tommy did his best to console her but the tears just refused to stop. The reality of the situation was she wouldn’t be going to school anytime soon with all her good grades.

Back home that evening, it was time for decision making. Their mother called them all together and laid the facts before them. It was the truth which couldn’t be hidden for long.

“Ewurasi, you won’t be able to go to school this year. I contracted a loan for your father. He said he and a couple of his friends had secured a contract and needed some money to top up what he had been able to secure from his bankers in order to execute the contract.

I took the loan from my bank and used my pension as collateral. Anytime I asked about the money from him, he told me they had not been paid for the contract they did.

All I have are my monthly salaries from which deductions are made. Your brother just got a job and Effie is still in school. We need to get Effie to complete school then you can also start.”  

Ewurasi knew her mother was trying her best not to cry but she also tried her best to cry so much and so loud that when she woke up the next morning, she had a fever.

She didn’t want to eat, she didn’t want to drink, she just wanted to stay in bed. All the comforting words her brother told her didn’t stay in her head.

Those who had lower grades than her were even preparing to go to school and upon all the midnight oil she had burned, she just had a piece of paper in her hands showing good grades but no resources to go ahead. What a world!

After mourning for a week, she decided to help herself. She applied for a teaching position in Mount Olives School, one of the private schools in the town. She told the headmaster that she wanted to work and save some money to help her go back to school.

He was impressed and gave her the Kindergarten Two class to teach. Two weeks later, she was moved to teach in Primary Six when one of the teachers left unceremoniously. By the end of the second month, she had been moved to teach in the junior high school.

She loved to teach and so found it easy. Back in school, she had taught her friends all the time and most of them confessed they understood things better when she explained them.

By the fourth month, she had saved enough money to buy her application forms. She had finally decided on studying medicine. What she needed to do now was to work hard to earn enough money to support what Tommy and the others would give her when she started school.

Kwesi Nyamekye was their father’s nephew. His mother was their father’s younger sister.  He lived a truant lifestyle and they never liked him around. Anytime he came around, he came with troubles and left them with troubles. Ekow Morrison had been gone for almost a year and everyone knew he had abandoned his family. His extended family knew and their church also finally heard of it and he had been suspended and relieved of his post as an elder. People offered them support in whatever way they could, though sometimes Ewurasi felt people just wanted to let them know that they knew of their predicament.

In the light of their father’s absence, Ewurasi was surprised to find Kwesi Nyamekye in front of their gates one Saturday evening.

“Kwesi, what are you doing here?” Ewurasi asked when she saw him.

“Is that the new form of greeting?” he retorted.

“Well, you can’t be rude to me anymore. Your uncle doesn’t live here anymore so I don’t see what your presence here is for. We tolerated you because of your uncle, my father, but now that he doesn’t live here anymore, I fail to understand what you are here for.” She stood akimbo refusing to open the gates for him to enter.

Her mother came out of the room then and saw them. “Kwesi, is that you? Ewurasi, won’t you open the gates for your cousin to come in?” she said and Ewurasi reluctantly opened the gates for him to enter.

As he entered, he stuck his tongue out to tease her but she ignored him. She was almost late for youth meeting at church and she was the moderator for the day’s programme. She hurriedly left for church.

Upon her return from church she found her room in disarray. Her heart missed a beat. She never left her stuff anyhow, she was an orderly person.

“Mama?” She called. “Did you come into my room?”

“No.” she responded and joined her in the room. “Why are your things lying about like these?” her mother asked but she didn’t respond to that question. She just ducked under her bed and found the Milo tin lying on its side. She pulled it and saw it was empty.

“Mama, I am dead.” She started panting for breath. “Where is Kwesi Nyamekye?”

“I gave him some food to eat and went into my room. After the meal, he told me he just stopped by to see if he could get something to eat and that he was on his way. I never suspected anything.”

“Mama, he’s taken away all my savings.” She broke down in tears. She cried like she had lost a dear one. When she looked up, she saw her mother crying as well. All the money she had saved over the four months that she had been teaching was gone in a flash.

That very night, her mother took her to Kwesi Nyamekye’s mother and narrated what he had done to her. Her auntie looked pitifully at them and told them she had not seen her son in over three months and anytime she heard of him, he had done something bad.

“Ewurasi, your auntie is a poor farmer. I don’t have that amount of money your cousin has stolen from you to refund to you. I wish I could help knowing how my brother has left his family to suffer like this. I am really sorry.” Auntie Yaa apologised but it did nothing to heal her pain. In all these months she laboured, she never bought anything for herself. She was the only teacher in the school without a cellphone, not even the cheap Chinese one which some of the JHS students possessed.

She was saving for her school, only for the money to be stolen by a truant. Throughout the night on her bed, she kept asking God why he allowed her to go through that. Why should her life be so complicated? Why should her friends be in school and she still at home struggling to get money to buy application forms? Why should her father not be interested in her anymore?

The questions she had were a lot but she had no answers for them. All she needed to do was to start all over again. She took out her little mirror from under her pillow and stared at her face.

She had always had people complimenting her on her beauty but how does she look like when she is crying and all torn up inside?

Certainly not pretty or? She wiped her tears, put her mirror back where she picked it from and turned on her side and tried to get some sleep.

A week after this incident, news reached them that Kwesi Nyamekye had been killed by a truck when he stole from a street vendor and dashed across the road. When the truck driver saw him cross, it was too late to pull the brakes to save his life. When the news got to them, all Ewurasi could think of was her money that he stole and how he had spent it.

Auntie Mansa’s kenkey was reputed to be the best in the whole town. She even got people from other towns coming to buy bulk from her to retail. Auntie Mansa’s last daughter, Ekua was Ewurasi’s classmate from primary through to JHS.

After JHS, she said she wanted to be a dressmaker and so enrolled with Kwakwaduam Sewing Centre, one of the best dressmakers in the town. When Ekua heard of Ewurasi’s inability to go back to school due to financial problems, she paid her friend a visit at home. She had graduated from the sewing centre and was running her own shop. She seemed to be doing quite well.

“Ewurasi, I am very sorry about all you’ve been going through. I heard your father left your mother for another woman. As for some of our fathers they don’t try at all. Look at how my father also left us when I was in primary three. Imagine my mother having to take care of the seven of us. But now, we are all doing well in our own ways. Don’t worry too much though it is painful,” Ekua advised.

“Ekua, I have been able to live alright for the past year that my father left us. It is my schooling that I am concerned about. I tried to work to save some money to help me go to the university but my cousin came and stole that and some of my clothes. Now I have to start all over again. It really hurt me but there is not much I can do,” She told her friend.

“Oh the world can be wicked. Why don’t you go for some of my mother’s kenkey to sell at the night market? I am sure you can make some money to add to what you are getting from your teaching job,” Ekua suggested.

“I don’t think it is a bad idea but I don’t have the money to buy enough to sell. I will need to wait for the end of the month.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll speak to my mother to give it to you on credit. I know you are honest and will pay back.”

“That will be so nice of you, Ekua. I am desperate. I want to go back to school. All my mates are out there in school. I can’t sit home idle.”

“Don’t worry, you shall go back to school,” Ekua said.

That evening Ewurasi told her mother about the kenkey business she had decided to undertake. Maggie was a bit sceptic about it but she could see the determined face of her daughter and gave her blessings. So with nothing left but her pride, Ewurasi went for her first consignment of kenkey on credit.

The kenkey business turned out to be more profitable than the teaching job. By the end of the first week, she was no more purchasing on credit as she had enough money to buy on her own. By the end of the first month, she had made twice what she made from teaching every month but she didn’t give up on the teaching.

She just concentrated on working hard so she could earn enough money to take her back to school. This time, though Kwesi Nyamekye was dead, she made sure that not even the air passed where she hid the money; as the saying goes, once bitten, twice shy.

Initially she thought it would be difficult combining the two jobs, i.e. the teaching and kenkey business but she soon found it easy.  Auntie Mansa’s kenkey at the night market was hot cake and after Ekua had told her mother of Ewurasi’s predicament, the old lady decided that she would be the only vendor of her kenkey at the night market.

That meant that if she set up shop by 6pm, all her wares would be sold by 9pm. It was only on slow days that she could stay up to 10pm. By the end of the third month, she had tripled her order and was earning more.

She knew the other teachers at the school gossiped about her kenkey business but she couldn’t be bothered. She needed the income and she was doing legitimate business to earn it.

She had been teaching in the Mount Olives School for 15 months now. On this particular morning at the school, the headmaster, Mr Quansah, looked too stiff for Ewurasi’s liking. He looked like someone who hadn’t had a good weekend and so she decided to stay off his path on that day. After the morning assembly he called the teachers into the staff common room for a meeting.

“Good morning to you all. We need to do a brief discussion and then we can go to our various classrooms and start work. The owner of this school, Dr Ansah, has returned from abroad. We have been having some discussions over the weekend on improving this school to a first-class school in this district. We went through the CVs of the teachers we have and he thinks most of you are not qualified to be teaching in this school.”

He stopped and cleared his throat and Ewurasi could feel a chill ran down her spine.

“He is currently out of town and will return next week to meet individually with you and assess you. The only thing I can say for now is that I am not the final decision maker. Impress him when you meet him,” Mr Quansah ended.

Ewurasi was sad the whole day because she could feel her days at Mount Olives School were drawing to an end. She was the only secondary school graduate teaching in the JHS. All the other teachers were either polytechnic or university graduates.

She knew if there was going to be any terminations, she would be included but she was determined to stay on. She needed to act fast and impress Dr Ansah. She had never met him before though she had seen his pictures in the headmaster’s office. He looked young and she thought he looked handsome but suddenly he looked like the ogre to her.

After close of work, she reluctantly took some money from her savings and went shopping for some fabric to sew new clothes. She thought she needed a makeover. After a hard bargain and getting three different types of fabrics, she went to Ekua’s shop and dumped them on her table with a troubled look on her face.

“Ha, finally! I was beginning to think I wasn’t good enough to sew your clothes,” Ekua said when she saw the fabrics.

“Oh no, it’s nothing like that. It’s just that I have not sewn anything new for myself since I completed secondary school. I have been making do with second-hand clothing, which is far cheaper,” she said.

“Ok so what’s with that look on your face?” Ekua asked.

“Please don’t charge me too much for these. I know its expensive sewing any thing these days but I really need new clothes so I can impress the proprietor of my school. I hear he just returned from abroad and intends to relieve some of us of our work. I don’t intend to be part of the unemployed people.”

“And who says I am going to charge for sewing for you? It’s an honour for me to sew for you. Just buy the lining fabric I’ll need and you’ll get these made into beautiful dresses by Friday; and don’t worry, you won’t lose your job.”

“Really? Ekua, are you sure?”

“What are friends for? I know that one day, you’ll be a big woman and who knows what you will do for me?”

“Ok, let me go get you the lining fabric.” Ekua showed her the type of fabric she should buy for the lining and she gratefully went off to buy it.

Ewurasi sang happily on her way home. She was determined to put in her very best and make sure she was retained in the school until it was time for her to continue with her education. She saw Tommy, her elder brother, sitting on their wall as she approached home.

“Tommy, when did you arrive?” She ran towards him so happy to see him.

“Ei Madam, you are welcome,” he said in response. He loved to tease her.

“I am small madam, a pupil teacher;  not a trained one like Mama or Nana Ama,” she said.

“Whatever you say, you are still a ‘madam’. How are you?”

“I am doing well. What are doing home? You didn’t go to work?”

“I have the week off so I decided to come home and visit.”

“That’s nice of you. Have you had something to eat?”

“No, I was waiting for ‘Madam’ to come and feed me.” He said stressing the word ‘madam’ to tease her more. He jumped off the wall and taking her bag from her pulled her closer to give her a hug.

“Ok, let me see what I can put together. Is Mama back yet?” she asked and he shook his head.

That evening, Tommy accompanied her to sell her kenkey and he was impressed with the brisk business she was doing. He urged her on. When they returned home, their mother was still up waiting for them.

“How was business today?” she asked.

“It was ok. People seem hungrier on Mondays.” She responded.

“So Tommy, why did you come home? Have you been sacked from your job?” she turned her attention to Tommy.

“Oh Mama, don’t be so pessimistic. Can’t I come home when I feel like it?”

“Not with an important job like this. You are barely six months old in your position for you to be given a whole week off. What’s happening?” Ewurasi began to feel uncomfortable with their mother’s line of questions.

Tommy couldn’t lose his job like that. He was a good and diligent worker. She knew her brother had his head screwed on well.

“Far from it. I have my job intact. It’s just that we had this aptitude test in the office and I came up tops and so management decided to send me to our company’s head office in Chicago to train there. I also have the opportunity to do my Master’s degree on scholarship,” Tommy informed them.

“This is very relieving. Good news.” Their mother smiled and Ewurasi also smiled but sadly. Her dream of going back to school had just suffered another blow.

“But that will mean Ewurasi’s schooling might be delayed by another year or two.” She could feel her brother’s nervousness as he spoke.

“Don’t worry about that. It is not always that such opportunities come our way so when it happens, we need to be careful so we don’t throw it away. As for Ewurasi’s schooling, I have decided to sell a portion of land I bought a few years ago. I bought two plots for you and Nana Ama and your father also bought another two for Effie and Ewurasi. I have the title deeds to those plots so

I will sell a plot to put her in school and then we’ll continue from there. God will provide.”

God will provide; that had always been her assurance to her children.

She was happy for Tommy. At least she could also brag that her brother had also travelled to the United States of America. She remembered back in senior high school, when Antoinette’s brother had a scholarship to study abroad; she made sure everyone in the school heard of it.

Antoinette was a classmate who always tried to compete with Ewurasi albeit unsuccessfully. How she wished then that Tommy would also get a scholarship and travel out of the country so she could also have something to say. Now Antoinette was in the first year at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, studying computer science but she was at home trying to find a way of getting onto the university campus.

“Congrats Tom. Just make sure you don’t forget all about me when you get there. So when are you leaving?” That was Ewurasi.

“Next week Wednesday. That’s why I came to spend this week at home with you.”

“Are you going to tell daddy you are travelling out of the country?” She asked.

“Mama, do you think I should inform him?” he hesitated and asked.

“You should. Remember the scripture – honour your father and your mother? That’s the only commandment with a promise.”

“Ok, I’ll go there on Saturday. Ewurasi, will you go with me? We can go and visit Nana Ama from there.”

“Sure.” She answered.

Early Saturday morning, they set off for Esuom. When they arrived at their father’s home, his new wife, Cecilia, told them their father was out but they suspected he was in but didn’t want to see them. They decided to wait and after an hour of him not showing up they left for Nana Ama’s place.

They stayed with Nana Ama most of the day, cooked some food and had fun. She was so excited with Tommy’s impending travel.

“Well, I also want to go back to school next year. I want to teach in the senior high school; here are better prospects there,” Nana Ama told them.

Tommy cleared his throat. “Don’t you think you should hold on awhile so we get Ewurasi back in school?” he asked.

“Well, it’s not a bad idea but Kevin and I are planning to marry next year and I want to be in school before that happens. Ewurasi is still young; she’s just about turning 18. She has more time and I am sure Kevin will help in sponsoring her when we are married than he would now,” Nana Ama said.

Ewurasi sighed. It didn’t seem to get any better when it came to her. Tommy also sighed. She couldn’t tell the thoughts running through his head but he didn’t look too happy.
“Don’t you think it’s too soon to be talking marriage? Can’t you wait and complete school before you marry?” Tommy asked.

Nana Ama sighed. “Tommy, I know but I need someone to help me through school. Dad is not going to help; you will be helping Ewurasi and Effie will be starting her national service. I need someone to help me and if marrying Kevin will give me that, then I will. He is a nice guy and he doesn’t give me cause to worry and his family is really kind to me.”

“If you think he’s good enough for you, then go for him. Just make sure you are marrying for the right reasons and not the wrong ones,” Tommy advised her. Well, to Ewurasi, Kevin was a boring guy but if Nana Ama felt comfortable with him, who was she to complain?

“Well, I guess we’ll be heading back home then. We left home very early and its late afternoon now. We need to go and prepare for our kenkey selling business,” Tommy said. He had been helping her sell the whole week and she knew she would miss him when he left the following day.

The Mirror / The Ghana

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