Egodiniru, a widow, dark and dressed in a mourning dress, sits in deep melancholy. The room is bereft of tangible household items. One of her sons, Osita, has a terrible fever and shivers convulsively on the torn mat.
Chapter 1 – A Life Built on Hard Work
Egodi: (Crying.) Osita, my son, please, pity your mother. Do you want the enemies to mock me again, my son? (She inspects his body. She rushes inside the house and quickly returns with a cup of cooked local herbs.) Osita, my son, please, drink your medicine so that you will be fine. I had to go as far as the Mbene forest to get the roots and leaves I cooked for you. This is the best, Ekenewofia, the great medicine man, prescribed. I know that if you will drink it, my son, you will surely be healed.
Osita: (Manages to take a sip and pushes the cup away.) Mother, I cannot take this, it is very bitter.
Egodi: (Disappointed.) My son, please, pity your poor mother. I know the medicine is bitter, but it is the only herb that will cure your fever very fast.
You know if I had money, I would have taken you to the hospital. Your brother, Chiadikaobi, has sucked up all my money due to his schooling. Even the ones I borrowed from people, I have given all to him to pay his school fees at the university. I don’t mind anyway, because I know that when he graduates as a medical doctor, he will wipe away the poverty in this house and will be able to train the rest of you to be like him too. So, I hope you understand my predicament, my son. Please, rise and take your medicine, please pity your mother.
Osita: But mother, but mama…
Egodi: What, my son? Did I do anything to deserve to be a widow at this tender age when all my mates were just starting to enjoy their marriage? What did I do to deserve to look like an old woman because I was shouldering the unending responsibilities in Okpala’s family? (She begins to cry. Osita comforts her. He manages to drink a good dose of the medicine.) My son, can you drink a little more, just a little more, please?
Osita: (Hesitates.) No, mother, if I take anymore, I am going to vomit it. Please, stop worrying yourself, mother. It is just a fever. I will be fine.
Egodi: (Cuddles her son till he sleeps.) God, what is my crime? Is there any special sin I committed that I don’t know about? Am I the only widow in this community? God, I hope you are watching.
Please, change my condition for good. (She touches Osita’s body and notices that his fever is going down. Happily, she begins to sing.)
Egodi’s Eldest Son Joins The Discussion
Enters Chiadikaobi, her eldest son. He is a handsome young man at the age of twenty-four. He is delighted to see his mother as they hug.)
Egodi: Ewoo! See my doctor ooh! See my small doctor ooh! I thought the university had taken you away and made you forget your mother and your siblings.
Chiadi: Mother, is it me that will forget you? I, Chiadikaobi?
Egodi: (Smiles to relax his mood.) Don’t even listen to me, my son. How are you? How is school?
Chiadi: School is fine, mother. You look unwell, are you okay, mother?
Egodi: (Her countenance changes again.) I am fine, my son. It is Osita, your brother; he has been down with a heavy fever since three days ago and it is very serious now. He just finished taking the herbal medicine Ekenweofia suggested that I boil for him and immediately after that, he fell asleep. It seems the medicine is very potent. That is why I was singing before you came in. I am just tired of life, tired of everything, my son. (Sobs quietly.)
Chiadi: (Concerned) Mother, please stop speaking that way. Don’t worry, he will be fine. He is suffering from what they call meningitis arthritis.
Egodi: What? my son?. That means Osita, my son is gone!
Chiadi: No, ma. It is not a big sickness. The one that would have killed him is the one we call Convoluting Concord. Meningitis is a very small level of fever. The herbs will help him. All he needs is a well-ventilated room. He will be fine, ma.
Egodi: (Impressed.) my doctor, God will continue to bless you. So, is it the university that is making you look this fresh, my son?
Chiadi: It is God, mama. I am surprised I still have flesh on my body. Do you know we have lectures from morning till night every day, mama? After that, I stayed in the school library till midnight.
Every lecturer in my department knows my name and they like me so much due to my intelligence and discipline. Mama, I am the class representative for all the medical students at my level. So, your son is not a small person in school, ma.
Egodi: Ooh, Thank Heavens! This is the kind of news I need to hear now.
Chiadi: It is not finished, mother. In the just concluded examinations in my department, I was the best student at my level with the highest cumulative grade points. Even the Vice-Chancellor of my university invited me for a handshake in his office. The whole school speaks about me and everybody respects and admires me, mama.
Egodi: Who am I? Who am I? Chiadi, my son, I have always known you will make me proud. I know that one day you are going to lift us out of poverty and shame our enemies. Chiadi my child, (She dances and hugs him showering praises.)
Chiadi: (Enters the room, returns in casual wear and sits near his mother.) Mother, there is something I want to discuss with you, the main reason for my visit, mama. You know my exams are coming up in two weeks and I have not yet paid my school fees nor have I bought any of the textbooks for the semester. I have been begging and borrowing books but now exams are here; there is nothing else I can do. I need to pay for my school fees and buy books, mama.
Egodi: (Visibly worried.) School fees again? How much is it again, my son?
Chiadị: Mom, it’s three hundred and fifty thousand naira. (Egodi exclaims.) Mom, they said we should buy two dictionaries, one is Advanced Learners’ Dictionary and the other is Longman Britannica Dictionary. Mama, one of them is eight thousand naira, the other one is twelve thousand naira.
Ahmad Nwabuzor is a Nigerian author and storyteller with a strong passion for writing and sharing meaningful stories. He is a graduate of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), where he studied English and Literary Studies.
He writes across different forms of storytelling, including cultural narratives, emotional fiction, and moral stories that teach life lessons. His storytelling style is rooted in African life and shaped by a deep interest in how traditions influence people’s choices and emotions.