SOMAYINA, the little smart orphan [Chapter 4: The Beautiful birds] ]

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Somayina was awakened early the next morning by a loud shrill whistle. Opening his eyes, he saw his little bed and the old sack beside him bathed in golden sunlight. For a short while, he could not recollect where he was, but when he heard his grandmother's deep voice outside, he remembered everything. He remembered leaving Ginika's house in the congested urban area, overcrowded with strangers to come to this peaceful village. He was grateful to Ginika for taking him away from the city with no hills, no fresh air, no colourful food, no goats, and no space to play. He had always longed for space to hop around like a grasshopper and chirp and sing like a young bird. He was finally free from the dull smell of blocked gutters.

Jumping out of bed, he ran outside. Lamido was already there, waiting for Sempe and Supepe. Looking up, Somayina could see his grandma bringing them to join the rest of the flock.

"Do you want to go with them to the grazeland?" asked Egonna.

"Yes!" cried Somayina in a hurry, clapping his hands.

"Go now, and wash yourself, for the goats will laugh at you if they see how dirty you are. Everything you need for bathing is there," she added, pointing to an old metal bucket of water that stood in the sun.

Somayina did as he was told. He washed and rubbed himself till he was sweating. Meanwhile, Egonna handed Somayina's food over to Lamido. As usual, she asked after her ex-husband, Lamido's adopted father. She handed over a bottle of water, some akara balls, and a loaf of bread that was almost twice Lamido had in the bag for himself.

"Okay! Let's go," Lamido announced, his smiling lips exposing a set of gapped, sparkling, white teeth. The two friends started merrily up the Udokamma Hills.

Somayina was wild with happiness. From side to side, he ran, dancing, singing, and beaming with joy. In one place, he saw fine, red primrose flowers; in another, he saw wild, yellow leaves sparkling in the grass. Running ahead, he forgot himself, chasing butterflies and grasshoppers from here to there, trying to catch some for his grandma.

Lamido had a hard time looking out for wild Somayina and looking after the goats, too. "Somayina, where are you?" he called out quite angrily when he could no longer see the boy.

"Here!" Somayina exclaimed, but Lamido still could not see him. He was sitting behind a little mound, covered with fragrant flowers that filled the air with perfume. He collected some hopping crickets, putting them in his jumper pockets.

"Come back here now!" Lamido called out, "You need to be careful or else, you might hurt yourself. Remember, you must look out for the goats too. We still have a long way to go. If you hasten, we may see the cheke leke birds and have them whiten our teeth and nails."

That prompted Somayina; he came running after Lamido, with his pockets full of hopping insects and assorted flowers. The happy goats, smelling the icharako herbs, went ahead of the two boys.

Lamido finally settled at the foot of a high cliff, which seemed to reach far up into the sky. He took off his bag, putting it in a little hollow in the ground.

Because the wind often blew in violent gusts up there, he did not want to lose his precious things. Then he laid down in the sunny grass to get some rest, he was very tired.

Somayina, taking off his outer jumper, rolled it tightly together and put it beside Lamido's bag. Then, sitting down beside the older boy, he looked around the hills. Far below, he saw the glistening valley, a large field of shrubs and high, golden grasses in front of them. He sat there staring, with Lamido asleep by his side and the goats jumping about between the bushes. A light breeze fanned his cheek, while the view of the big mountains made him happier than ever before. He looked up at the hill-tops till they all seemed to have faces, and soon, like old friends, they were familiar to him.

Suddenly, he noticed hundreds of immaculate, white, skinny birds descending like angels from heaven. Those must be the cheke leke birds that Lamido had described to him. The birds, in their great numbers, were as white as the clouds. They flew across the sky and perched one after the other, a few yards away from where the boys lay.

"Wake up, Lamido!" Somayina called. "Here they come! Look up and see; the cheke leke birds are here in good number. Wake up, wake up!" he sang excitedly.

Lamido sprang up quickly and began to sing while somayina joined.

The little boy was overwhelmed with joy. He could not stop singing. For him, it was an experience of a lifetime. He watched the awesome birds as they grazed fearlessly, hunting grasshoppers, moths, and other prey. Each of the birds was amazingly beautiful in its own way. Somayina had never seen such a sight before.

"Come on Lamido, let's sing again," he said, buzzing with energy and excitement.

"One, two, three, go!" said Lamido and off they went singing and chanting the cheke leke song again and again and again. With outspread wings, some of the birds flew in large circles above the two boys as they watched breathlessly.

"Ahaa! They are dancing to our songs," Somayina screamed as they sang.

Suddenly, all the birds began to rise higher and higher in the sky, till they all disappeared one after the other behind the hill top.

"Where have they gone?" Somayina asked disappointedly.

"Home to their nests," Lamido replied.

"Oh! Do they really live way up there? How wonderful that must be! But tell me, why are they so white?"

"Because God made them so," Lamido replied.

"Oh! Let's climb up there and see their nestal implored Somayina, but Lamido, pointing at Sempe and Supepe, with disapproval in his voice, answered, "Oh dear, not even those lads could climb up there! Your grandmother has told me not to let you fall down the rocks, so we can't go!"

Lamido began to call loudly and whistle. Soon, all the goats were assembled on the green field.

Somayina ran to them, for he loved to see them leaping and playing about. He noticed all the goats beam with smiles as they found him in their midst.

While Somayina entertained the goats, Lamido prepared lunch for himself and his little companion, putting the loaf of bread in a flat plastic plate and slicing it with his pen knife. Then he inserted the akara in between the sliced bread to make burgers for them both. He also opened his water bottle and emptied a litre of fresh nunu milk into a yellow plastic bowl. When he was ready, he called to Somayina.

"Stop jumping around. Sit down now," instructed Lamido, "your lunch is ready."

"Is this milk for me?" Somayina inquired.

"Yes, it is, the large bread and akara also belong to you. When you are done with the milk, I'll pour you some more."

"Mmm! This milk is quite good!" Somayina inquired.

"You like it?"

Of course I do," replied Somayina.

"I get it from my own goat. That speckled one over there." Lamido replied, pointing at the beautifully spotted goat.

"You have your own goat?" Somayina asked.

"Of course I do, I inherited it from my father."

"When will I have my own goat?" Somayina asked in great wonder.

"Now go ahead and eat Somayina. You must be hungry." Lamido commanded without responding to the question.

Somayina remembered he was actually hungry and began to eat his food.

When the milk bowl was empty, Lamido filled it again. After the second piece of the akara and bread, Somayina gave the rest to Lamido, saying, "You can eat that, I don't want any more!"

Lamido was speechless, for it would have been impossible for him ever to give up any of his share. Not taking Somayina in earnest, he hesitated till the little boy put them on his knees. When Lamido was sure Somayina really meant it, he seized his prize. Nodding his thanks, he ate the most luxurious meal he had ever had in all his life, a much bigger meal than his usual portion.

Supepe, the small brown goat, kept bleating in the most piteous way. Somayina tried to console her several times. At last, Somayina went to the little thing again, and throwing his arms around its head, he asked, "What's the matter with you, Supepe? Why do you always cry for help?" The little goat pressed close to Somayina's side and became perfectly quiet.

Lamido was still eating, but between the swallows, he called to Somayina. "She is so unhappy because the old goat has left us; your grandma sold it to somebody in Obodoeze a day before you arrived."

"Who was the old goat?"

"Her mother, of course."

"Poor little Supepe," said Somayina, drawing the little creature tenderly to himself. "Don't grieve anymore. I will be with you every day from now on. Any time you have any problem, you can always come to me."

Supepe rubbed her head against Somayina's shoulder and stopped bleating.

All of a sudden, Lamido, who had been lying on the ground, jumped up and ran after the goats. Somayina, knowing that something must have happened, followed him. He saw him running to a dangerous abyss on the side of the hill. Lamido had noticed how one of the goats had gone closer and closer to the dangerous spot. In his haste, Lamido stumbled over a stone and was only able to catch the goat by one leg. The goat, being enraged to find himself stopped in his charming ramble, bleated furiously. Not being able to get up, Lamido loudly called for help. Sonayina quickly picked some fragrant herbs and held them under the animal's nose while soothingly saying, "Come, come, handsome boy, and be sensible. You might fall down there and break your neck. That would hurt you horribly."

The goat turned about and devoured the herbs in Somayina's hand. When Lamido got to his feet, he led the runaway goat back with Somayina's help. When he had gotten the goat to safety, he raised his shepherd stick to strike it. The goat retreated shyly, for it knew what was coming. Somayina screamed loudly, "Lamido, no, do not beat him! Look how scared he is."

"He deserves it," snarled Lamido, ready to strike.

But Somayina, seizing his arm shouted, full of indignation, "You mustn't hurt him; let him go." Somayina's eyes were sparkling with compassion.

When Lamido saw Somayina's commanding demeanour, he dropped his stick. "I will let him go if you promise to give me some of your akara tomorrow," he said, for he wanted compensation for his fright.

"You may have them all tomorrow and every day because I don't need them," Somayina assured him. "I shall also give you more if you promise never to beat any of the goats again."

"I don't mind," growled Lamido as he nodded his promise.

Thus, the day passed, and the sun sank behind the hills. Sitting on the grass, Somayina looked at the wild hibiscus and the wild roses that were shining in the last rays of the sun. The peaks of the hills began to głow under the setting sun.

"Hey! Lamido, look! Everything is on fire. The mountains are burning and the sky, too. Oh, look! The moon is on fire. Do you see the hills all a glow? Oh, look at the golden dry grasses over there!" Oh, how beautiful the sun looks! Lamido, the cheke leke's nests must surely be on fire, too.

Lamido, who was quietly peeling his shepherd stick, looked up and said to Somayina, "That is no fire. It always looks like that."

"What is it then?" asked Somayina eagerly, gazing in several different directions.

"It gets that way by itself," explained Lamido, "it is the reflection of the evening sun."

"Evening sun?"

"Yes, the setting sun."

"Oh, look! Everything is all rosy now! Oh, look at that hill over there with the golden grasses and the sharp peak. What is its name?"

"Sakwosa Hill," Lamido replied.

"Please, can we go over there?"

"Hahahaha! Do you think they are nearby?"

"Of course!" replied Somayina, "I can almost touch them."

"Hahahahahal Not so, my dear friend. They are hundreds of miles away."

"Yu-hoo! See, how beautiful! It looks as if many, many roses are growing on those cliffs... Oh! Now they are getting grey... Oh dear! The fire has gone out, and it is all over. What a terrible shame!" said Somayina, quite disappointed.

"It will be the same tomorrow," Lamido reassured him. "Come now, we have to go home." When Lamido called the goats together, they started homewards.

"Will it be like that every day when we are up here asked Somayna anxiously.

"It usually is, depending on the weather."

"What about tomorrow?" Somayina inquired.

"Tomorrow it will be like that, I am sure," Lamido affirmed.

This information made Somayina happy again. He walked quietly by Lamido's side, thinking over all the new things he had seen.

At last, reaching the hut, they found Egonna waiting for them on the bench under the old cashew tree. Somayina ran up to her, and the two goats followed, for they knew their owner.

Lamido called to his friend, "Goodnight, Somayina. Do well to come again tomorrow!"

Somayina waved his hand, assuring him that he would come. Finding himself surrounded by the goats, he hugged his friend Supepe a last time. Then he turned around and saw Sempe standing by the side. "Good night, Sempe," he said with a bigger hug than he gave Supepe.

When Lamido had disappeared, Somayina returned to his grandmother.

"Grandma! It was so beautiful! I saw the fire and the roses on the rocks! I saw many white birds, many, many crickets, grasshoppers, and flowers that I brought for you!" With that, Somayina tried to bring them out of his jumper pockets, but the flowers were all squashed, and the insects were all gone! Somayina could not find them anymore. "What is the matter with the crickets and grasshoppers, grandma? They are all gone!"

Somayina exclaimed in his fright.

"They are made to hop and fly around, not to be shut up in your pocket," said Egonna.

"Then I shall never catch them again! Please, grandmother, tell me why the cheke leke is so white, clean and beautiful?" asked Somayina.

"They are so white and clean because God looks after them."

"Do they bathe all the time?"

"No! My mother once told me that God uses them as a lesson for men."

"What is the lesson, grandma?" Somayina asked

"She said they teach us to have faith and not to worry, 'If God can make birds in the bush so clean and beautiful, he can take care of us too, if we have faith in Him,' that's what my mother told me."

"But does their aunty bat them some times?"

"That's the point, son, birds don't bathe. God just looks after them."

Somayina told Egonna about all the other happenings of the day, especially about the wonderful fire on the hills.

"Oh, the sun does it," exclaimed Egonna. "Saying goodnight to the hills, he throws his most beautiful rays to them."

Somayina was so pleased with these explanations.

He could hardly wait to witness the sun's good-night greetings again.

Soon, it was time to go to bed. Somayina slept soundly all night and woke up extremely happy the next moming.

End of chapter four, see you next week in chapter five.

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