Ego Oyibo: Grandfather’s Surprise That Paper is Money
By
Obododimma Oha
I did not have the luck of coming to the world to meet my paternal grandfather and to enjoy his company as many grandchildren, but from what my father told me about him, he was such an amazing character. His life gave birth to many narratives, one of which was his surprise that the pieces of paper sent in a letter from Cameroon (Kamaro) by his son were money. From what father told me, he (my father) was working for Cameroon Development Corporation (CDC) as a plantation hand and from the employment saved from money to send to his father to remarry, after the early death of his own mother, my grandfather’s first wife. Those were the days of honesty and innocence in which enclosures in hand-delivered letters remained intact. So, the letter arrived safely from Cameroon, containing ten pound notes. But grandfather did not know these notes were money.
Next paragraph,next plot!
Grandfather was hosting a meeting of the ụmụnna the kinsmen. One kinsperson present asked if grandfather had paper that he could use in wrapping his tobacco before smoking. It was allowed for participants to smoke and to share the tobacco during a meeting to be be able to get a proper handle on the discussion. Grandfather said yes, that his son wrote from Kamaro, putting extra sheets of paper inside the envelope as usual. He went and brought the letter containing ten pound notes. The kinsperson who was a tax collector knew they were money and told grandfather so. Grandfather was surprised and argued vehemently that they were not money. He knew what was money as ego ayọrọ (cowrie shells) and ego ikpechi (manilla). How could paper be money? ụwa mmebi (A world headed for ruin)! Some present agreed with him.But this agreement tentative.
Next plot!
The kinsperson was going to prove his point.He took one of the notes and asked for permission to go home with it, to change it to cowries to convince grandfather, for the tax money that he collected was with him at home. These were the days of innocence and he could openly make such a disclosure and say that the money he collected from tax was in his hut! So,he left for home.
When he came with the huge bag of money, one pound note became a heap of cowries! Then, they reread the letter, and it told grandfather that he should use it to look for another woman to marry. Grandfather was pleasantly amazed. Who wouldn’t be? But ego oyibo is surprising!
Do you blame grandfather for not seeing paper as real money? For him, real money has to start proclaiming that it is money with its weight. Weightless money may not impress and move people to action. Weightless money does not look like akụ (possession) and does not invest anybody with ụba or wealth.
Grandfather was used to the power of ego ayọrọ and ego ikpechi, not this paper that could tear or fall inside oil and water to be ruined! How could oyibo the European that spoke through his nose prefer that easily perishable thing to the stronger ones, more durable ones? It does not look sensible. Well,he had to use ego oyibo (thank God it survived and did not get ruined by falling into oil or water or even get torn to pieces!) and start looking for a wife.With that assurance, he slept.
But my worry.
What if that innoent tax collector had come back with few cowries? What if he had agreed that they were pieces of paper he could use for his afụrụafụ and had gone ahead to wrap his tobacco with one of them? What if he had fooled grandfather to give all the pieces of paper to him to smoke afụrụafụ later? Wouldn’t grandfather have agreed? But the kinsperson chose the path of truth! Please,let truth continue to win and to surprise us in matters like this.
Why, in fact, do truth and innocence belong to the past? Why is it that simplefolks were given to speaking the truth? I am waiting for the past to return. I learnt that it travelled without leaving a contact address.
By
Obododimma Oha
I did not have the luck of coming to the world to meet my paternal grandfather and to enjoy his company as many grandchildren, but from what my father told me about him, he was such an amazing character. His life gave birth to many narratives, one of which was his surprise that the pieces of paper sent in a letter from Cameroon (Kamaro) by his son were money. From what father told me, he (my father) was working for Cameroon Development Corporation (CDC) as a plantation hand and from the employment saved from money to send to his father to remarry, after the early death of his own mother, my grandfather’s first wife. Those were the days of honesty and innocence in which enclosures in hand-delivered letters remained intact. So, the letter arrived safely from Cameroon, containing ten pound notes. But grandfather did not know these notes were money.
Next paragraph,next plot!
Grandfather was hosting a meeting of the ụmụnna the kinsmen. One kinsperson present asked if grandfather had paper that he could use in wrapping his tobacco before smoking. It was allowed for participants to smoke and to share the tobacco during a meeting to be be able to get a proper handle on the discussion. Grandfather said yes, that his son wrote from Kamaro, putting extra sheets of paper inside the envelope as usual. He went and brought the letter containing ten pound notes. The kinsperson who was a tax collector knew they were money and told grandfather so. Grandfather was surprised and argued vehemently that they were not money. He knew what was money as ego ayọrọ (cowrie shells) and ego ikpechi (manilla). How could paper be money? ụwa mmebi (A world headed for ruin)! Some present agreed with him.But this agreement tentative.
Next plot!
The kinsperson was going to prove his point.He took one of the notes and asked for permission to go home with it, to change it to cowries to convince grandfather, for the tax money that he collected was with him at home. These were the days of innocence and he could openly make such a disclosure and say that the money he collected from tax was in his hut! So,he left for home.
When he came with the huge bag of money, one pound note became a heap of cowries! Then, they reread the letter, and it told grandfather that he should use it to look for another woman to marry. Grandfather was pleasantly amazed. Who wouldn’t be? But ego oyibo is surprising!
Do you blame grandfather for not seeing paper as real money? For him, real money has to start proclaiming that it is money with its weight. Weightless money may not impress and move people to action. Weightless money does not look like akụ (possession) and does not invest anybody with ụba or wealth.
Grandfather was used to the power of ego ayọrọ and ego ikpechi, not this paper that could tear or fall inside oil and water to be ruined! How could oyibo the European that spoke through his nose prefer that easily perishable thing to the stronger ones, more durable ones? It does not look sensible. Well,he had to use ego oyibo (thank God it survived and did not get ruined by falling into oil or water or even get torn to pieces!) and start looking for a wife.With that assurance, he slept.
But my worry.
What if that innoent tax collector had come back with few cowries? What if he had agreed that they were pieces of paper he could use for his afụrụafụ and had gone ahead to wrap his tobacco with one of them? What if he had fooled grandfather to give all the pieces of paper to him to smoke afụrụafụ later? Wouldn’t grandfather have agreed? But the kinsperson chose the path of truth! Please,let truth continue to win and to surprise us in matters like this.
Why, in fact, do truth and innocence belong to the past? Why is it that simplefolks were given to speaking the truth? I am waiting for the past to return. I learnt that it travelled without leaving a contact address.
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