Mama Kama had gone to a lot of trouble preparing the room with special bed sheets and had perfumed the room and everything that was in it to make it special for the bride and groom. Beko and Mabige had loved the attention to detail that Mama Kama had shown, despite the short notice. That night Mama Kama mad sure she confined herself to her bedroom so that she would not disturb the newlyweds as she knew they had a lot of catching up to do.
For Mabige and Beko, it was magical to spend all this intimate time alone and being together at last. They could not stop thanking Mara for bringing them together. They loved each other so much that they only had eyes for each other and slipped into their own little world. Mama Kama made sure that no one was to disturb them even if the house was on fire, she wanted them left well alone. The whole ceremony was overwhelming for her and brought a tear to her eye and made her all emotional.
The following day, they had woken up and had had breakfast and Beko had spent quality time with her family. Mabige spent time with Tamura and Soku telling them all about last night’s adventures and about manhood.
The couple carried a few gifts with them including a couple of goats which Papa Mondo had given them as a gift to start their own home and as a symbol of wealth and fruitfulness. Beko and her mother embraced and cried for they would miss each other dearly, but promised to visit as often as possible. The whole village came out to wish them farewell.
Chapter 29
Normality returned to Goza, almost simultaneously. Besides, they had a more pressing matter of spending time in prayer. They could never be too complacent to the fact that the evil spirits could strike any moment. They all had to be prepared, young and old. That evening after they had all had their supper, the Goza people gathered in the prayer room to carry out their normal prayers for protection for themselves, their families and neighbours far and wide.
Somehow the king and a few other elders had noticed that since the building of the prayer room and the start of prayers in there as a group of people, there was always a sense of calm and peace in the atmosphere. Moreover, the Goza people became more tolerant of each other and cared for each other more. This pleased the king and he thought to himself that the impending evil had birthed a tighter collaborative and single-minded people, which made it easy for the king to rule over his people.
He gave a speech in the prayer room that the people need never take their prayers for granted and to encourage one another to pray without ceasing until the day would come. He urged them not to be tired or lazy or weary of praying for it is better to sacrifice their time and effort than to suffer death at the hands of the evil spirits, which no one knew when they would strike.
The Goza people would spend hours learning the two new songs besides reciting their prayers. They found the whole experience of learning the songs quite enjoyable. However, they had high regard for Mara’s patience and calmness each time they sang out of tune or forgotten the lines and she would correct them with love. At first, she had squinted her eyes with annoyance but would start laughing whenever the group laughed at themselves for mucking up the songs.
Mabige, Beko and Soku arrived in Huru to find Mama Haga cooking corn in a large pot and some roasting on the fire on a wire rack. She heard voices in the distance and raised her head to see the three coming. She started ululating and singing shouting for all the neighbours to come out and meet her new sister-in-law. In no time at all, the people of Huru came out in their droves to meet and greet the newcomer into their village with singing shouting and ululations. The women threw their wrappers on the ground as though they were laying a red carpet for Beko to walk on as she approached the yard.
She felt really special with all the attention. The group congratulated her and Mabige as Mama Haga took their luggage away to their house. They sat down and people took turns to introduce themselves to Beko who was the stranger. One of the elderly women with no front teeth came to her and said, “What am I going to do with you for stealing my husband? Mabige was supposed to marry me not you!” The whole group laughed heartily and luckily Beko knew she was only joking.
At that moment, Papa Haga who had been having his usual nap inside the house came out after hearing all the commotion and he embraced his younger brother and shook his hand with vigour and welcomed him into the ‘Married Club’. He was so happy for him and he turned his gaze to Beko and he opened his mouth wide when he saw how beautiful she looked from the last time he had seen her. He went over to her and gave her a big hug and welcomed her to the family, this time not as a visitor but as an in-law.
In no time at all, Beko and Mabige settled into marital bliss and she got on really well with Mama and Papa Haga as well as the rest of the neighbours in the village. She quickly drew up a routine of helping Mabige on the farm as well as taking care of all domestic chores and assisting Mama Haga in any way she could. Mama Haga was also starting to feel her age like her aging husband and Beko had noticed it.
As was the custom in Goza to gather together and pray, Beko was impressed that Mama Haga had managed to build up
