Itanife: The Book Of Ifa (Orisha Chronicles) #NaNo2015Winner

A RIVER MEANS PEOPLE - Part 7

                                           The road does't tell the traveller what lies ahead.

                                                                                                  African proverb.

Back in the bus the mood is subdued. Everyone one seems down, some lucky few have fallen asleep while others are busy with their various mobiles, iPads, iPods etc. Sheni has been particularly jittery this morning with swollen red eyes. It's obvious he hadn't slept well last night. I tried to chat with him after breakfast but he totally blanked me. I really am over his crap and will not speak to him next time he comes pretending to be friends.

I have taken to staring out the window watching the huge thick trees lining the edge of the forest. They are magnificent giants, stretching to the skies. Their leaves are very green made lush by the recent rains. I have never travelled by road out of Lagos before. It is a completely new and alien world to me.

We sometimes drive by women with trays of food stuff balanced on their heads, old men riding even older bicycles, children as young as five, walking and running along the side of the road with friends to keep up with us. It seems a hard life without all the amenities we take for granted, but they all look content, happy even without the stress of who has the latest designer bag or shoes that plague us.

At various junctions there are always a collection of roadside traders, selling ready to eat food, vegetables, fruits, groundnuts, dried meat and beverages to drink.

Mrs Amadi lets us know we'll be stopping at the next junction a couple of hours from Osogbo for lunch. This seems to cheer the boys up a bit and the rest of us welcome the chance to stretch our legs.

When we stop everyone troops out of the now stuffy bus. Driving with so many boys in an enclosed space is hell, air conditioning or not, they seem to believe farting is a fun and amusing pastime. It is not!

People start to spread out as they look around for what appeals to them. Kemi and her friends go directly to the fruit sellers. I had heard Kemi yesterday telling her friends not to eat any food sold on the road citing it as being dangerous and unhygienic. Her poor friends look longingly at the rest of us who were already ordering our rice and stews. Kemi is such a fake. Everyone knows these roadside bukkas had the best food just like in town. But I'm sure even back home she never stooped so low to eat in a bukka. Oh well their loss and our gain. There are so many of us, I'm not sure there would have been enough food for us all. So I'm glad most of the cool squad are out of the equation.

After Abi and I are finished with our meal which we washed down with two bottles of fanta each, we realise the disturbing fact that we need a toilet. Disturbing because there is no toilet in sight. These traders must have walked from their various villages to this spot. Even if there is a village nearby, there's no way we're walking away from our group and we know not to bother asking Mrs Amadi if the bus can drive us there. Still I ask her what the girls should do when I see a few boys heading into the forest away from the traders.

"Here is some toilet paper, go that way and I will stand here so no one disturbs you". She smiles at me as she hands me some folded toilet paper. I am so shocked I don't realise that I've stretched out my hand and collected the paper until I feel it in my hand. I look down at it and back up at her.

"You're joking right?". I ask. I can't believe she expects me to go into the Forrest to pee.

"No Tanny I am not joking. Do I look like a comedian? Do you see a toilet around here? If you don't like it you can wait until we get to Osogbo. You are not a baby. You can hold it". She replies patronisingly.