The Devil Has His Money

Episode 5

I was scared to tell Nma ( Mother) that I had failed primary five, she would be angry and disappointed with me. I made her believe i was promoted, she was very happy and used the little money on her to buy me new sandals, khaki uniforms and books. I felt so guilty when she called me and gave me the items. I was tired of school already, the only thing on my mind is money, see how Koku was viciously kicking little Pam because he had money. If only i could find a way to make money things will be better for us, Nma ( Mother) won’t have to go hungry, Little Pam would have fine dresses and Albert could go to the university.

I saw Albert sometimes in the field, we would sit down in silent, there’s everything to talk about and at the same time there’s nothing to say. He knew i had failed, Ama was in my school and she must have told him. I wondered if Albert was still going to school, one noon i hid in the bushes to see if Albert would come out of his school gate, i was happy when i saw him and his colleagues coming out of the gate. They were gisting animatedly, something had them excited and i wondered what it was. But I was happy at least one of us is making Nma proud. Some Sundays I scrub up real nice and go to the Catholique Mission church, not because i want to hear about Jesus or his disciples but because i wanted to discover the secret of wealth. Am sure there’s a secret about it if not why would some people be so rich while some would be poor? Why was i born into a poor home when some were born with glittering diamond spoons in their! Sometimes i wonder if i offended God while i was still with him in heaven.

I won’t mind being poor too much if only i had a little more to eat, i hate the sharp gnawing pangs of hunger, the way it sU-Cks the life out of you making you so weak, most of all i hate the dark and filfty smell of hunger. After one evening mass i walked up to Father Flavi, determined to get an answer to the many unanswered questions in my head.

” Bonsoir Father Flavi” I stopped beside him. He looked at me and smiled, he was a white man but he had been in Togo for so long we stopped seeing him as a white man and accepted him as one of us.

” Bonsoir Kojo, how are you today?”

” Am fine Father, i am curious about some things sir” I began. Father why does God make some people poor and some rich? did the poor ones offend him?

He smiled and beckoned me to follow him to his office. He led the way into his office at the back of the church, he sat down and motioned me to sit on the chair opposite him.

” Kojo you have asked a beautiful question, you see in the sight of God we are all one. We are equal in his sight and he loves us all equally that is why he sent his only begotten son to die for us all’ he looked at me smiling.

” If we are all equal
why is my own family poor? that’s not equality to me.”

” Kojo if only you could see how rich our Father in heaven is, his wealth belongs to us too if only we do things according to his will”

” So if we do things according to his will we would be rich? How about the heathens that are rich sir, where do they get their own wealth from?”

” Kojo the bible tells us to seek first the kingdom of God and every other thing shall follow, whoever is not for God is automatically against him. Not all wealth are from the Lord, some are gotten from the devil”

” The devil!” My eyes almost popped out of my head, the devil also has money?

” But those Ill gotten wealth don’t last and the repercussions are grave, it eventually leads to the loss of everything and death! It is better to wait on the lord”

” Thank you sir” i stood up. I was glad to discover one of the secrets of money, the devil also has the money. If only i could make him give me some without paying for it with my life. I got home to find Nma and Little Pam eating like royalties, i wondered if they had gone to someone’ s burial. The only thing celebrated these days are burials, there’s no money for birthday parties or wedding ceremonies but if you die then be rest assured a party will be thrown for you.I can’t remember when last i ate rice was it three years ago? Or two years?

” Efo (bro) Kojo your bowl of jollof rice is in the room” little Pam said with her mouth full.

I ignored her. ” Nma where did the food come from?”

” Doji the taxi driver brought us half bag of rice with cans of tin tomatoes and groundnut oil this evening.”

” Why did he bring them Nma( Mother)?

” My son i asked him the same question too, we are not related in any way but he said the lord la!d it on his heart to do so”

The next evening, Yaovi the hunter brought us two big grass cutters saying he had more than enough meat at home. Nma was reluctant to accept it at first but he insisted and she thanked him after collecting them. I was sent to the market to sell one of them while we used the other one to make soup.
Five neighborhood guys in total brought us different food items that week, maybe the good lord is tired of me asking him endless questions and decided to feed us through the guys so i could keep my mouth shut.
The guys were Doji the taxi driver, Yaovi the hunter, Francis a lecee ( poly) lecturer, Seyram a government worker and Lyon a Lecee student and also a palmwine tapper.