In Luo community, naming of children is dependent on the seasons and
gender; for example Odhiambo is a name given to a male born in the
evening with Adhiambo being that of the female; Otieno, male born in the
night with Atieno being the female. My parents had a strange way of
naming children with my elder brother name Aringo instead of Oringo; my
three sisters were named Ogolla, Ogutu and Ocholla instead of Agolla,
Agutu and Achola. When I was born, my dad was one hell of a happy guy to
an extent that he forgot to give me a name immediately. When he thought
of naming me, all the names had been taken and he gave me Onyore
Jakotuol. “Tuol” means “log” which can also be interpreted as big
apparatus – I’ll go with the later. I understand they settled for
Migingo Onyore thereafter.
What clicks into your mind when I say Naliaka became very pregnant?
This means that when I was suffering, dad was busy manufacturing my
siblings. The results were bouncing twin baby boys who were named Opiyo
and Odongo as per the Luo customs. It was then one year since Naliaka
came into our lives. At this point, Anditi, the beautiful maid from
Uganda, was long gone and I had to assume additional responsibilities of
helping in carrying the two little angels. I never considered taking
care of them as a punishment. I loved them naturally.
The birth of the angels was an eye opener to mzee. He also joined me
in Naliaka’s list of the persona non gratas - he couldn’t take it. The
neglect that I had endured for over one year was just too much for the
old man. Step mom was ferried back to her maternal home in a Peugeot 404
and an army lorry. The Peugeot carried the VIPS with the lorry taking
care of the household goods Naliaka claimed were purchased during her
tenure as a wife. (The inner reasons warranting her “chasing” are not
for public domain).That was the last time my eye balls were in contact
with that woman.
When I was in class one; dad remembered that I also existed in the
house. My diet changed from the dirty left- overs to natural juices,
biscuits and other very nice snacks. My stomach out rightly rejected the
stuff. It was diarrhea galore. My mom was called from the village to
take care of me. The sickness was a blessing in disguise!! I never
became sick when I was with Naliaka, I couldn’t even dare; but as soon
as she left the scene, sickness crept in and as a result mom came back
to Eldoret. At that time we were still residing in Soy A. Those days,
tablets were rare; injection on the buttocks (sic) was the order of the
day. These injection needles were furthermore being recycled. The
recycling process entailed boiling the already used needles in water at
100 degrees for at least 30 minutes.
I remember the fateful day when mom made me take bath very early
with a promise that we were going together to the village after visiting
the doctor. She also promised that the doctor would only touch my face
but not my sitting allowance. On reaching the hospital, I found needles
boiling in anticipation of penetrating my innocent behind. To my
surprise, my beloved mom assisted the doctor in holding me tight as the
doctor’s blunt needle penetrated my soft behind – a process which would
have taken a few seconds were it not for intractable nature. I was very
heart broken. That day I left the hospital wailing in agony and fled
fast and far. I never returned until late in the evening only to find my
mom conspicuously absent from the house. She had travelled back to the
village. She left me again, leaving me behind in such a lonely place! I
wept profusely despite the natural house rule that deprived anybody with
a male apparatus from shedding a tear. Dad had already camouflaged
himself into a very pure saint giving me some well deserved solace in
the midst of the agony. I even started sleeping in his loving arms at
night. It felt good despite the constant groans which sounded like a
truck stuck in muddy water.
One day I went to bed soon after school, in the middle of the day. I
had a bad dream. In the dream some huge stones were rolling down from
the mountains towards me. They were small from far but as they
progressed they became bigger and smoother. They hit me but I did not
die. (I behaved like Tom & Jerry who will never die considering what
they have so far gone through). It was horrific!! When I woke up that
evening, I found so many adults in the dining room - eating. In the
midst was a smiling stranger who was introduced to me as uncle Nyawito.
Nyawito was (and still is) a carpenter. I knew something wrong was
cooking. I took a seat and joined the male adults. Listening to the
stories, my fears were confirmed. “Winyo mane osiepni cha nyisi ne inene
nade?” (How do you rate the bird that your friend showed you?) Nyawito
asked my dad. I almost asked “Winyo mane (Which bird)?” But I feared the
consequences of popping my nose in the stories of elders. Both Nyawito
and dad thought that I had no knowledge of Luo language. When a Luo man
says “winyo” you should know that he’s talking about a lady he admires.
“Why don’t you ask me how your younger sister is fairing on?”
Nyawito asked me. You mean I had a younger sister while all along I
thought I was the last born? I understood that that younger sister was
born as soon as my mom left for the village the first time – when
Naliaka was still miaha (Newly married lady). She was also the reason
for my mom returning home early after conspiring with the doctor to dent
my sitting allowance. They named her, Ojiro Nyamande, after my extended
grandmother. Ojiro means prank with nyamande meaning something hanging
loosely between a man’s legs. I’m happy I was not named Hanging Prank.
“Mama chiegni kelo moro kendo” (Mom is almost bringing another one),
Nyawito added. The guy was full of verbal diarrhea. That night I slept
in dad’s arms again. I was very happy in the midst of anxiety.
We really enjoyed ourselves as a male dominated family in Eldoret.
You see all the females were in the village and the males were happily
together in the city. I remember visiting game parks, Moi Barracks and
many other places. That was when dad bought plots in Vihiga - life was
good. Those days very few people could afford to drive a Peugeot 404. I
remember the number plate to date- KPC 300.
Many months later, but less than a year of enjoyment, the story of
“winyo” became a reality. A very dark lady came hand in hand with mzee
in the evening. She was introduced to us slowly as Elsa - our stepo
mother. She was so young – hardly 21 yrs of age. At that time I was
almost through with my class 1. The mood of the family changed. A cloud
of darkness engulfed my innocent skull. “Not again!! Not again!!” were
the words rolling in my mind. I became so moody until my mind went blank
before I slept on the couch. I woke up the next morning in a strange
bedroom full of hairy men. My usual bed was a no go zone. Ones again, I
started missing my mom badly. The last time I saw her was when she took
me to the hospital almost seven months prior to the coming of Elsa.
Elsa treated me well. She could make sure that I was very full,
clean and well dressed. In fact we used to take bath together until
Othicha spoilt the show for me. Othicha had the habit of crossing the
open ground whenever we were playing football. She was the one who came
up with the idea that I was old enough to understand my environment.
That was the last time I enjoyed the privilege of taking bath with a
naked woman. The only thing Elsa did not like was me going to play for
long hours when I had to assist with the household chores. At least I
had found another mother who, somehow, loved me like her own son.
Yours Bathing mate,
Onyore Jakotuol
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