Prix Littéraire Rumuri

A Girl, Not a Cow for Sale

By Egide Harerimana

She was born in a land of honey and milk. A country of a nine-month period of the rainy season. It was and still is a country of thousands of hills which are embodied with long and green trees. In this country, people were and still are united around one language, one culture, and one destiny. They lived in harmony as one people. The foundation of unity in that country was and still is love. It is a wonderful and superb country of birds, lakes, rivers, animals, and peoples all living a complementary life. Her name was Sunrise. This name was chosen carefully. She was born in a family after the birth of five successive boys. Her mother called her Sunrise to mean that the birth of a daughter was like the rising of the sun in the family. Indeed, she was extremely beautiful. Therefore, she was compared to the sunrise. She was neither short nor tall; light-skinned and well built. Sunrise was very attractive, delicate, extraordinary; and exceptionally kind and gentle. She had a very soft voice. When talking, one could think that she was singing or rhyming a poetry device. As she grew up, she became more and more beautiful. Sunrise was twenty-one years old when she finished high school. Her father, John, was not rich. However, he had a small shop at the center of the village. He took his daughter Sunrise to the market place to be a shop manager. In the shop, Sunrise became the actual sunrise. She exercised duties beyond managing the shop. Her beauty was the bait that attracted many customers. They could come to see that lady with such extraordinary beauty in the village. The shop was always full of people. The amplified voice of Sunrise enchanted people to the extent that they could buy things they did not plan to purchase. Men in the village were seduced by the beauty of this girl. Some could tell her overtly that they loved her; others could not because they were afraid. Her father couldn’t help singing in the village that the dowry of her daughter would be substantial. Sunrise used to attend the morning mass at the nearby church. On one Sunday, after the mass, she met her classmate who was by the time a graduate from the national university. His name was Clever. He was born from a poor family like Sunrise. Nonetheless, Clever underestimated himself looking at how Sunrise was dressed to kill and as beautiful as an angel. He was surprised but could not show his disappointment. He proposed to escort her up to her home so as they could talk about life issues as former acquaintances. They left the church together and went back towards Sunrise’s home. They walked hand in hand, sharing smiles, talking about their former life as pupils and trying to reminisce about some other classmates. In the meantime, one could read fear in the face of Clever. They started to share sweet words as they were about to separate. It was high time they parted ways but they could not stand the final greetings. With a loving face, Sunrise sat under a tree and Clever sat by her side. They started singing in their local language, imitating a song of one famous singer of the village. While singing, Clever uttered words sweeter than he had ever said to anybody before. “I love you, buddy, I am but what you deserve Your heart is but what I preserve Your soul is what I need Because we are to belong to the same breed What I love is all that is you What I hate are your enemies to eschew A beautiful lady I’ve never seen Crazy of you is what I’ve been Your smile is but a paradise I am talking about you my Sunrise Your body is what I need to pamper You are such a golden river for me to swim Love is what I am talking verbatim” After listening to the song, Sunrise broke into tears. Clever took a handkerchief to clear her tears. From dawn to dusk, it was such a long time in between. Despite that, they never felt hungry. The time went by quickly as they were having fun. However, she stood and bid him farewell as it was getting dark. As clever was cherishing Sunrise with his sweet words, Boss, on the other side, was cherishing John, the father of Sunrise, with much beer and kebabs at a very nice pub of the village. “Do you know that you are my father-in-law?” Boss told John. John jumped high because of happiness. He had no such kind of dream to see his daughter married to such a boss of the village. He started praising Boss to the skies. He blessed Boss and his future family with Sunrise wishing him to multiply and continue to prosper. “Sunrise is ready for you. She cannot refuse.” John said. Hearing this, Boss called the barman to bring some other bottles of Amstel for his socalled father-in-law. They drank until night. Sunrise was cooking the night’s meal when she heard her father far from home singing as he was coming back from the bar. She understood that her father was drunk. John arrived walking on the rhythm of the song. “Boss, oh my boss Boss, oh my son-in-law I will praise your higher name forever You who are ready to give me cows You who give me drinks You who give me a place in other men I promise that I will give you my Sunrise” He entered the house still singing the song. Sunrise was confused and exasperated. She heard from the song the names of Boss and Sunrise but took it for granted and continued to cook. She finished cooking and brought the food on the table to serve the family. The father ate but still singing the song without making sounds. Sunrise thought that something might have happened but expected to hear from her father the relationship between her and Boss. Quickly after the evening meal, John called Sunrise and introduced the name of Boss to her. Boss was a thirty years old rich man. He inherited the wealth from his departed father. He was the only person who had a car in the village. He had also many cows, houses and shops. He was very fat and tall. Many people respected and feared him. Poor people had no other choice than to submit themselves to him so that they could get jobs to work in his plantations, herd his cows and work as house boys and girls in his house. He was not yet married. It was, therefore, a great honor for John to be closer to such a kind of man because a friend of a respected man is necessarily respected. “Boss is willing to marry you. If you’re still my daughter, I urge you to never deny his proposal. He has much money, you know.” John told Sunrise. Sunrise bowed her head down as she kept on listening to her father. “He is rich. It will be honorable for me, my family and you, my daughter, will have that man as my son-in-law. You must marry him.” He added. In the morning of the following day, Sunrise met Boss’s car when she was going to fetch water. When Boss saw her, he stopped the car, opened the glass of the car’s door and beckoned Sunrise to get closer to the car. Sunrise refused and continued his way to the water tap. Boss got out of the car. He called again Sunrise to come close to him, this time using kind words. He told her that he was going to marry her soon. He told her to come in the afternoon at his very big shop to take everything she wanted, be it clothes, shoes, telephone and so many other items that she might want. He told her that he was going to make her a nice woman ever seen in the village. Nonetheless, Sunrise was very bored with the words of Boss. She couldn’t help hiding her emotional reactions against Boss’s words. “I hate you with all my heart Your words are nothing but for my heart to hurt Who told you that I am on the market? To be bought on the velvet I don’t need you and your money I got my best honey The sweet of my heart Clever” Sunrise said angrily. Boss got on his car. Henceforth, he decided to never talk to Sunrise again. He decided to talk to John, her father so he could convince his daughter to marry him. In their culture, there was a proverb which said that “Ants converse when they are grouped on a bone.” This meant that when two or more people wanted to talk about a sensitive issue, they should gather around something like a pot of wine. Back in the day, when there was an important issue to handle, people especially men should be assembled around a pot of banana wine and discuss while drinking on the wine at the same time. As things kept on evolving, banana wine had been sometimes replaced by industrial drinks like beer, Amstel and the like. That’s why Boss and John always talked about the wish of Boss to marry Sunrise while drinking beer in the bar. In the evening, Sunrise heard a harsh hoot of a car at the gate when she was in the kitchen. The car started to wail but she did not care. John was in the house listening to the news on the national radio. As the car went on wailing, John turned off the radio to listen carefully. After hearing that the car was on the gate, he picked the coat up on the chair and rushed at the gate because he made sure that it was Boss. John got into the car. They moved towards the bar as usual. They arrived in the bar and sat around the table. Boss ordered two bottles of primus. They started talking and Boss introduced the case of Sunrise. He stated that he was ready to give three cows and a big amount of money as dowry paid for Sunrise. However, he told John how Sunrise behaved in the morning when he met her going to fetch water. Hearing that Sunrise disrespected Boss, John felt ashamed and sad. He asked for forgiveness on behalf of her daughter and promised to punish her severely. John went back home before they slept. He was too angry. He insulted everyone he met in the house starting with his wife and all his sons. He was a bit drunk. His voice was that of a thunderbolt when he was calling all members of the family to come in the dining room. They sat silently. John started saying that his family was lucky because they were going to have a well-off son-in-law. All were listening carefully. He said that Boss was ready to give three cows and some money as a dowry so as to marry Sunrise. By that time, Sunrise’s mother jumped up high in exhilaration. She congratulated her daughter and wished her good luck in her new family to be. Sunrise’s brothers should also manifest a bit of smile as the father was introducing the point. But that was not the whole story. John began to talk pointing the finger at Sunrise. His voice became that of a lion roaring. “I am talking to you Sunrise. It’s high time you respected me and my decisions as your father.” He said. “You must marry Boss. I don’t want to hear the name of Clever.” He shouted on Sunrise. Sunrise was on the other side shivering. She dropped tears but tried to appease the emotions as her father was still speaking. According to the culture, it was forbidden that children interrupt their parents when they were speaking. “I am not a cow that you’re selling. I love Clever. Why are you forcing me to marry someone I don’t love?” Sunrise said tearfully. John went to sleep angrily. The following was the day Clever promised to pay a visit to Sunrise at home. Sunrise woke up in the morning, as usual, cleaning well the house and arranging everything in the house. She cleaned the front and back yard as well. She told her mother that she had a very special guest. Her mother never minded welcoming Sunrise’s guests because she loved her so much. Her father had left home at the dawn. He met Clever on his way. Clever was humble before him because he knew that John was going to be his father-in-law. John did not know where Clever was heading to. However, he started to insult him. “You, son of a bitch. You want to take my daughter for free!” “You charmed my child with your words and craft. I will show you who I am.” John told Clever. John tried to harass Clever by slapping him but Clever ran away from him and continued his way. Thereafter, the plan to arrive at home changed though he had told Sunrise that he could pay her a visit at home. He was but afraid that he could be beaten hard once John found him in his house. Clever called Sunrise by the telephone to come and meet him at some miles far away from home. Sunrise responded very quickly to the call of Clever by coming. They hugged as though it was a hundred years without seeing each other. They shared soft smiles and kisses as they still held each other’s hand. They sat under a tree that was called “a tree of love”. Under that tree, loving winds and good weather were found galore. After sharing warm greetings, Clever opened his bag and grabbed a gift that he had prepared to give to Sunrise. “Take this gift, my sweetheart For you won my heart I love you from so many years ago And I will never let you go Till death do us apart.” Clever said. “Will you marry me my Sunrise?” He asked her. Happiness could not be hidden in the face of Sunrise. It was happiness mixed with emotions. She answered: “I am short of words to express my gratitude You are a man of good attitude I adore you my Clever And I will be your wife forever.” Clever heard that Boss was also willing to marry Sunrise. He got lost and became pessimistic because he was not ready to compete with such a magnanimous man known all over the village. By that time, he asked Sunrise all the news about her relations with Boss. Sunrise swore to never have loved Boss. She explained to Clever that Boss was currently cooperating with her father so that he could convince her to marry him. Clever understood. They started to think about how they could overcome the pressure of Sunrise’s father. The only way out was to plan for marriage as soon as possible. They decided to prepare their marriage in two months. However, Clever still had problems because he could not afford the dowry that John wanted for his daughter. After taking a decision to plan for marriage in two months, Sunrise seemed to be lost. She looked away from Clever. It was apparent that she was thinking hard. The happiness that she had before disappeared. Clever held her by the shoulders and asked her what was wrong. Sunrise answered: “I know my father won’t accept this. He wants me to marry Boss because he wants to get many things from him.” “My father is too stubborn. He can chop me into pieces if I say that I am preparing marriage with you.”She added. Clever was listening silently. They stayed silent for around ten minutes. They could not look at each other. Sunrise broke the silence. She told him that she recognized his financial situation. She proposed him to prepare a gift together which they could afford and give it to the father. They were still afraid that John could not accept the gift. However, they consented on the gift of 300,000 francs of local currency. Sunrise accepted to contribute the half so as to help Clever. Before they parted ways, they decided to involve the wise man of the village in this matter so that he could help them to convince John to accept the gift and let Sunrise marry Clever. It was almost in the night that Sunrise could rush up home so that her father could not arrive before her. As Clever and Sunrise separated, it was time that John and Boss met in the bar. John arrived before Boss. He could talk to barmen while waiting for Boss to come. They could not understand why John was always making deals with that rich man of the village. They were willing to apply for jobs in Boss’s businesses but he was so arrogant that it was so difficult to talk to him. They asked John if he could help them to be in contact with Boss. It was so amazing that John could share a bottle almost every day with Boss. John revealed the secret to the barmen. “It’s because I have a beautiful daughter that Boss wants to marry. He is my son-inlaw. I promised to give him my Sunrise.” John explained. As they were still talking, the car arrived. John interrupted with the barmen and stood up to greet Boss. John pulled down his hat as respect way to greet Boss. He was likely to kneel down. They sat around a table far from others. Boss ordered drinks and kebabs as usual. They started eating and drinking. Boss opened the discussion thanking John for having come. He, thereafter, introduced his wish to marry Sunrise as soon as possible. He told John that nothing was missing. He assured him that everything was ready for the marriage to take place. John was listening attentively. Boss added that the three cows for dowry were ready. Before he went on, John took the floor to speak. He thanked Boss for being ready to marry Sunrise. However, he expressed his preoccupations as far as the relationship between Sunrise and Clever was concerned. He told Boss that he was afraid Sunrise might not be ready for marriage with him. One could hear the heart of Boss beating hard. Henceforth, John reassured Boss that everything could go well. He assumed that he was going to take responsibility as a father to force Sunrise to marry Boss. “I will never accept any offer from another suitor. You are the only one I prefer to marry Sunrise.” John pledged. Boss reacted by clapping for John’s promise. He confessed that he would do everything possible to please John and his family. He ordered other drinks so as to encourage him. They could share cheers since they were on the same wavelength. They finished drinking when it was almost 9 pm. Boss gave a ride to John until home. When they were about to separate, Boss took a gift he prepared for Sunrise which was in the car. He gave it to the father so that he could give it to Sunrise once at home. The family was sitting in the living room after eating. They were chatting before they could go to sleep. John entered the house with a covered box in his hands. The box was covered in a very nice package made up of different colors and flowers. Nobody could see what was inside it. He put it on the table and sat between members of the family. They carried on talking and John introduced the story about the gift that was on the table. “Sunrise, take your gift. It was sent to you by someone who loves you.” John said. “Papa I can guess who sent me this gift. It’s my Clever".Sunrise said it happily. John shook his head. He spent a bit of time in silence. He could look at Sunrise and look downward without talking, much like he was in a deeper dilemma. “I told you to never repeat the name of Clever in my house. If you want, go and live with that poor boy without my blessings.” John said angrily. Sunrise did not take the gift. Her father kept on insisting that she should accept Boss but Sunrise refused obstinately. They went to sleep without any consent. The gift stayed on the table unopened. The next day, the father took it and kept it in the drawer waiting that Sunrise could go back on her word. Still, that was not the whole story. At the wise man compound, every morning, there were people who could come to ask for pieces of advice, settle conflicts and sue other problems happening in the village. That day was the turn for Clever and Sunrise. He was a good man ever seen. He was humble, courteous and good at listening. In the same perspective, Clever and Sunrise met early the morning to sue their case to the “Mushingantahe”, the title that was given to someone endowed with skills and abilities to solve problems, manage conflicts, give wise pieces of advice to people and help to build harmony in the society. They arrived in his compound as the sun was rising. He welcomed them, gave them a seat and asked them to tell their story. There was a problem between Clever and Sunrise to know who should start to speak. Thereafter, Sunrise started. “We are lovers. However, my father is hindering our love. He wants me to marry a different person whom I don’t love.” Sunrise explained. The wise man shook his head as he was listening. After listening carefully, he spoke to them. “You children, have got to respect your parents because they are older and wiser than you are.” He said. “Anyway, why does he want you to marry a different person?” he asked a question. As he was about to finish speaking, the heart of Clever was beating like a drum. He thought that the results might not be favorable to him as the wise man was insisting on the respect that children should owe to their parents. He understood that the wise man was urging Sunrise to accept her father’s decisions. On her side, Sunrise reacted. “I love my father and I don’t want to disrespect him. He wants me to marry Boss because he promised to give him many precious things as a dowry. Clever got only 300,000 francs to give him as a gift for having brought me up.” She said. The wise man stood up and asked Clever and Sunrise to follow him. They went straight to John’s home. Sunrise went quicker before them to tell her father that there were people coming to see him. John’s home was at some miles not very far from the wise man home. As they arrived at the gate, John was disappointed to see the wise man that morning together with Clever. He knew Clever before. He greeted the wise man but not Clever and welcomed them for a seat. John told Sunrise to go somewhere in the chamber and bring a pot of banana wine because this was the custom that men could talk while drinking on the wine. They exchanged a few words before the wise man introduced the main point on the agenda. “Your daughter and this man love each other. You need to accept Clever as your sonin-law. ” He introduced. “A daughter is not a cow for sale. I want you to understand this. ”He insisted. “Boss may have money but not love. Let Sunrise marry the one she loves.” The wise man finished speaking. The heart of Clever was full of exhilaration. John was a little bit nervous but tried to overcome anger. “In our culture, it is said that a girl is not a child,” John said. Immediately, the wise man reacted. “No, no, never say that. A daughter is a child like a son.” John finally was convinced that he should accept the choice of Sunrise. He confessed love to Clever. They stood up and hugged one another as a sign of unity. Sunrise was excited to see her father and Clever sharing smiles and soft words. It was her great satisfaction. After a short time of joking as they were happy of John’s changing attitude, the wise man told John that Clever had prepared 300,000 francs to give him as a gift for having brought up Sunrise and taken her to school. The wise man explained that normally there was no price one could pay for a human being. “A dowry is just a gift. Parents should remember that children need to live after their marriage.” He told John. Without hesitating, Sunrise’s father, John, accepted the gift as a dowry. In the meantime, Clever proposed that the dowry day should not be such a great ceremony. He promised to send the dowry with the wise man and another man in two weeks so as to minimize expenses. Both John and the wise man congratulated Clever for a good idea. At that time, Sunrise was listening to them being outside behind the wall. She could dance, laugh by herself and jump because of happiness. Before they left the house, they agreed on the idea that the marriage could take place in two months. After two months, Clever married Sunrise. It was a very great ceremony considering the crowd of people who attended it. Boss came to assist that marriage. He left before the end of ceremonies because he was shocked and felt jealous. Clever and Sunrise lived a prosperous life together as a husband and wife.