EMMAWAD

  THE CONCEPT OF RICE AND CHICKEN FOR CHRISTMAS In this part of the world, the meal you prepare for Christmas could determine your social class. It is an indicator of how wealthy or poor you are. While there are a variety of meals to have on Christmas day, one has been standing out for years; Rice and Chicken. Even as the price of rice keeps escalating year after year, it is the go-to meal for Christmas, especially for the common man. In the year 1999, a bag of rice was sold for N2,500. In 2014 it went as high as N10,000 and in 2020 it is competing with the minimum wage; N30,000. According to @EuginhoCortez “at this trajectory, a bag of rice will cost N250,000 in 2035.” We are going higher, yes we are! As a little girl of 6 years old, I recall eating rice (especially Jollof/red rice) and the wings or toes of a slaughtered chicken every Christmas day. The taste of the rice was different from your everyday rice and the chicken, very crunchy. It was and still is a tradition. Tho...

  UPON THE MOUNTAIN   “What would happen if you do not make this jump?” She asked herself while standing on one of the highest points of the Olumo Rock. She got to that point with the company of other tourists chatting their lives away and taking memorable pictures of one another. However, the majority of the crowd took the road more travelled by; the stairs that looked newly built to help the young and old. Here, a lift(s) will be a bad idea knowing the nature of our electricity system. We call it kpa na kpa na!   Being the daring type, she decided to take the route less followed; the inner rocks. She got past the shrine where the tour guard had explained they sacrificed animals to the gods who in turn protected tourists from any danger. Some rocks looked like humans turned into stones; they have been there for thousands of years. It was a marvel, all she wanted to do was to go further until she got to the highest point of the mountain. It would be one grand achiev...