Christmas: The Boxing Day

Chapter 5

The Boxing Day

Two things characterize this day in those days. The first is eating of left over’s and the second is visitation. The left over rice will be boiled and eaten with yesterday’s fried meat. Some kunu Zaki may most likely be available.

This is day two of visitation. Place we could not visit on Christmas day will receive our attention on the Boxing Day. We will continue to visit homes to wish them a happy Christmas while the adult tips us. 

This is possible because the government usually gives the public two days as holiday at Christmas. On this day we also go to far places. We will for instance walk from Sabon Gari to Samaru. This is a distance that is more than five kilometers. We will come back in the evening tired and go to bed early. We usually give our mothers our share of happy Christmas money to keep for us.  We do not usually know what will later happen to it. I can only remember once after a Christmas I bought a penholder and ink with my money. We have been taught not to spend any money given to us without first bringing it home to our parents./

At the end of this day we will count our money and share it among ourselves. When I grew older and became teenagers while sharing we will add an extra share that we will use in buying minerals.  We will buy drinks like coke, Fanta and 7up and have a feast.

We will go to a mounting at the end of the day in Government Reserved Area (GRA) to sit down and eat our chichin, meat and minerals with all our friends. We will go with a Radio cassette player and play bonny-M Christmas music and sing and dance. At that time there were no CD players./ This is my recollection and description of Christmas in my days as a child.

Chapter 6

Christmas in My Teenage Years

            I considered it important to descript in this chapter how my Christmas activities in the community change and some other negative developments that affected the community at that time.

            In the 1980s there was the rise of a pop group by the name of cool and the gang. The hard a very popular song titled “get down on it,” Parties where organized by secondary students at Christmas brake. I attended the first one that was done in our community and it became the first and the last party I attended because of what happened that day.

            It started with one of the students serving as an MC. There was introduction that is one will stand up say his name and the school he attends, the purpose of the Christmas party was the next item. It was followed by uniform dance of the song get down on it. Next it was riddle and jokes.

The problem started when it came to item seven. Alcohol then known as boas was introduced. I did not know what it meant when they say it was time to boas. They brought out cartons of beer and kept them at the centre. To my surprise many of my Muslim and Christian friends rush for the Boas. I did not know that they have been drinking alchogol secretly.

I later discover their source of drinking to one man that came newly to the community and was selling beer, cigarette and cannabise (wewe) to children.

The party ended up in a fight and some of us had to escape through the widow. The were some that were injured

            The activity of this drug lord that I mention earlier brought others like him. Many of it was football and the fear of God that stopped us from venturing into drug abuse. Our coach observed what was happening was constantly warning us that if you enter into drugs you will not be a good soccer player. We had a passion for football and will not like to attempt anything that will jeopardize this. Many of my friends that started stopped. In the church activities we were also warn that drunkard will inherit the kingdom of God.

            Unfortunately solution was introduce into the community and those who could not afford to buy the other drugs went for it. One of my friends in the community and a classmate took to solution and became mentally derail. He got to the point of  working necked on the streets. However, he could still recognize me and I still feel pity for him.

Epilogue

A story in Africa always has a lesson. The understate factors of peace are the lessons we can learn among others:

1.      We lived together: People can co-exist there isn’t a Muslim or a Christian community as is the case now in many places.

2.      We visited each other: You knew where people lived and you are able to visit them.

3.      We ate together: No bodies’ food was looked down at. We eat each other’s food happily.

4.      We gave one another gifts: You neighbor can give you a gift during festive period even when he does not belong to your faith.

5.      We played ball together: We hard recreation and sporting activities together.

6.      Drug abuse is a destroyer of peace. There cannot be peace in any community where the abuse of drug is prevalent.

7.      In a pluralistic society the used of festivities can tremendously help to unite and create peaceful co-existence.

It has been over 30 years now since I left the Chikaji community. I have lost touch with most of the people mentioned in this book except for one or two. Recently, I made some that has left a neigbouring community of chikaji. I ask him about the community. He told me that the drug abuse have continued in the area.

About Us

By buying this book you have contributed to the peace initiative and the activities of Benjamin Bissan Shekari Lives on Foundation, we therefore wish to thank you so very much.

Our Website www.bbslofng.org

Our blog www.bbs;of.blogspot.com

Email info@bbslofng.org

Phone +2348023612829

Books on Peace from Africa

1.                  Sallah Day in Africa: A Community Peace Experience

2.                  Christmas Day in Africa: A Community Peace Experience

3.                  Chikaji Eleven: A  Youth Soccer Team in Africa

4.                  Here we Go Again: A Youth Hunting Team in Africa

Glossary

1.       Dakuwa is an Africa food. It is  a snack made of fried and grinded Ground nut, pepper and flower.

2.       Allele is an African food. It is  also called call moimoi in Western Nigeria. It is made of sulked and grinded beans and pepper. Sometimes egg and meat are added to it.

3.       Alkaki is an African food. It is a snack made of flower and honey.

4.       Gidan Kule: This is the prudery Hausa Muslim houses whereby men are not allowed to enter them.

5.       Zaure: This is an attach room to a main house that is usually found in puder houses whereby a male visitor and wait for the owner of the house. The excuse is also made here.

6.       Aya. Tiger nuts

7.       Nepa is now known as Power holding Ltd.

8.       Hassan da Usaini

9.       Northen Nigeria. This is a geo-political zone in Nigeria of West Africa. It was ruled by Primier Sir Ahmadu Bello. It has more that 60 million people. It has moren 200 language but the predominate one is Hausa.

10.  jeopardize

11.  Tolerance

12.  Co-existence

13.  Kosai