Tales from My Motherland

By Moses Vincent Okai-Gyau

After so many years of waiting, will the prophesy of a popular
faith healer and an elder of a charismatic church, Papa Kwamena
for Akosua Mansa and Agya Mensa from the village of Akim-
Manso in Ghana be fulfi lled?
Tales from my motherland will take the reader to the people
of Ghanato their traditional settings, their cultural heritage
and beliefs, to the unifying force and the communal spirit of the
people in Akim-Manso.
The story describes how Akosua Mansa moved to Agya Mensa`s
home after their wedding ceremony and their success in farming and
commercial activities as cocoa farmers and as local food restaurant
operators. It fi nally concludes with how their marriage was blessed
with a baby boy who grew up to become a great scholar, after many
years of waiting.
The story tries to expose the totality of the culture and tradition as
well as everyday beliefs of the people in that village of Akim-Manso
in Ghana touching on their traditional farming activities,weddings,
festivals, the practices of a fetish priestess and a medicine-man,
funeral celebrations etc.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris UK
• Release date: Jan 4, 2012
• ISBN: 9781465311351

Moses Vincent Okai-Gyau

The author was born on the 12th of March 1965 in Ghana and became a teacher at Akenkausu local authourity Junior Secondary School and also at New Life Junior Secondary School at Achimota,Accra after his ordinary and advanced level education at Nsaba Secondary school and at Sekondi College. He was a regular contributor to the print media and the Ghana broadcasting corporation before leaving for Germany in the nineties. He is married to Susanne, a German, and has a son by the name of Nana Yaw. The author is currently an employee at Somfy in Rottenburg. His hobbies are reading, writing and gardening.

Book preview

TALES from

My Motherland

Moses Vincent Okai-Gyau

Copyright © 2012 by Moses Vincent Okai-Gyau.

ISBN:          Softcover                                 978-1-4653-1134-4

                   Ebook                                      978-1-4653-1135-1

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

This book was printed in the United States of America.

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Xlibris Corporation

0-800-644-6988

www.xlibrispublishing.co.uk

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303127

Contents

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

THE MARRIAGE CEREMONY

MOVING INTO THE BRIDEGROOM’S HOME

FIRST FARM OF THE NEW COUPLE

ARRIVAL OF THE CINEMA VAN

TRANSPLANTING THE COCOA SEEDLINGS

THE SUDDEN DEATH AND BURIAL OF DANSO

OPANYIN ATTA HARVESTS AND SPLITS THE COCOA POD

PROGRESS AT AGYA’S FARM

AKOSUA´S UNUSUAL DREAM ABOUT INSPECTING THE FARM TRAPS

AGYA MENSA CONSTRUCTS A CORN (STORAGE) SHED

LOST IN THE FOREST

THE MEDICINE MAN HEALS AKOSUA’S AILMENT

CORN SEASON AND THE HARVEST

BASKET WEAVING WITH NKRABEA

THE LOCAL FESTIVAL

A KEYNOTE ADDRESS DELIVERED BY THE CHIEF AT THE DURBAR GROUNDS

A FOOTBALL MATCH TO ROUND-OFF THE FESTIVAL

DECISION TO ESTABLISH A CHOP BAR

A VISIT TO PAPA NKANSA, TO ACQUIRE HIS LAND.

ERECTION OF THE SHED FOR THE CHOP BAR

THE TRUTH THERE IS IN PROPHESIES

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

My first and foremost thanks be to our almighty God whose guidance and divine providence of wisdom brought this book into fruition.

I would like to give a very special word of thanks to my wife, Susanne. Without her enduring patience and loving care to our son Nana Yaw, it would not have been possible for me to start and work further on to complete this book.

To them I dedicate this book and as well as to my late father Teacher Gyau and my mother, Dorcas Koranteng and all their siblings of Akim-Manso.

To my parents in law Hans and Irmgard Günthner from Göppingen, a special dedication goes to them.

Quite a number of people have helped to make this book possible. Special thanks go to Martin and Ralf from Rottenburg, who first went through the manuscript at its infant stages and provided me with an incredible encouragement and the opportunity to explore these ideas to finishing the book. To them and their families, I say a big thank you.

Further thanks go to Nuamah Yaw and Kwaku Asiedu-Turkson from far away London for going through the manuscript and their excellent insights and remarks based on so many years of experience as natives of our dear village Not forgetting Mr.Kofi Anokye, CEO of KOANS building solutions, Accra-Ghana for his support and encouragements.

Special thanks also go to Dr. Berthhold Hallmaier and Joe Faber from Rottenburg for their moral support and motivation throughout this project.

Also to Dr. Mrs Keiko Assenheimer of Central Apotheke in Rottenburg,goes my sincere appreciation for her immeasurable and uncountable contributions in diverse ways.

Without the excellent photography work of Carolin and Stephanie who lived and worked at Akim-Manso for six months, none of the pictures in the book would have been developed.

To the back cover picture, my heartfelt thanks go to Sophia Oswald for her time and expertise.

Finally, it is a great delight to mention my publishers, Xlibris and its able-bodied team for their high sense of professionalism in creating an enjoyable and conduisive environment for writing and publishing books.

Moses Vincent Okai-Gyau

Rottenburg a/N

Germany

12-12-11

THE MARRIAGE CEREMONY

Akosua Mansa’s long awaited pregnancy which was almost treated as a forgotten dream came into reality at last. Long after its ecstatic and infectious joy of expectation had partially been relegated to the back corridors of the minds of the people throughout Akim Manso’s village, faith amongst the couple paid off.

This boisterous farming community of about three thousand inhabitants, where everyone knows the name of barely every other villager alive or dead, attaches great importance to both nuclear and extended family life. The lives of the people are so admirably knitted and interconnected together that ordinary day-to-day activities of each inhabitant is almost known by the others. Strong family ties and an indescribable intimacy of brotherly concern are highly recognised as the hallmark of their natural livelihood. The village did not have electricity or running water; no banking institution let alone a medical clinic. There is a small drug store though to serve the people’s health needs. Three infrastructural facilities that Akosua Mansa’s village can boast of throughout the area are a post office, a Police station with about eight officers, and a magistrate court, which serves the area’s twenty or more village communities. Children and even some grown-ups always feared yet respected the police and treated the magistrate who lived in the next town fifteen kilometers away like the area’s chief executive or even something higher.

Akosua Mansa´s expectancy to be a mother was not only meant to bring joy to her married life and honour her parents with grandchildren, but also as a source of pride for her nine brothers who were itching to have their first nephew or niece from their only sister, who they loved so much.

After one year in marriage, the expectations heightened with each passing day but without it. The parents and their sons knew too well that Akosua Mansa’s pregnancy was the bedrock upon which her new marriage hung. And they feared that any hindrances to it may hinder the marriage’s success and happiness. But to the couple themselves, as well as that of Papa Kwamena-the popular faith healer of the village,who prophesised to them that they will bear a son, there was no doubt on their minds to become parents one day but was a question of time and patience.

As tradition demands, having children is the number one status symbol for every family. For the man, it is a special way to honour his parents, especially his father, whose surname the children would carry. Hence the usual great importance attached to childbirth a year after the marriage ceremony.

Akosua and Agya’s marriage ceremony attracted almost two-thirds of the entire village community. The elders of both were there in their finest kente cloth, proud to usher their grown-up children into the sacred institution of marriage and the respect it deserves notwithstanding the joy, satisfaction and honour ascribed to both families.

Chicken, goats and sheep were slaughtered in preparation of the great celebration’s meals. The bridegroom owned and reared the animals, carefully bred to provide a distinctive, delicious meal. Fufu made from cassavas and plantains was mashed, savoury groundnut soup was prepared, and rice with a rich stew was served. The friends of the bride helped in the preparation of the meals. Corn and groundnuts were roasted with sprinkled either sugar or salt and freshly cut sugarcane was served as dessert to the guests. Akpeteshie, a local, strong alcoholic drink, was not missing from the celebration and as a present the bride’s friends served palm wine known as odoka, which they tapped themselves. Odoka has a strong taste and is usually consumed by the men while the women sip the female version known as nsafufuo. This variety tastes a bit sugary and experts say that its alcoholic content is very low and that is why women prefer it to odoka.

The women who drank nsafufuo did so in small quantities to avoid the embarrassment of getting intoxicated. The community’s tradition and culture completely frowns on women who take delight in excessive drinking and considers them to be irresponsible and incapable of becoming prospective housewives.

Plenty of cartons of soft drinks like Fanta, Sprite and Pepsi were served to the guest ensuring that they had plenty of food to eat and more than a lot to drink. All of the women were allowed to take home some of the remaining soft drinks and sugarcane to their children. On such occasions, if the host is able to so generously serve his guests with plenty of such manufactured soft drinks it is a clear sign of the host’s good financial standing and an ample evidence of a high living standard. Women and children in the village are the greatest lovers of such drinks but rarely buy any to enjoy at home except on festive occasions. Such ceremonies such as a wedding are jokingly considered as both Christmas and Easter in one.

The village gospel band, the eastern melodies, was in full attendance as well as the superb cultural drumming group, Adadam, to give a traditional touch to the celebration through local music. The music began to flow one song after the other as is typical on such occasions, when talented local musicians use such festivities as an opportunity to entertain their listeners with the fantastic arrangements of sweet and vibrant traditional African sounds. The eastern melodies consisted of local men and women who rehearsed twice a week to produce lyrics tailored to suit all occasions. The group did not play any western instrument, just local ones like drums, wooden and metal clappers to make that big difference. The group’s most important asset is the harmonious voices of its members, which regularly brought goose bumps to their listeners. The group’s most fascinating aspect was the leader by name Teacher Owusu and his assistant Ishmael Koranteng whose extraordinary ability to sing in treble, tenor and base.They are always a delightful group to listen to and watch especially Obiri Kwame who, despite his handicapness as a partially blind,is able to play all the instruments including even the western types.His superb skills attracts listeners and sympathisers whenever they perform. Normally, they charge just a small fee for their performances, but listeners who are touched by their wonderful show give them some gifts in the form of money. If the person inviting the group is a relative of one of the group members, the fee is moderately reduced. The group was served free food and drinks before and after the event.

Few years later, the poularity of the eastern melodies under the management of Teacher Bediako grew so high that,the group was invited to make a tour in Germany to display their artistic show in the local gospel music industry.

The speaker on this occasion was Opanyin Yaw Badu, an elderly man and the head of the bride’s clan. He poured a drink and toasted to a successful day and wished the couple good luck for the future. Invoking the gods of the land to stand solidly behind them day and night, rain or shine, he also blessed the couple with fertility and fruitfulness in all their undertakings and above all good health and long life.

While pouring the drink, he intermittently let some drops of the strong alcohol drip onto the floor until his words were completely exhausted. Even though he’s an illiterate man, Opanyin Yaw Badu is highly respected among the village people because of his enviable talent of tremendous eloquence and the excellent manner in which he blends local proverbs with idioms to cater his speeches to any situation, making him the toast of his listeners every time.

Opanyin Yaw Badu is a soft spoken man with an authourity in his gentle voice that is coupled with a natural ability to convey his message of hope and optimism to his people. It is no wonder that he was unanimously chosen to be the head of the Oyoko clan when his dear uncle, Opanyin C.K. Amponsa passed away.

He always performed his duties to the letter, and to the fullest admiration of all the clan’s members as well as the village community as a whole. Last but not the least, he was the only one among his peer group whose skills and talents on an accordion produced excellent songs that all who heard enjoyed, especially on occasions like Christmas and Easter.

On the day of the wedding ceremony, he played a masterful piece of music with his instrument charging and electrifying the whole atmosphere to the delight of all the invited guests. In the traditional village life, if an illiterate has the rare ability to play a western instrument, he or she is hailed and treated like a star from the skies.

After his splendid performance, he began to offer advice to the couple, which forms a part of the celebration.

"Nananom, elders of clans, men and women, kindly permit me to offer these pieces of advice to this young couple on your behalf and on my own behalf."

He then turned to the couple and said, "My children, I am happy that you have come to love and understand each other so well that you have decided to choose the old and ancient path of living together as husband and wife through the institution of our tradition and culture. Marriage is a long and winding journey but I trust both of you to be of good help to one another and cooperate in all things, and at all times, to perform your duties well to bring about a lasting peace, understanding and harmony amongst you. The road is rocky, rough and adventurously indeterminate but full of dignity and joy.

My daughter, do not let your husband go hungry because our elders say that the surest way to the heart of every human is through the stomach. And make sure he is not deprived of the food of love otherwise your future kids will be locked up in your womb amid laughter from all the vibrant invited guests."

Looking strict and a bit louder in his tone, he turned to the would-be bridegroom whom he addressed as nephew, with the following words,

"The beginning of every human endeavour is daunting and challenging but those who push untiringly through with resilience and iron determination become victors. You are the head of the family and the bread winner as well. The success and failure of this, your family life, lie in your hands. Endeavour at all times to cultivate the spirit of hard work in order to be able to feed your family well. I entreat you to put on the armour of courage to sail this brand new family boat of marriage to its successful destination. Call the spade a spade at all times and cut the coat according to your size and above all, be God-fearing and God-loving. To both of you, I will end here by urging you to do the best that you can at all times and leave the rest to the creator of the heavens and the earth.

I wish you a good beginning with all the best of luck and may the omnipotent, who is the unseen guest at all events, bless you in all your ways throughout this long and winding journey of marriage you have begun today. I will end my mouth here."

The guests gave him a standing ovation and Opanyin Kofi Kra, the chief witness of the marriage said, Well spoken Opanyin Badu, I think you have said it all and as the adage goes, a word to the wise is enough. On behalf of our two grown children, I thank you greatly for your plain words and your high sense of maturity displayed in admonishing them. I can assure you on their behalf that they have listened with all their ears. On my part, I also promise to do my very best to be by their side in any difficult situation that may crop up in their marriage life.

The floor was set for the couple to dance to the local band’s tunes, paving the way for the guests to follow suit. The parents-in-law also came to the floor to show their moves, to display their prowess in a traditional and admirable style. The dancing became a scene of joy, full of mini-celebrations as every man; woman and children took to the floor to dance in praise and honour of the proud new couple.

They ate, drank, danced and made merry until sunset and when darkness started to engulf the village, the guests started to return to their homes as there was no generator to provide power or lights. Everyone present was satisfied because the guests’ only prayer is to have a rain-free day on such occasions. And on this day, the sky was clear and cloudless with a pleasantly cool temperature ideal for such a wedding festivity.

The next day early in the morning, Akosua Mansa, Agya Mensa and their relatives went from one house to the other to express their heartfelt appreciation for the large turn-out with special thanks to those who gave them some presents. This took them almost the entire morning with the new couple unable to reach many of their guests since some of them had already gone to their farms. The couple had to continue this gesture of appreciation for almost a week during the mornings and evenings. Most of the guest reciprocated their gesture but kindly asked the couple not to waste their time to thank them so much. Upon seeing the new couple entering her house, one elderly woman ran to embrace them and told them among other things that, Our attendance was meant to express our deepest concern and support for you. Remember very well that we are from one village, one community; we are one people with a common destiny.

MOVING INTO THE

BRIDEGROOM’S HOME

Akosua Mansa moved into Agya Mensa’s home a week after the joyous ceremony, which opened a joyous chapter in the history of their lives. She brought along a lot of cooking utensils and other household utensils packed in a wooden box called a chop box. Her new husband, family members from both sides as well as their well-wishers presented her with several pieces of traditional wax-printed fabric during the wedding ceremony. Other presents included beads, mats and kerosene lanterns as the custom demands, with some items packed in brand new suitcases. Akos’ closest friends followed her in a long line to walk through the village’s principal streets carrying the suitcases, chop boxes and other items on their heads.

Image6198.JPG

ONE OF THE PRINCIPAL STREETS OF THE VILLAGE

Traditionally, each wax print has its own particular name and meaning. Buying such a cloth, either for personal use or as a present, demands careful and prudent consideration as to the message it carries. Depending on the occasion, the cloth’s name plays an important role in determining the thoughts of the person wearing it or of whom it is meant as a gift. At any market, it is sufficient when purchasing these special fabrics to merely mention the pattern name and desired colour.

Customarily, marriage ceremonies are accompanied by presentation of varieties of prestigious fabrics to the bride. Without this presentation, the marriage ceremony is not complete. Some of the most popular and cherished wax prints with their names and literal meanings are as follows:

1.   Sika tutu se anomaa—Like a bird, money flies

2.   Yebisa wo fie, enye wo sika—People ask of ones house not ones money

3.   Okunpa—Good husband

4.   WO nsa akyi beye wo de a, ennte se wo nsa yamu—The inner layer of ones palm generates more feeling than the outer.

5.   Ani bere a enso gya—Fiery eyes are not inflammable

6.   Ohuriye si akyekyedee akyi Kwa—Tsetsefly is harmless to the tortoise.

7.   Wo afa me se Nnwa—You picked me up like a snail

8.   Afe bi ye asiane-Some years are full of misfortunes

9.   Ahene pa nkasa—Precious beads are noiseless

After parading through the streets displaying the numerous presents carried on their heads, they escorted her to her new home—the bridegroom, Agya Mensa’s home. They sang, clapped their hands and danced until they reached their final destination where Agya and his close friends were already waiting to receive Akosua and her vociferous entourage.

Agya has a large compound comparable to the size of a football field with the house designed as two separate quarters situated in an open, central courtyard with the spacious compound surrounding it. Two rooms built of red mud earth and roofed with bamboo blades make up one quarter with two separate rooms on the opposite side comprising the other part of the house. Friends and relatives helped build the abode from the foundation level to the roofing stage. Agya Mensa gathered all the materials needed for the project from a nearby forest except for the cement used to plaster the interior bed and living rooms. The other rooms situated at the opposite end of the bedroom serve as a kitchen and a storage room. These rooms were roofed with palm leaves and raffia grass known as bamu. The compound is not cemented but it is beautifully covered with fine gravel to avoid muddy situations and ground erosion during the rainy season.

In the middle of the compound, there is a giant avocado pear tree that gives comfortable shade for a radius of about twenty square meters. During the day, when the sun is at its scorching best, it is relaxing and comfortable to sit under this tree.

The only problem is during the avocado pear season when it becomes dangerous to sit under the tree since the ripened fruits could fall on someone.

It does not happen often but when it does, there are no serious effects since the tree has many branches to reduce the speed and intensity of the descending fruit before it reaches the ground. Even if an avocado pear hits someone, the family jokes about it considering it as good luck. The victim reserves the right and honour to keep the offending piece of fruit and may pick a few as a peace gesture.

The entire compound is fenced with bamboo blades. At the extreme end of the compound, adjacent to the storeroom is a pit latrine with a bathroom attached to it. The hole of the toilet is about four meters long and covered with hardwood. A rectangular wooden box made by the local carpenter is placed over it to enable users to easily sit on. This is in every respect a luxury facility in the village since about fifty percent of the inhabitants have to use the public bathroom facility built by the municipal authourity. There are four such facilities situated at vantage points to serve those who do not have