Coming of Age
John S. Kado
When I awoke, there was an unusual silence in the air and I found myself listening for
something- the sound of a warning horn. As it sounded I slipped on a skin cloak and rushed from
my hut. This was an important day- a day when a group of brave youths was going to be tested
and enlisted in my tribes defense force as men. On such occasions quietness was, without
reason, maintained and the early morning cry of birds rare.
If I succeed, I will be able to act and think in love, fame and glory as men of my tribe do, I told
myself as I hurried to offer sacrifice to my dead ancestors. Quee! Quee! cried the hen, as I
cruelly butchered it with a blunt ancestral knife. But I cared not for the cry. I was only after
success. The cruel deed done, I gave the sun my back and threw the dying hen towards it- to the
sunrays, for that is where my dead ancestors live.
Shortly I was on my way to the Oak of the Ancestors where the test was to be.
Be grateful to those who brought you up by hand, my son. Remember, it will be a mere beating
of your back till blood appears, were fathers only words of encouragement.
When I arrived there was a big crowd waiting anxiously to see this cruel. Suddenly the sweet
pomp of the African drums was on beat. This evoked in me the pride of being a true son of
Africa. We were summoned to stand on a line in front of the elders of our tribe. The test was
about to begin. Our backs were to be beaten with whips till blood appeared. The drumbeats were
to regulate the speed of beating. To show ones manliness, one was not allowed to shake or cry.
It was cruel.
The first boy passed well. But the second, alas, the womb that carried him! After a beating, he
burst out with a loud cry, releasing and urinating, as if his guts had no way to control the
swallowed food. His father was gently ashamed, then came my turn. The first beating made my
blood run madly around my body. I felt the pain around the top of my forehead. The whole of
my back was paralyzed instantly. As the beating went on, I felt no further pain. Then I knew that
the ghost of my dead ancestors had clustered on my back to receive the beatings. The sacrifice
was good- a fat, clean hen.
blood! the crowd shouted. I had passed the test. As my father and relatives rushed to hail me, I
felt some deadly pain. I nearly cried but the test was over. I was a man!
I was carried home amid cheers as the test was continued on the others. My wounded back was
nursed first. Then I was given the best food- fried mutton. Meanwhile, gifts poured in from my
relatives. That, put together, made me a man of meager wealth- enough to start life with.
After wating I went to sleep to avoid pain. I was proud to be a son of Africa- Africa the land of
black proud warriors like myself in the ancestral Savannah. I took opium to make me fall asleep
quickly.
A. Check your Vocabulary:
Choose the letter corresponding to the closest meaning of the italicized word in each sentence.
1. I slipped on my skin cloak.
a. wore b. removed c. set aside
2. I hurried to offer sacrifice to my dead ancestors.
a. prayers b. gift c. offering
3. Suddenly the sweet pomp of the African drums was on the beat.
a. lessened sound b. great display c. full resonance
4. The first beating made my blood run madly around my body.
a. dried up b. tickled c .spilled out
5. The ghost of my ancestors had clustered on my back.
a. kept alive b. stuck c. came in groups
6. My father and relatives rushed to hail me.
a. greet hurriedly b. greet proudly c. greet happily
B. Reading Comprehension:
1. Describe the narrator in the selection.
2. What does the butchering of the hen symbolizes?
3. What is the initiation for? How is it done?
4. Does the narrator oppose or like the ritual? Defend your answer.
5. How was he received after the ritual?
C. Value Appreciating:
1. What does fraternizing mean in Africa, based on the selection?
2. Are there such rituals in our own country?
3. IS this kind of ritual justifiable? Explain your answer.
