Thread by @nwaoma007

We Dey Patch Am.
1./ Mr. Daniel, listened to his Madam’s conversation with her sister as they drove home. She had just finished from the market. The boot was laden with her shopping. It looked as if she was going to stock a small provision store.

Before going to the market,

2./ his Madam had already stopped at some supermarkets along the way to buy some things that she could not get in the market.
It wasn’t that he wanted to listen to her talk with her sister, but as he was in the car driving, he couldn't help but hear her conversation.

3./ His mind no too dey wetin she dey talk, but he still dey hear.
The next thing he heard was Madam telling her sister that market don dey tire am. She was telling her sister that everything was now too costly. All the prices were going up. He laughed inside him;

4./ what did his Madam know about the prices of things? Every month, na so she dey go market buy things full boot. Still every week, she go still buy small, small things for house. If Madam with all her money was complaining, what did she want people like him to say?

5./ A bitter smile crossed his face.
Things like ordinary meat (beef) had disappeared from their pot. Sometimes his wife would buy dried panla (cod). Things don hard well, well.
Soon, they were home and he helped Madam’s girl to unpack the load.

6./ When he was ready to leave, Madam gave him the money she usually paid him for weekend. She also added some food items for his wife.
“Thank you, Madam. Please also help me call the gate so that they will allow me to carry my bag to pass.”

7./ “Mr. Daniel?” Madam looked at him with some puzzlement. “Which bag are you carrying?” She asked. The gate usually needed permission for staff going out with any loads. The resident was required to specify what the person carried.
He brought out a shopping bag.

8./ It bore the logo of one of the supermarkets Madam had gone to to buy some of the foreign “mede mede” she liked to buy. Madam was surprised. She knew how expensive the store was & bought only items she couldn't find in the market from them as their prices could be prohibitive.

9./ “Mr. Daniel? What did you buy from that place? For the life of her, she couldn’t think of what he bought in such large quantity from the expensive supermarket.
“Madam, it is meat bones. They normally sell it in kilos. This one is just N700.

10./ The bone dey normally carry small meat for body and the water sef from the bone dey sweet and e dey very good for the body.” Mr. Daniel replied.
“Ah I see. Okay. But why didn’t you tell me you wanted to buy meat when we were in the market?” She asked

11./ “I’ve already bought this one by that time. Thank you, Madam.” Mr. Daniel explained.
“No problem. I will call them to let you go through.” Madam responded.

12./ As Mr. Daniel left, Madam began to ponder anew, she was feeling the pinch of the increased prices of food items more and more each day. She wondered how Mr. Daniel and his family and many others like them coped if she was complaining.

13./Well, this bone-buying was one mystery solved. But how many such economies were available? How much longer could people continue? She shook her head &wandered off to the kitchen. She feared that soon, something would give. People surely had limits to their resilience.
The End