UREMMA

June 12, 2020

UREMMA

No one could deny the alluring beauty of hers and her wonderful steps which no man could resist even the gods. The way at which her waist which shaped like the number 8 perfectly fixed on a long and sturdy leg moved seductively and flexible whenever she gyrated, people mistook her for a goddess. Her beauty spread across Nwanta village to other neighbouring villages like Umueri, Umuchokoneze, and even to the far Obizi located across the Great Eke River — where it is believed that the great goddess Nwaneka — the goddess who smites a man in his happiest day when she’s angry lives. It is believed the goddess helped the people of Obizi in their war against Umachara where she decimated them with little or no effort from the men of Obizi. That was how far her beauty and her dance steps went.
Rumours had had it that she was to succeed the Eze Nwanyi Ani whenever she journeyed to the hereafter. Those talks I referred to as ‘blatant rumours’.

She was the love of my life! And I would stealthily go to the Umuagbogho Dance Practice every Eke and Orie day for years and hide behind the Mango tree that backed the dancing ground few metres away just to have a glimpse of her beauty and that waist which could make a man get lost in awe.

I had gunned to tell this demigod that she made me have sleepless nights even though yes, I was the shy type, I still believed in a perfect day to do that. That day will finally come on the Afo after the ‘Great Feast’ of the land.
Barely had the second cock crowed than the messenger of the Eze Nwanyi Ani marched into the land on the Afo day after the great feast. The cowries on his staff clattered among each other making the sound akin to that of the shekere as he struck it into the threshold of the earth as he walked. There was something ominous about his coming out — the messengers of Eze Nwanyi ani were rarely seen and only seen during time to convey important messages from Ani to the people. Had the land done anything wrong against Ani ? Was Ani angry with us? We would later get to know that Eze Nwanyi Ani had died the previous morning and as per custom her messenger has come forthwith to take the ‘the love of my life’ Uremma who was to succeed her to perform the rituals for her coronation.

Ejike my best friend had brought this news where me and Obinna my other friend were at the backyard of Obinna’s house where I practiced the rhetorics to tell Ure. He had just come back from the market square where he saw the messenger of Ani and the elders of the village heading towards the Uzo Ani with Ure. Hardly had he finished telling me than I flighted towards Uzo Ani to see for myself. As I approached them in their procession, I couldn’t get close to her because it was a taboo for one to come close to the next Eze Nwanyi Ani during her coronation ritual. A palm frond had been sandwiched between her lips and her faced chalked with white.

I stood from far as I looked in heartbrokeness the girl who I watched every Eke and Orie for years behind the Mango tree at the Umuabogho dancing ground who I have always dreamed to tell her how I felt till this day now half human and half spirit and being led to the Uzo Ani where she would only appear once in a year…this left me in ruins.