So Far As There Is Tomorrow

Dear diary,
   Its early morning in late May, and Mother is pacing up and down in the kitchen. She stares at the big glass bottle in which the coconut oil is stored. "Someone must be using some of the oil", she says to herself. She drains the ampesi, puts off the stove that had the turkey berries and garden egg sauce boiling and walks up to the corridor in between Akua, my elder sister and Kofi, my elder cousin’s room. She begins her daily scolding of them not waking up early, yet eating the largest portions of food and as always ends with "learn from your little brother who, though is the youngest gets up early in the morning and even helps me with the chores". When I said I did not help with the chores, giggles escaped from Akua and Kofi’s rooms. Realizing her defeat in my statement, I added that I’ve brushed my teeth, done my quiet time and even tidied my room. Upon hearing that, they sprang out of bed. 
  Kofi had come to spend the long vacation with us again. He is the only child of his parents. When his father, Uncle Dan had an accident last year, it was devastating and depressing for him. As a result, Aunt Mabel sent him to spend the holidays with us. He sort of came to like our place and kept coming.

  Akua began to feign illness when Father announced a general cleaning. Kofi who has become well aware of her sly tricks insisted she finishes all her chores. Akua, realizing her plan didn’t fall through pointed at me as her means of escape. "What about him? What will he do?" she asks.
"He? "While you were snoring in bed, he cleaned his room and even cleaned and arranged the shoes in the porch," Mother said coming to my rescue. "So young lady and gentleman make us proud by making this house spotless so it sparkles that anyone passing by will ask whose house is that?" she added teasingly. Though they weren’t able to make the house sparkle, they managed to make it spotless.

   Kofi, who had just taken his bath sat opposite me at the supposed dining table which functions as a multipurpose for eating, studying and even a dressing table at most times.  Akua barges into the room. "Kofi! What have you done?" She exclaims in a serious tone.
"What have I done?" he asked confusedly.
"Why did you use my shampoo?" Akua placed conical tube like white containers on the table. You used almost everything! Why! Do you know how much these cost? Ghc 250.00 for the shampoo and conditioner!’
‘Wait, wait, 200 and what? For these mini containers?’
‘So, why did you use them, huh? You should have asked me!’
‘I did not know they were… Any way I thought they were soaps. But they weren’t lathering that much so I had to use a lot’.  Kofi replies.
Mother walks up to the table. She takes the tubes and examines them. These are aloe concentrated shampoo and conditioner.
"How did you know? I mean, they are in Chinese!" Kofi asks in surprise. 
‘Even if you can’t read, look at the pictures on them.’ Akua said sharply.
"Ok, ok, I’m really sorry. I didn’t mean to."  Mother calmed her down and urged her to go for her food, even when Akua had told her she was on a diet.
Akua enters the hall again with her bowl of food and started eating. Kofi who has taken the last morsel of his food got up from his seat and on his way to the kitchen said aloud; "the patient that can swallow food makes the nurse doubt." Mother who heard his statement warned him to behave.

  Right after breakfast, Mother told me to write two essays; my best teacher and my best friend, as assignments for her to assess my literacy level in english. When I told her I wrote those for her three days ago, she told me to finish reading the books I borrowed from the District Library and write about which of them I found most interesting. She asked Akua and Kofi if their results were in and when they said no, she asked if Akua took some reading materials from some of her senior course mates as preparations for the next academic year. Akua replied she did not and Mother scolded her. Kofi after making a few phone calls told Mother he has gotten some course materials for Akua from some friends he knew from the debaters club. "She must have been too excited to come home for the long vacation. It used to happen to me. So it’s alright. You just call a few friends and you get some PDF’s. It’s no big deal," he added.

  After hours of studying, Kofi and Akua called me to the corridor. "Kwame," they said to me. "Go and tell daddy that you’ve studied for a while and would like to watch TV."
"But I don’t want to. I want to go and play outside instead," I replied.
"Ok, all you have to do is tell daddy that you want to watch TV, and then you can go and play outside."
"Ok." I replied.
Father was in his room resting when I went there. "Daddy, please, Akua and Kofi said to tell you that I will watch TV."
"Ok, but you will have to only watch Pent TV" he replied.
They must have already heard the conversation for they turned away in disappointment, while I went outside to play.
  The twins, Kwaku, Joshua and some other kids in the neighbourhood were already playing football when I joined them. Though the game was fun, it did not turn out well. It turned out that the ball belonged to Kwaku and as the owner of the ball he determined the course of the game, everyone was afraid to score against him for fear he will take the ball away. At first it seemed boring but later the game grew intense and those rules were forgotten. Kwaku, whose team was losing got angry and took his ball away.

  It was until Akua called that I realized it was evening time. Mother told me to bath before coming for supper. When I returned from the bathroom, Kofi was arguing furiously with Akua. I quickly dressed up and entered the hall, Mother had lined them up. ‘Who took some of the cucumbers?’ she asked.
‘I did’ Kofi replied.
‘What did you use them for?’
‘To make a beard mask’
‘Beard mask? What is that?’
‘I blended the cucumbers and mixed it with some coconut oil to apply to my beard so it could grow.’
‘What? Beard? You used that many cucumbers for your beard?’Mother asked in surprise.
‘I have to let my beard grow, you know. All my friends at the university have beard you see. Im 22 and in my third year already but I don’t have beard.’ Kofi replies looking embarrassed.
‘Kofi, Akua said touching his left shoulder lightly, you don’t need beard ok, you don’t need to try so hard. Look at you no matter how hard you try you are wasting your time.’ 
Kofi looks at her surprisingly. He opens his mouth to speak, but closes it.
‘What?’ He manages to say a word. "What about you, you exercise so hard each day and try going on a diet where you end up eating each day.  You even try to wear expensive clothes. Don’t try so hard. After all a decorated monkey is always a monkey.’
Mother had to shout on top of her lungs to shut them up. Father who seemed to be used to their quarrels did not bother with the noise and kept changing the TV channels.
‘Kofi, Father finally said. You don’t need beard to fit in.’
‘Yes tell him, daddy,’ Akua interrupted.
‘Akua, stop interrupting Uncle!’ Kofi shouted. For all you know, you may never lose weight. He added.
Akua turned to look at Mother disappointedly. Is it true? She asked looking at Mother. Mother did not answer. Everyone is quiet. She turns to look at me. Kwame, is it true?
‘Well, maybe if you could eat a little less…’ I didn’t mean any offence. She left the room and Mother followed her. I’m not quite sure what Mother told her but she came back to have supper in good spirits. Right after Mother gave me my food, I understood why Akua was in good spirits. It was her favourite, banku and hot pepper with salted tilapia and lots of onions.
Kwame, tomorrow is your birthday, right?
"Finally someone remembers my birthday," I whispered to myself and nodded my heard.
"You are lucky you get to have a birthday party. Kofi said to me. You are turning seven, right? I nodded. After seven, there will be no birthday party for you. I mean it. I never had a birthday party." I turn to look at Akua for confirmation. She nodded.
"The last birthday party I had was when I was five, I think." She said after swallowing a morsel of food.
"No birthday party? Why would I not have a birthday party?" I kep saying to myself.
I finished my food immediately, washed my bowl and entered my room. I sent my essay to mother and entered the washroom to brush my teeth. When I returned to my room, I could hear Kofi and Akua arguing about who would wish me a happy birthday first. Father scolded them to keep quite so he could listen to the news. I could hear them wrapping some presents. I smile to myself happily as I climb into bed.

  Dear diary, I’m not going to wake up early tomorrow. Last year, Akua was the first to wish me a happy birthday. I would like to see who would win this time. I mean, those are some of the exciting part of birthdays. I mean, birthday party or no birthday party,  I have my wonderful family and that is the best present ever. So far as there is tomorrow, I look forward to it!