EXTRACT FOR
Tunde's Red Hen
(Author Unknown)

Chapter Three

  

  Later on the day, Tunde's father had arrived from work. The man sunk into his favourite chair when Tunde ran to him. "Welcome, Daddy!"

  "Tunde, how are you today?" he smiled. He began to untie his shoelaces. Once the laces were undone, he took his shoes and socks off.

  The boy wore a frown and hissed. "I am not fine," he managed to reply and lowered his head.

  "What is the problem?" The man sat up and turned to his troubled son. He began to unbutton his shirt.

  "My hen refused to lay eggs!"

  Tunde's father chuckled. He adjusted his huge frame and stroked the boy on the head. "Someone is stealing the eggs! Did anyone fry eggs in this house last week?"

  "No. Except for the ones that mummy fried last night. And I was the person that bought them!

  The man sat back. He paused with hand to chin as his mind began to work. "Something must be wrong," he finally broke his silence. "Did you inspect the cage?" He took off his shirt.

  "Inspect the cage for what?"

  "Your hen ought to have laid many eggs by now. If the eggs are not stolen, there could only be one reason why we don't see eggs!"

  "What is it?" Tunde glanced up at his father.

  "As you know, we live near the bush. A snake could crawl into the compound through any little opening on our walls to swallow the eggs!" his father answered.

  "So snakes swallow eggs?" Tunde beats his chest and gasps.

  "Of course, some do. When I was a boy, we had a similar concern. My father thought his children were stealing his eggs. So, each time his eggs went missing, the whole family suffered."

  "How? Did he flog all you?"

  "Yes! My father valued his eggs like gold. Sometimes he punishes us by asking us to skip meals. Yet, that did not solve the problem. One day, my elder brother decided to find out who was behind this. He suspected that it must be a snake but no one believed.

  "A friend gave my brother an idea. He told him to buy some boiled eggs and put them in the cage. My brother did without us knowing. Once it was evening, he sneak to the cage and replaced the fresh eggs with the seven boiled eggs. The device worked. We woke up the next day to see a big black snake near the cage.

  "The snake had swallowed several boiled eggs and could not move. The eggs choked the creature. Only God could have made my father believe that it was not his children that were stealing his eggs. He called us thieves! As you know, society does not like thieves!

  "The next day, my brother ran into the house to inform us that he found the thief. I thought the thief was a human being. As soon as we heard the news, we rushed out of the house and followed him to the backyard. Only to find a snake that had made our lives a nightmare. We were very angry at the sight of the creature. The morning was our day!

  "The snake was like the still waters because it could not move. It had swallowed over five boiled eggs. My father grabbed a club near the house and laid it eight or more times on the animal. The snake writhed from one end to another until it expired. 

  "We burnt it and buried its remains in the nearby bush. My elder brother had saved us from punishment and hunger. Ashamed of himself, my father regretted treating his children as thieves. That same day, he called a family meeting and apologized for his mistakes and we forgave him."

  After the long speech, Tunde's father sat back. He breathed. "Tunde, we can solve this problem with some boiled eggs!" he said. He placed his hand in his pocket and brought out some money. "Take. Go and buy some boiled eggs from the grocer!" 

  Tunde took the money and ran very fast out of the house. Moments later, he was back with the eggs. Tunde and his father went to the cage near the fence and put the four boiled eggs there. They locked the cage and moved away.