After receiving my grandmother's blessing, I began journeying through the land. I was a young and practically an unknown goddess so if I convinced myself that if I became as powerful as my mother, I could help so many mortals. In the early days mortals were scattered all over the lands. They lived in tiny settlements and spent most of their time trying not to be prey. Large beasts roamed the land and mortals spent their time trying to stay alive. I found myself in a tiny settlement called Kwadwokrom. I fell in love with it the moment I found it. The mortals had found a secret location hidden behind the Ayum Waterfalls. They were protected and with that protection came the desire to grow. Unlike the other mortals I had encountered, this set looked healthier and slightly fattened. This observation piqued my curiosity greatly.
"Maakye oo! I come in peace"
" Megye wo so. Your peace is well-received" the woman I spoke to responded
"I am very tired. I have travelled a long way"
"Oh Oh Oh! I am sorry. Let me offer you water". The woman rushed to fill a gourd with water.
"Here you go" I accepted the calabash with gratitude.
"Medaase. Sister, I am Yaa. Could you tell me where I am". Her face beamed with pride as she began to speak.
"Akwaaba Yaa. You are home. This is Kwadwokrom. It is named after our great leader Kwaku Ananse. He rescued each of us and brought us here. He makes sure we all get enough to eat and he takes very good care of us.
"Oh, I see"
"Oh yes. Before coming here, our village was constantly terrorized by fierce beasts who would maim and eat those of us who were unfortunate".
"Then this must be a relief"
"You have no idea. Panyin Kwadwo has taught us to farm fruits and vegetables so now our barns are always food. There's always so much food. I never thought it was possible for abundance to exist like this"
"Praise the gods"
"Indeed"
"So how many settlers are here now?"
"With you now, we are an even twelve"
"How lucky"
"Very. So where are you coming from"
"I come from the lands beyond the east"
"That sounds very far"
"It really is"
"Let me help you get settled before we share our evening meal"
"That sounds amazing. What is your name?"
With a smile as big as the world, she said "Anigye".
In our language Anigye means happiness. The more I thought about it, the more fitting it seemed as a name for her. She was bright and full and joy. I was pleased to know her.
I spent the next few days getting to know the settlers and their culture. There were 11 adults: six men and five women. The more I listened to their stories, the more amazed I was. They each came from afar in search of safety and comfort. That evening we shared a feast of a selection of choice vegetables and fruits. My mind was flooded with questions. We lived in times of the discovery of fire but not every area had access to it so evening started when the sun set and the mortals ceased their work for a period of rest.
"As remarkable as this place is the only thing it lacks is fire"
"Fire? What is fire" A man called Barima asked.
"It's an element of nature Nana Nyame calls ogya"
"What does it do?" A woman named Obaa asked
"It warms and most importantly it gives light "I responded
"Light in the dark? Who ever heard of such a thing?" A man named Nnipa shouted "It is simply impossible"
"I agree. It's not meant to be. It's unnatural" A woman named Maame said in agreement.
"Can we hear the story" a youthful looking woman called Nhyira asked.
"My pleasure. In the early days of Kofi and Ama, the first man and woman, mortals did not know fire..."
"We still don't" a chubby man chimed in. His name was Akoto. I chuckled before continuing.
"The world was filled with darkness and fear of what crawled in the night. Mortals would resort to eating raw meat and vegetation. Nana Nyame and the gods of the Asoro had control of fire because that was what they used to make the most delicious meal called fufu and soup. The fufu was made from cooked pieces of plantain and cassava pounded to perfection. The soup was made with the most aromatic herbs and choice piece of the most succulent of livestock. It was cooked to sheer perfection much to the delight of the gods. What the gods didn't know was when Maame the great cooked on her large fireplace, the humans would see. They would smell the tantalizing flavours escaping the giant coal-pot and their hunger would be instantly renewed"
"wow" the crowd exclaimed.
"Out of all the humans there was none trickier than Kwaku Ananse. Of course, Kwaku Ananse was a demi-god and had a personal vendetta against the gods of the Asoro so he sided with mortals. He was determined to let the mortals have a taste of this meal because he knew it would enrage the gods"
"Wouldn't it make sense to steal fire instead of the fufu?" Obaa asked.
"You are right. That makes more sense but this story is about what he did. So, what happened was that after Maame the great finished cooking she would call for her attendants to come and carry off the giant pot of soup. Ananse spent the first few days observing Maame the great and her attendants. On that day, Ananse built a very long web from his home to the Asoro. This web wasn't like any other net we had made. It was made from golden silk and meant to stand the test of time. It was invisible to most gods. The end of the silken web was placed in a large calabash and covered. After what seemed like many days, he finally made it to Maame the Great's kitchen. He waited on the ceiling while she finished making the meal. Without wasting a moment, the moment she left Ananse uncovered a giant pot and served himself the biggest portions of the meat available. His original plan was to steal what he can then eat once at home but he succumbed to the flavourful aromas his sense was new to. Instead, he sat down with the giant asanka he brought and began eat. He started with four large fufu balls and choice pieces of beef, chevon and chicken. Ananse worked quickly and within minutes he finished all the fufu that had been made for the gods in the Asoro"
"No way" Obaa and Barima exclaimed
"Yes way" I replied. "Ananse had eaten the best meal his mind could ever conceive and he was pregnant with excess carbohydrates. As he sat in exhaustion, Maame the Great's attendants rushed in.
"What happened to the fufu?" they asked in surprise. It was a mixture of shock and confusion as they scrambled for a reasonable answer. Before long, they found Kwaku Ananse in a restful sleep"
My audience burst into laughter.
"They angrily woke him up and asked "What happened to the fufu" and he replied "You'd have to ask again. That's why I'm here".
They asked "You are the only one is here and you seem pregnant for a man"
Ananse was as witty as they come: "I wasn't aware the gods made fun of us mortals. I thought they made us all in different shapes and sizes. Does my large size offend you" the attendants were dumfounded and inexperienced in dealing with mortals.
The apologized and asked again "Please don't be offended. It's just a mystery. We need to inform Maame the Great"
He tried to be smart "how will that help? You are only going to worry her. In fact, if she heard this news from you, she would be very upset. You know what let me tell her. She doesn't know me so she is likely to be gentler with me"
They thought about it for a while and then they agreed: "Okay"
Ananse made his way to his web and asked for some fire. They asked: "Why do you need fire?".
"I climbed here but if you set the web on fire, it can send me to her faster"
"Ouuuuuu" They exclaimed and agreed. Ananse climbed his web and they lit on fire. Ananse flew past with a burning web through the Asoro setting the home of the gods of Asoro on fire as he made his way home. The web burned steadily and brightly till it was safe in the pot and Ananse secured it. The end".
My ending was met with an appreciative round of applause from my audience. It felt nice to be acknowledged like this.
"What happened next?"
"When I got home, I shared the flame I received with the settlers and taught them how to use it" A new voice entered the conversation. I believed it was the infamous Kwaku Ananse. The attention of my listeners shifted to meet Kwaku Ananse carrying a huge asanka of fufu and soup with meats and fish of every kind.
The crowd gasped and asked: "Is this…. Fufu?"
Ananse chuckled and said "The one and only".
He instructed his settlers to wash their hands and join in the meal and then he turned his attention to me.
"And you must be…" I felt his eyes scanning me "…. a goddess? "His smile was absolutely captivating. He was of average height and build with roguish good looks. He appeared to be a rascal…. No, a rake. I was interested
"I am" I responded.
"I thought you guys were done with humanity'
"Not all of us" I replied with my eyes never leaving his.
"That's good to know" He reached for my right hand pressing a soft kiss on it.
"I'm Kwaku and you are?"
"Call me Yaa"
"Soul of Thursday, I welcome you to my home.