The Agbalumo* Challenge

Excerpts ...

Over the next couple of weeks, the seeds of the agbalumo were my nemesis. Collecting them came easily to Arinola since she loved eating the fruit so much, she just saved all the seeds. Within a week…we had a carrier bag which was bulging with agbalumo seeds. Looking inside the bag was a source of intense discomfort for me, as the contents resembled a colony of cockroaches. Still, I was the humble custodian of the seeds which I kept in the carrier bag tucked among my books in my desk in the classroom protected by a sturdy padlock.

Word of the competition had spread around the school among a select few. While a few people expressed their distaste and told us in so many words that we should find other things to do with our time, the truth was that it was a welcome distraction just like the fights that broke out from time to time. There was little else that really caught our fancy during that time, there were no exams to study for, no sensational scandal to gossip about. True, our studies kept us busy and we did have a few extra-curricula activities – like practicing with the school choir or our sports activities but seeing who will be the victor in a competition – albeit a hastily put together one - was a departure from the norm and thus whetted our appetite for fun.



*Agbalumo - the scientific name for this fruit is Chrysophyllus Albidum and it is popular in several parts of Southern Nigeria where it is consumed very widely when it is season