Stones for My Father (2011)
“I cradled the monkey in the pocket of my father’s coat while trying not to drop any of the mealie corn that I clutched in one fist. My mother’s shrieks pursued us from the wagon into the center of the laager.
“Dogs are one thing, my girl, but monkeys are wild animals that grow teeth and have tempers that could kill a boy Hansie’s size. I won’t have it in the wagon.”
“But his mother —”
“His mother left him to the hyenas. If you had an ounce of sense in your head, you’d take him back to where you... found him and let the Good Lord’s will be done.” Ma steeled her jaw, peering down at me like an Old Testament prophet. “There’s no use interfering with nature, Corlie Roux.”
“I can feed him and keep him warm. He’s not dangerous. Look how tiny he is —”
“You can take him back to the forest, or you can give it to Lindiwe to kill for the medicine man.”
The nganga: he would use my little monkey to bring the rains, or to feed his villagers’ poor empty stomachs.MoreLess
“Dogs are one thing, my girl, but monkeys are wild animals that grow teeth and have tempers that could kill a boy Hansie’s size. I won’t have it in the wagon.”
“But his mother —”
“His mother left him to the hyenas. If you had an ounce of sense in your head, you’d take him back to where you... found him and let the Good Lord’s will be done.” Ma steeled her jaw, peering down at me like an Old Testament prophet. “There’s no use interfering with nature, Corlie Roux.”
“I can feed him and keep him warm. He’s not dangerous. Look how tiny he is —”
“You can take him back to the forest, or you can give it to Lindiwe to kill for the medicine man.”
The nganga: he would use my little monkey to bring the rains, or to feed his villagers’ poor empty stomachs.MoreLess
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