Ransford rushes to Nimako

Chapter 12

Ransford rushes to Nimako . He knocks at her door but she doesn’t respond.

Ransford:

Look we need to talk. What’s exactly eating you up, Nimako?

Nimako:

Dad, don’t pretend as if you don’t know what I’m going through?

Ransford:

Is’t because of your relationship with Gustave?

Nimako:

Exactly! Dad, why don’t you like him?

Ransford:

You don’t understand it. None of my family has ever married outside one’s tribe let alone marrying a foreigner.

Nimako:

Granted without admitting what you’re saying, what is impossible under this sun? Where are your so called ancestors that you keep on referring to them? Call them to come and defend this tradition?

Ransford:

Lady, I understand what you’re going through but look if while climbing a tree you insist on going beyond the top, the earth will be waiting for you.

Nimako at this time was very heavy in spirit and did not understand why her dad was preventing her to marry a foreigner. Considering all the good qualities that Gustave had, to allow such a marriage material like him for someone else was something she could not think of. Ransford however, advised Nimako to learn to take advice from the old instead of thinking about only where her heart was leading her to. He went on to draw her attention to the fact that the background of the person one would marry was as important as the food one would eat eat. Besides, ‘Ears that do not listen to advice, accompany the head when it is chopped off.’ It is just unfortunate the children of this generation think they know better than their parents and so they rush into marriage and they rush out of the marriage. Nimako was not getting younger and considering what she had gone through she thought the society was not being fair to her. But should her parents welcome anybody at all at home just in the name of age?

Day in day out, Nimako’s problems multiplied. It showed in her face, her movement at home and at her work place. She could neither resolve her own problems nor discuss them with her superiors at work. She was afraid her superiors would accuse her and her family of being racists. Nimako’s motto became, ‘Nobody understands me’, perhaps she was right especially knowing her level of education. She thought everybody should reason like her.

She finally thought Gustave should know about it. One Saturday evening, Gustave took Nimako out to one Irish Pub in France. It had quite a tasteful menu with beers from at least 5 different countries including USA. A football game was always playing in the backdrop with enthusiasts shouting for their teams. It was a place to enjoy food and beverages as well as a place to meet friends and even strangers. It had a relaxed atmosphere.

The place could surely console anyone who had an issue and needed a place to go and release some tension. It was a nice place from the architectural point of view. It was a place if one went, it would surely change one’s mood. Indeed, it did change Nimako’s mood. Nimako went with her Fiancée to the Pub with the idea of unveiling what was eating her up, to Gustave but the environments made her forget everything. She ate well, danced and had fun. Later on, Gustave dropped Nimako off at her residence and he drove to his house. Nimako was brought to the house at the time that her parents were asleep and so on her arrival, she went straight to her room. She had a good sleep and got up at 10:00 A.M.

The following day, her parents couldn’t go to church on that Sunday because Nimako did not go to church and the French Language was also a problem.

They could not express themselves in French and so they did not feel comfortable going to church without Nimako. When Nimako woke up, she apologized for her inability to take them to church on that day which was accepted by her parents.

Exactly a week after Ransford had advised her daughter not to marry Gustave, he was having a walk on that day evening, when he suddenly saw Gustave with two ladies coming out of his car into Hôtel Pour le Jeune. Gustave greeted Ransford, but Ransford looked from his head to his toes, the ladies and then went away without responding to the greeting. It was as if fate had decided that Gustave and his friends should enter the hotel but it was only God who knew what was going through his mind.

In fact, since that time, there was no peace between Ransford and Gustave. He saw Gustave to be unfaithful, a womanizer and a cheat. But the question is, was Gustave supposed to be given the opportunity to explain himself or was that enough evidence for Ransford to draw his conclusion from? As soon as Ransford entered the house, he said, ‘I will never allow this rot and a womanizer to marry my daughter.’ Dad, ‘What’s the meaning of this?’ asked Nimako. If you had been there to see what I saw with my eyes you would have destroyed your sight. ‘I still cannot get you, dad?’ Asked, Nimako. How can you? When you have eyes but you cannot see, when all the things around you are warning you but you have refused to take them. Look, you cannot stand in a place of danger trusting in miracles. At this time, it appeared as if they were speaking in parables. Ransford then told Nimako that he had seen Gustave surrounded by ladies at Hôtel Pour le Jeune.

Nimako instantly refused to accept that because she thought her own Gustave could not do it.

She decided to ask for some more information about what happened on that day, but her father declined to comment since she had earlier on refused to accept it.

Later on, Nimako entered her room and decided to ask herself some questions. Could Gustave do this to me? If it was even true he was at the hotel with girls, why did he do that? Could this mean Gustave had probably heard about her dad’s refusal to accept him as a husband to her?