Footprints of the Amazons

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© 2015 Virginia Egbujor. All rights reserved.

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Published by AuthorHouse 03/28/2015

ISBN: 978-1-4969-9938-2 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4969-9939-9 (e)

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DEDICATION

I dedicate the Novel to my five sons Sam, Emy, Chijioke, the twins: Tobe and Ugo and to my only daughter Ijeoma, for their everlasting love and encouragement…

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I hereby thank Christine Moreira for helping me type the manuscripts for ‘The Footprints of the Amazons.’

J anet was seen leaving the headmaster’s office. She appeared upset. Kate realised the mood her friend was in and waited for a couple of minutes and went to enquire what upset her. Both women had taught at Saint Patrick’s primary school in the town since they qualified from teachers’ college. Both had studied for four years in the nearby women training college and had remained friends. Kate knows fully well that Janet was an intelligent hard working teacher. She also knows the problems she faces at home, and how sometimes these seem to make her unhappy; particularly when her home life, seem to affect her work at school.

Janet told Kate that the headmaster had invited her to his office to question the reason she often came to morning assembly later than most of the teachers, and pupils. He had reminded her of her responsibility to her fellow teachers and to the school children. He went on to say that morning assembly is the first duty of the teachers at Saint Patrick’s school. All teachers and pupils ought to be present and in time to say prayers, sing a hymn and listen to the announcements of events of the day. In fact, the headmaster went on, the assembly is the time to highlight the planned activity of the school day. He said, to be absent or come in the middle is not good enough. When Janet tried to explain, the headmaster stated that he had made his point known to her and it was up to her to change the pattern; that of lateness.

What would you tell the pupil that is constantly coming late to class or assembly? The headmaster asked.

What hurt Janet was the finality of the headmaster’s words. He did not allow her to explain. He must have heard of her problems at home from gossips of other colleagues. Her fellow teachers may not have meant any harm against her. It may have been in sympathy with her home life, what was not fair was talking about it.

However, it was not the time to talk at length. Soon the teachers started to hurry to their classroom. Their classrooms also served as their permanent workplace. Quickly, Janet kept her bag in the empty room that staff kept items that may not be needed in the classroom. She went into her class. The pupils were already in their seats; consisting of long benches with work tops for the pupils. The pupils shared the seats. They stood up and greeted the teacher as soon as she entered the class. She responded to the chorus of good morning miss! With good morning boys and girls, and filled with her maternal affection, gently beckoned to them to be seated.

The children sat down and before the lively chatter of the youngsters began, Janet opened the cupboard below her desk, took the class register and began to call the roll. All the primary four pupils were present except Rose. She is a bright little girl. A kind of an all-rounder at her age, very knowledgeable in all the subjects she taught her. One thing though, she is frequently absent, though it does not seem yet to affect her learning. Rose comes from a polygamous home and the little girl often had her own family problems. Janet in her thoughtful kind way identified with her little pupil. She knows by experience that hardship can exist in families with multiple wives and siblings from several mothers. Whereas, Janet can manage her own situation, though with great difficulty, some mothers in identical situations do not have the tools to cope. For instance, Rose’s mother had no paid job; in fact, fees were paid after she was sent home for non-payment of fees by her parents. Her school fees were difficult to provide by her mother who provided her needs in most cases. Janet thought that this present absence may be entirely for other reasons, for instance illness like; malaria which almost all the pupils suffered from time to time. Janet put away the register and got ready for mathematics, the first lesson of the day. She quickly wrote the subject on the board and the children sat straight in their seats. She often started them on mental sums as it was popularly known. As soon as Janet wrote mental sums and underlined the word, the children stood up instinctively all at once. As the teacher asked her questions on additions, multiplications, subtractions, divisions and tables the pupils put their hands up and answered from memory. No writing or whispering together was permitted. Soon the preambles were completed, the children sat down in their seats and the main sums were done and the focus was on division of numbers. For the next forty minutes the pupils did their work. Janet emphasised independent individual attempts in solving the problems. She walked around as they worked, in the bid to assist any child who had difficulty in any of the four problems. She helped one pupil who had mistaken one number and wrote what was not in the problem. Janet felt that particular pupil; Mark was often misreading figures on the board. That could be a sign that he might have problem with sight, she thought and asked Mark if he had problem seeing what is written up there on the board and he answered: ‘yes miss’. Janet thought of moving him to the seat in the front of the class, and planned to move him when he returns from the first school break. Another child put her hand up; asking for some assistance as well. The girl in question found that her biro pen had stopped flowing as she was still writing. She shook it and attempted several manoeuvres to make it write. Janet had one look at the pen and realised that the barrel was empty. She quickly went to the table, picked her bag and searched into it. She was able to fish out a pen, and quickly gave it to the pupil to finish her work. Janet was greeted by a wide joy filled grin and a Thank you miss. She often comes to the rescue of the pupils. It does not take her a lot to be kind; she believed that her actions, apart from endearing her to the pupils, motivate them to work hard. Some other teachers, who pride themselves in being strict, sometimes criticise her for spoiling the pupils. One male teacher called John would reprimand the pupil in such a circumstance by making a show of it. He would tease the child in question that he was a farmer who went to work on the farm without his knife and hoe. That would make the other pupils giggle and the child would recoil in shyness. Every teacher is different and has slightly variable methodology in pupil motivation and management. Janet as a mother, with children of similar age and in addition to her personal circumstances understands, that in some households something as little as a biro pen may be difficult to procure for the child’s use at school. As the thoughts were going through her mind the large school bell went loudly. That was announcing the fifteen minute break. The pupils quickly handed in their exercise books and trooped out to the corridors and into the playground.

While the pupils were on their break, Janet marked their work and graded them. During the main break of the day Janet went to talk to her friend. I was just about to come to your class her friend said, to ask what the problem was, Kate continued; trying to prompt her friend into remembering the events that morning during the assembly. Janet began to tell her friend the events of the morning. She recounted that she woke up early as usual at 6.00am, woke her two older daughters to heat the water for their morning bath. The girls are comfortable attending to their hygiene needs and it is basic washing of body and wearing of clean underwear and school clothes Yes they can do it interrupted Kate, Rose and Meg can easily do that, they are clever girls, at twelve and ten they can help you with the little one, Dorothy. That is what we used to do for our mothers when we were the same age as them" That is true chorused the two women at the same time. Then Janet continued to narrate her daily routine to her friend. After the children had their basic breakfast consisting of milky tea and bread or doughnuts as the case may be they were ready; but Janet had the sole function of bathing three year old Dorothy and dressing her. She was due to attend a nearby nursery adjoining the primary and secondary school attended by her older sisters. It is a well sought after venue of early year’s education. It is run by the catholic nuns of the immaculate heart of Mary. The system has high ethos in girls’ behaviour and learning in academics. Whereas Dorothy has been accepted to attend the nursery wing of the mission institute, she was yet to start to attend, meanwhile, Janet sends her to her mother to look after