of the things that come into my head, or say them anL..

get laughed at. Not that it is easy to get any grown-p

to listen to you even when you decide to take the nsk
and say something serious to them.
Take Nana. First, I have to struggle to catch her
attention. Then I tell her something I had taken a long
time to figure out. And then you know what always
happens? She would at once stop whatever she is doing,
and mouth open, stare at me for a very long time. Then
The Girl Who Can bending and turning her head slightly, so tat oe er comes
down towards me, she'll say in that voice: Ad1oa, Y?u
say what?" After I have repeated whatever I had said,
she would either, still in that voice, ask me "never, never,
but NEVER to repeat THAT," or she would immediately
THEY SAY that I was born in Hasodzi; and it is a very big burst out laughing. She would laugh and laugh and laugh,
village in the Central Region of our country, Ghana. They unW tears run down her cheeks and she would stop
also say that when all of Africa is not choking under a whatever she is doing and wipe away the tears with the
drought, Hasodzi lies in a very fertile low land in a districl hanging edges of her cloth. And she would continue
known for its good soil. Maybe that is why any time I don't laughing until she is completely tired. But then, as soon
· finish eating my food, Nana says, "You Adjoa, you don't as another person comes by, just to make sure she doesn't
know what life is about . . . you don't know what problems forget whatever (it was) I had said, she would repeat
there are in this life . . . " it to her. And then, of course, there would be two old
s far as I ould see, tere was only one problem people laughing and screaming with ears runing down
And it had nothing to do with what I knew Nana con- their faces. Sometimes this show continues until there are
sidered as "problems", or what Maami thinks of as "the three, four or even more of such laughing and screaming
problem". Maami is my mother. Nana is my mother's tear-faced grow-ups. And all that performance _on hat
mother. And they say I am seven years old. And my ever I'd said? I find something quite confusing m all
problem is that at this seven years of age, there are things this. That is, no one ever explains to me, why sometimes
I can think in my head, but which, maybe, I do not have I shouldn't repeat some things I say; while at other times,
the proper language to speak them out with. And that, some other things I say would not only be all right,
I think, is a very serious problem. Because it is always but would be considered so funny, they would be
difficult to decide: whether to keep quiet and not say any repeated so many times for so many people's enjoyment.

10 11
 You see how neither way of hearing me out ca is a sad business. And you know, such thigs are_ not
encourage me to express my thoughts too often? 'or talking about everyday. But if any female child
decides Like all this business to do with my legs. I have alwaJO come into this world with legs, then they might as
well
wanted to tell them not to worry. I mean Nana and me legs." .
mother. That it did not have to be an issue for my tw''What kind of legs?" And always at that pomt, I
favourite people to fight over. But I didn't want eith((flew from her voice that my mother was weeping
to be told not to repeat tha t or it to be considered so funrinside. Nana never heard such inside weeping. Not that
that anyone would laugh at me until they cried. After alt would have stopped Nana even if she had heard it.
they were my legs . . . When I think back on it now, thoMThich always surprised me.Because, about almost ev
two, Nana and my mother must have been discussing merything else apart from my legs, Nana is such a good
legs from the day I was born. What I am sure of is thwown-up. Inany case, what do I know about good grown
when I came out of the land of sweet, soft silence intups and bad grown-ups? How could Nana be a good
the world of noise and comprehension, the first topic grown-up when she carried on so about my legs? All I
met was my legs. want to say is that I really liked Nana except fr that.
That discussion was repeated very regularly. Nana: "As I keep saying, if any woman decides to
Nana: "Ah, ah, you know, Kaya, I thank my Go1come into this world with all of her two legs, then she
that your very first child is female. But Kaya, I am noshould select legs that have meat on them: with good
sure about her legs. Hm . . . hrn . . . hm . . . " calves. Because you are sure such legs would support
And Nana would shake her head. solid hips. And a woman must have solid hips to be able
Maami: "Mother, why are you always complainin1 to have children."
about Adjoa's legs?." If you ask me . . . " "Oh, Mother ." That's how my mother would answer .
Nana: "They are too thin. And I am not asking you!' Very, very quietly . And the discussion would end or
Nana has many voices. There is a special one sh! they would move on to something else.
uses to shut everyone up. Sometimes, Nana would pull in something about my
"Some people have no legs at all," my mother woulc father.
try again with all her small courage. How, "Looking at such a man, we have to be humble
"But Adjoa has legs," Nana would insist; "except tha and admit that after all, God's children are many ,· . ·
"
they are too thin. And also too long for a woman. Kaya How, "After one's only daughter had insisted on
listen. Once in.a while, but only once in a very long while. marrying a man like that, you still have to thank our
somebody decides - nature, a child's spirit mother, m God that the biggest problem you got later was (havmg)
accident happens, and somebody gets born without arms, a granddaughter with spindly legs that are too long for
or legs, or both sets of limbs. And then let me touch wood a woman, and too thin to be of any use."
12 13
 The way she always added that bit about my fath;chool and back But to me, we live in our illa.ge,
under her breath, she probably thought I didn't hear d walking those kilometres didn't matter. Schoo 15 ruce.
But I always heard it. Plus that is what always shut n School is another thing Nana and my mother d15cussed
mother
fl. up for good ' so tht even if I had not actua_pften htand ·t appeared
ld be to have different
of time ideas about. Nana
bheard
. . .. the words on ce my mother looked like even wou
a waste
·
I never understood
. ' . . oug she1
what d
meant . My mother seemed to know - an
httle courage was fmIShed, I could always guess whdisagreed. She kept telling Nana that she, that is, my
Nana had added to the argument. th _ felt she was locked into some kind of darkness
"Legs hat .have meat on them with good_ calv b:a:e she didn't go to school. So that if I, her
daugter, support solid hips . . . to be able to have children. could learn to write and read my own name
and a little So I wished that one day I would see, for myself, tlbesides _ perhaps be able to calculate
some things
legs of any woman who had had children. But in O!Qn paper _ that would be good. I could always marry
village, that is not easy. The older women wear lolllater and maybe . . . .
wrap-arounds all the time. Perhaps if they let me go batl Nana would just laugh. "Ah, maybe with legs like
in the river in the evening, I could have checked. Bthers, she might as well go to school." .
I never had the chance. It took a lot of begging: just I Running with our classmates on our small sports field
get my mother and Nana to let me go splash around iand winning first place each time never seemed to me t_o
the shallow end of the river with my friends, who Wetbe anything about which to tell anyone at home. ThIS
other little girls like me. For proper baths, we used t'h time it was different. I don't know how the teachers
small bathhouse behind our hut. · Therefore, the onl decided to let me run for it:he junior section of our school
naked female legs I have ever really seen are those c in the district games. But they did.
other little girls like me. Or older girls in the school. A111 When I went home to tell my mother and Nana, they
those of my mother and Nana: two pairs of legs whid had not believed it at first. So Nana had taken it upon
must surely belong to the approved kind; because Nan herself to go and "ask into it properly". She came home
gave birth to my mother and my mother gave birth to tell my mother that it was really true. I was one of
me. In my eyes, all my friends havE? got legs that loamy school's runner15.
like legs: but whether the legs have got meat on then. "Is that so?" exclaimed my mother. I know her. Her
to support the kind of hips that . . . that I don't kno mouth moved as though she was going to tell Nana, that,
after all, there was a secret about me she couldn't be
According to the older boys and girls, the distana expected to share with anyone. But then Nana herself
between our little village and the small town is abou; looked so pleased, out of surprise, my mother shut her
five kilometres. I don't know what five kilometres mean mouth up. In any case, since the first time they heard
They always complain about how long it is to walk the news, I have often caught Nana staring at my legs

14 15
with a strange look on her face, but still pretending likuseful . . . thin legs can also be useful . . . That "even
she was not looking. All this week, she has been washin1 though some legs don't have much meat on them, to carry
my school uniform herself. That is a big surprise. An/ hips . . . , they can run. Thin legs can run . . . then who
she didn't stop at that, she even went to Mr Mensah's housknows? . . . "
and borrowed his charcoal pressing iron each time, cam I don't know too much about such things. But that's
back home with it, and ironed and ironed and ironed th how I was feeling and thinking all along. That surely,
uniform, until, if I had been the uniform, I would hav one should be able to do other things with legs as well
said aloud that I had had enough. as have them because they can support hips that make
Wearing my school uniform this week has been ver babies. Except that I was afraid of saying that sort of thing
nice. At the parade the firs afternoon, it caught the ray aloud. Because someone would have told me never, never
of the sun and shone brighter than everybody else'sunifom but NEVER to repeat such words. Or else, they
would I'm sme Nana saw that too, and must have liked it. Ye!have laughed so much at what I'd said, they would
have she has been coming into town with us every afternorn cried.
of this district sports week Each afternoon, she has pulle1 It's much better this way. To have acted it out to
one set of fresh old cloth from the big brass bowl to weai show them, although I could not have planned it.
And those old clothes are always so stiffly starched, yot As for my mother, she has been speechless as usual.
can hear the cloth creak when she passes by. But she waTu
way behind us school dtildren. As though she was 01
her own way to some place else.
Yes, [ have won every race I ran in for my school
and I have won the cup for the best all-round junior
athlete Yes, Nana said that she didn't care if such things
are na done. She would do it. You know what she did?
Sh carried the gleaming cup on her back. Like they do
witl babies, and other very precious things. And this
time, no taking the trouble to walk by herself.
When we arrived in our village, she entered our
compound to show the cup to my mother before goin
to give it back to the Headmaster.
Oh. Grown-ups are so strange. Nana is right now
carrying me on her knee, and crying softly. Muttering,
muttering, muttering. That "saa", thin legs can also be

16 17
 THE GIRL WHO CAN
AND OTHER STORIES

Also by Arna Ata Aidoo

The Dilemma of a Gh.ost (drama)
Anowa (drama)
Changes (novel) Arna Ata Aidoo
Our Sister Killjoy (novel)
No Sweetness Here (short stories)
Someone Talking to Sometime (poetry)
An Angry Letter in January and Other
Poems

For Children
Birds and Other Poems
The Eagle and the Chickens and Other Stories

SUB-SAHARAN PUBLISHERS
LEGON, ACCRA
1997