The Prize Giving
By Abdur Rahmaan Umar (abdurrahmaan@iafrica.com)
“What! Are they crazy?” shouted Fatima, banging the knife on chopping board hard enough to scatter carrots in every direction and send the cat racing for the back door.
“What do they think? How can they possibly...” she sighed deeply, and raised the knife for another assault on the chopping board.
“Don’t they realise we have so much work to do? I mean who schedules a prize giving for the night before Eid.”
“But ma...that’s what Moulana(Sheikh) said today. That there definitely is a prize giving,” whispered Ahmed, cowering behind a chair in case another barrage of carrots was launched.
“Which Moulana? And why don’t they think!” she continued, pausing just long enough to heave another heavy sigh, “We have so much to do the night before Eid. Get the kids clothes ready, prepare the plates, layer the biryani...and...this year Eid is by us, so everyone from ninety nine kilometres around will be here. So is Moulana going to come...