SEC-S30W2: Legends of My Country: (The river of the river Mami Wata)

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The majority of the West Africa and my country Nigeria in particular have stories of Mami Wata, an elusive spirit of water that is said to exist in rivers, oceans and also deep lakes. Mami Wata has been translated to imply Mother Water. Following the conventional beliefs she can be described as a beautiful lady with long hair, who at times appears like she has a fish or a large snake around the body. Some say that she is the source of luck, some healing, and prosperity to those she pleases because some think that she will cause people to plunge into the water in case they offend the river or become too curious.

The fishermen, traders, and villagers who are in any way near rivers tend to narrate a weird thing they saw, why they heard some music near a water at the night time, or why they dreamed that some strange woman was calling them. The myth that I shall present to you is my fictional account which was informed by these common beliefs of the Nigerians about Mami Wata.

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The Niger River was like a silver line over the moonlight in the secret village of the Niger, named Otuoma. Most of the villagers avoided the water during the night hours because the elders never let them forget to tell them that the river was an eye. And sixteen year old Chinedu never bought such stories.

The father of Chinedu was a fisherman who went missing in the past two years as a result of a storm. Other villagers had grumbled that he had been snatched by the river people. Chinedu did not believe that to be the case. To him it was no more than a storm.

One day Chinedu, who was bent on proving the legends false, took the old wooden canoe, which belonged to his father, and rowed one night at the sunset into the river. A silence was unnatural and the usual frogs and insects were quiet.

The more the canoe had gone the more distant appeared the shore, and Chinedu heard a peculiar sound--a dismal kind of humming noise sailing through the water. It was not the wind. It was singing as though somebody was singing.

He froze.

It was a beautiful voice, and it was echoing over the river. The water began trembling though there was no wind. Then there slowly emerged a figure out of the surface.

A woman.

Her hair was glossy as wet midnight, and the patterned snake was wound about her shoulders, and was lying lazily around like a serpent. Below the radiant water she had lost her lower half.

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The paddle seemed to shake Chinedu in its hands and so the woman said to him not a thing to be afraid of

He now asked who are you?" he stammered.

You know my name, it is gushing like the stream, she said.

Chinedu had never forgotten any of the tales that the elders had told him.

"Mami Wata..."

She studied him quietly. Your father showed reverence towards this river. Prior to each catch he uttered grace. In the present day, majority of the people steal thanklessly.

Chinedu became immediately as though he were a crowd of emotion swell within him. "Did the river take him?"

The spirit's eyes softened. "The river does not take. The river is simply a payback of what a man introduces to the river.

There was a faint glow on the water on the side of the canoe. Chinedu had briefly imagined that he had seen his father old fishing net at the bottom of the waters and perfectly in its condition.

Mami Wana said you were after truth. "Now you must carry it. Water, conserve your people, and the water will conserve the water.

The humming had returned, and it was higher, in the form of waves around the canoe, unseen.

then as suddenly as she had appeared, the ghost faded slowly under the waters of the river.

The water became still again.

Chinedu returned to the village that night and nothing was said about what he had seen. But hereafter he said to all fishermen to heed the river when they were preparing the nets.

And sometimes it was a quiet night, and the inhabitants of the village could catch a faint singing that rose above the trough of water.

Thanks for reading my post I'm inviting @ninpenda, @bela90 and @chant to participate.