DR FIXIT (NEW VERSION)

 051 our route into another tale and on her wagon I sat real cool like an heron  catwalking on the back of a cow for food or fun. Outside, the bough of a tree was creaked by the breeze. An owl hooted in the distance and a long hiss a cricket made. My grandma went on with her tale: 'Every army ant was a champion whose exploits the other beings would mention even in the remotest nook about our ambition 052 'quite tall in every sphere of life though our size is quite minute. Without wings, we did rise above the tallest trees and fall on all below like the paratroopers and everyone took to flight, the kite and the cobra. Even the lion succumbs to intimidation when we fight. Myriad of tongues wagged about our prowess in building tunnels and how in the downpour we channeled our goods safely to our storehouse. With oneness to every occasion we'd rouse. 053 'Humans copied us and stopped dwelling in the cave, built their homes and added features that would save their food. The...

 041 'when after his bath, he saw in the mirror  his beard was spotted with white hairs - what a horror! Did age creep on him by dusk? He stood and stared at his transformed image, all aghast and afraid. He vowed by the next day he would quadruple the speed of his wagon - indeed he would hurtle the vehicle along the boulevard to halt Mr Time and do all he wanted to do before his spine the weight of aging would bend and force him to borrow a third leg, the staff, and going dim 042 'might be his sight which would prompt him to wear glasses - a frail stature with loss of vim that he once had in excess scared the dude so much that sleeplessness all night did intrude his rest and he got up in the morning with anxiety and his robust frame was aching in strange points like he had boils deep in his muscles, they scared him so much he checked in to a health centre where a nurse examined him and eventually told him it was rheumatism . 043 'The dude flopped down on a bench and buried ...

 031 'But the celebrant couldn't avoid this: the dough in his wallet thinned and he thought of how more of it he could make so he slipped out to gamble, throwing the dice and on every tackle  and dribble of footballers, he picked and betted on the team that would kick in the winning ball. Waking from a hangover and stepping across on the floor a one-night lover, the shiny wagoner opened the door of his inherited mansion and saw 032 'his father's steward hand him a note which with bleary eyes he read and who wrote  the terse message was a lawyer   from the chamber his dear father chose to manage his entire estate: 'The farm is bankrupt .' Though somewhat late, the dude 's senses returned. He rushed and jumped into the wagon and right at his rump, the army ants tagged along. The stallions arrived the farm littered with empty gallons 033 'and drums. There was no farmhand in sight. Poverty puts old friends into flight . The shiny wagoner took off his shiny ...

021 meaning ‘ proverb or parable ’ a n d ‘ ahbasee ’ means ‘ god ’ so storytelling – from what I see – was a profound thing throughout the clans  and the storyteller to pass on to the ants a moral tasked their brains and common folks tended to believe these tales were invoked by aligning with the gods. ‘There lived a man,’ Grandma went on, lowered the wick of the lamp and sat on the bed beside me, my side touching her leg for safety against the tide 022 which was unpredictable. If rough and dark, I knew I had my grandma watching my back. ‘How was he?’ This was the traditional response showing the listeners’ interest and bonds with the wakefulness of the storyteller. ‘He had stepped into the shoes of his father who'd just passed on. He received a big farm. He was charming and lived on Timebound Island . Where he lived, the breeze ruffled the palm fronds and lovely birds visited the garden at the front   023 ‘where a boulevard ...

011 Who strayed to the forest on Ahdet, the rest day, had themselves to blame as they were flown away by the gods who prowled every forest track, the brook and river on that day. They were back after sacrifices by the medicine man, ahbeah hebuck, were offered to appease the land and its custodians. The folks of the generation of my grandma revered nature and its regulation they observed. In school, I was taught a week had seven days in it, six for work and the meek   012 gathered together and worshipped a deity with a big heart who’d overlook their impiety. Unlike grandma’s gods who’d abduct anyone immediately they’d strayed from the norm, this deity was full of grace and suffused his followers with it – they took it or refused. School would teach one thing, home another provide: my young mind bestrode the divide. At home, I heard of huwa hetierba, reincarnation. In school, it was, judgment, paradise and perdition. 013 ‘Huwa’ means ‘life’ and ‘hetierba’ means ‘seven’. I heard of ‘a...

001 I’m working on a tale excitingly long. Trust me, you’d savour it and click your tongue. I was born between Generation X and Z when humans landed on the moon and could see their earthly mansions from there; the jet and computer age where mail from one gadget to another is delivered in quick seconds and bent to get to Mars are many nations. I’m racing too to get to that angle but my tale starts from the heart of the jungle.   002 I’m an army ant of great repute bent to enrich the world with my input from my native knowledge and acquired wisdom: with these, all reading me should blossom. I arrived in this world at the start of the rains when land cleared is sowed with grains and the brownish earth sprouts green leaves and busy atop these are insects like bees. I grew to play with the insects – the grasshopper, wasp and butterfly: I was stunned the caterpillar   003 turned to it and this made me curious; my curiosity led me to topics quite serious. I would look at myself and e...