SON & SILENCES

Mother: Son, I should tell you something...

Son: (interested silence)

Mother: You know... I am getting married.

Son: (alert silence)

Mother: No, not with your father that will never happen…

Son: (afflicted silence)

Mother: I love this new man... !

Son: (condemning silence)

Mother: You, probably, want to know, who is it?

Son: (affirmative silence)

Mother: It is Uncle Malala.

Son: (Shocked silence)

Mother: You know Uncle Malala? He has been droping by.

Son: (Bored silence)

Mother: He is a fine man and you and I are going to be happy living with him ...

Son: (Horrified silence)

Mother: Yes! And he is going to be your new father and you will always respect him.

Son: (contemptuous silence)

Mother: Uncle Malala loves me too...

Son: (Sneering silence)

Mother: I know you don’t like it, I know you prefer that I get married to your father again..

Son: (Nostalgic silence)

Mother: I have sacrificed so much for you don’t you think I deserve some happiness?

Son: ( Sympathetic silence)

Mother: Uncle Malala is a wonderful person and very wealthy..and besides you will have company, he has a son who you will be friends with

Son: (Angry silence)

Mother: And you...I will now afford to take you to a special school, where you will learn how to read and write the special way.

Son: ( Doubtful silence)

Mother: You don’t believe?, You think I will abandon you?

Son: ( Possesive silence)

Mother: Son, I will never, ever abandon you, you hear? Where I go you come.

Son: (spiteful silence)

Mother: Son I think you are being selfish and stubborn. Cant you see Uncle Malala is like saviour

Son: (hating silence)

Mother: He treats me well, your father loved you but he treated me badly.

Son: (sad silence)

Mother: I know this is hard on you, but it is also the best for us. Both me and you.

Son: (protesting silence)

Mother: You think I am doing this for myself only. Son you have to know every decision I make I have to think of you first. You prefer I leave him?

Son: ( Hopeful silence)

Mother: Am sorry son but you will have to accept it.Uncle Malala and I are in love. I wonder why you are not for this idea. Come on he is not bad.

Son: (Bad silence)

Mother: You are my child, my baby,my handsome child..

Son: (smilling silence)

Mother: and now my handsome child, you will accept Uncle Malala with time after you see how good he is.

Son: (Sarcastic silence)

Mother: Are you scoffing? Well, enough! I will not have you disrespecting me. Can I get the belt.

Son : (scared silence)

Mother: Shhh!! Ok, I will not beat you. I love you son let us go and eat lunch and we will talk about this later ok.

Son: ( relieved silence)

Mother: Mmmmhh..You are a very “understanding” child, hope you understanf this too, Uncle Malala is just plan A, there is a Plan B and C.

Son: (Confused Silence)

CIRU, MAMA & SILENCES

Ciru: Mama, I should tell you something...

Mama: (interested silence)

Ciru: You know... I am in love.

Mama: (alert silence)

Ciru: No, not with a man.

Mama: (Confused silence)

Ciru: With a girl..and I do not regret it!

Mama: (Horrified silence)

Ciru: You, probably, want to know, who she is?

Mama: (affirmative silence)

Ciru: It is AKinyi.

Mama: (shocked silence)

Ciru: No, it is not Akinyi the daughter of your friend.... Actually she is not even a family friend or my age, or from around here.

Mama: (uncomprehending silence)

Ciru: She is from Kisumu and way older...

Mama: (questioning silence)

Ciru: Yes! I have been in love with her already for a long time.

Mama: (contemptuous silence)

Ciru: I know you probably thinking I should get a man to love me and that am crazy.

Mama: (Angry silence)

Ciru: Yes, I knew, how you would react to this... But, any way, I decided that I couldn’t hide it from you any more...

Mama: (Condemning silence)

Ciru: You will not interfere with my relationship, will you?

Mama: (Murderous silence)

Ciru: Akinyi is a wonderful person! She is so kind and generous and beautiful and very bright, she has an IQ of over 150...

Mama: (sarcastic silence)

Ciru: I love you mama... You have brought me up well and I thank you for that, but I need to be true to myself….

Mama: (quarrelsome silence)

Ciru: Don’t look at me like that mama.

Mama: ( angry silence)

Ciru: My God, you will not accept?

Mama: (spiteful silence)

Ciru: Come on you need to understand, no one has ever made me feel the way she does, no man.

Mama: (hating silence)

Ciru: Do you still love me now that I have told you?

Mama: (sad silence)

Ciru: I am very disappointed in you mama, I expected at least you to be on my side, one doesn’t stop loving their children no matter what.

Mama: (protesting silence)

Ciru: You probably want to keep this under wraps, you don’t want any of your friends to know. You are ashamed of me mama

Mama: (offended silence)

Ciru: What would you have me do? Pretend, get married to a man and give you more grand children that you always wanted?

Mama: (tactful silence)

Ciru: I can still give you grandchildren, artificial insemination….

Mama: (sneering silence)

Ciru: Oh my God, mama you don’t approve? You are really old world!

Mama: (eloquent silence)

Ciru: I have accepted myself, you need to accept the new me too..well not really new.

Mama: (Dissapointed silence)

Ciru: Ok mama,I’ll leave! I will go far away with Akinyi, maybe to America where we can marry and society will not condemn us

Mama: (begging silence)

Ciru: What is it? that is probably what you will like, no one will ever know about me, grandmother and the other relatives wont know.

Mama: (Heartbroken silence)

Ciru: All right, am not leaving immediately, will be here for sometime mama.

Mama: (facilitated silence)

Ciru: But mama you must get used to the idea of me being in love with another woman.

Mama: (Just silence)

Ciru: All right, all right, mama I love you so much and you realize it has taken me a lot of courage to confide in you.

Mama: (greatful silence)

Ciru: Yes... And it wasn’t as bad as I expected. I cant help it mama am like that, has been this way for long, since I was in primary school back when we were leaving in Ushirika area.

Mama: (sympathetic silence)

Ciru: Akinyi will come and visit us,okay?

Mama: (obscene silence )

Ciru: Be nice mama! And besides you will like her I promise.

Mama: (tragical silence)

Ciru: Well, you see mama, never mind that she is luo and we are Kikuyu.

Mama: (unconscious silence)

Ciru: All will be fine!

Mama: (dead silence)

Ciru: Well, mama so sorry I did not turn out like my sister who is married to that Luhya man with a house full of children and pregnant already! Again!

Mama: (Mischievous Silence)

Ciru: Yes - yes, I know she is the apple of your eye now that I have turned black sheep.

Mama: (Offended Silence)

Ciru: I love you mama and I want to see you smile and happy always.

Mom: (Loving Silence)

Ciru: I know this is hard on you. I wont make it harder by bringing Akinyi yet. Until you get used to the idea, okay.

Mama: (happy silence)

Ciru: I love you mama

Mama:(Loving Silence)

Ciru:( Peaceful Silence)