The Poisonwood Bible
Page 100
“Okay, you’re right.They all hate me,” I whined.”‘! guess I’m not a good teacher.”
“You are a fine teacher. That isn’t the problem.”
“What is the problem?”
“Understand, first, you are a girl. These boys are not accustomed to obeying their own grandmothers. If long division is really so important to a young man’s success in the world, how could a pretty girl know about it? This is what they are thinking. And understand, second, you are white.”
What did he mean, pretty girl! “White,” I repeated. “Then they don’t think white people know about long division, either?”
“Secretly, most of them believe white people know how to turn the sun on and off and make the river flow backward. But officially, no. What they hear from their fathers these days is that now Independence is here and white people should not be in Congo telling us what to do.”
“They also think America and Belgium should give them a lot of money, I happen to know. Enough for everybody to have a radio or a car or something. Nelson told me that.”
“Yes, that is number three. They think you represent a greedy nation.”
I closed the book on French verbs for the day. “Anatole, that doesn’t make a bit of sense. They don’t want us to be friends, and they don’t respect us, and in Leopoldville they’re ransacking white people’s houses. But they want America to give them money.”
“Which part does not make sense to you?” “All of it.”
“Beene, think,” he said patiently, as if I were one of his schoolboys stumped on an easy problem. “When one of the fishermen, let’s say Tata Boanda, has good luck on the river and comes home with his boat loaded with fish, what does he do?”
“That doesn’t happen very often.”
“No, but you have seen it happen. What does he do?”
“He sings at the top of his lungs and everybody comes and he gives it all away.”
“Even to his enemies?”
“I guess.Yeah. I know Tata Boanda doesn’t like Tata Zinsana very much, and he gives Tata Zinsana’s wives the most.”
“All right. To me that makes sense. When someone has much more than he can use, it’s very reasonable to expect he will not keep it all himself.”
“But Tata Boanda has to give it away, because fish won’t keep. If you don’t get rid of it, it’s just going to rot and stink to high heaven.” Anatole smiled and pointed his finger at my nose. “That is just how a Congolese person thinks about money.”
“But if you keep on giving away every bit of extra you have, you’re never going to be rich.”
“That is probably true.”
“And everybody wants to be rich.”
“Is that so?”
“Sure. Nelson wants to save up for a wife.You probably do, too.” For some reason I couldn’t look at him when I said that.”Tata Ndu is so rich he has six wives, and everybody envies him.”
“Tata Ndu has a very hard job. He needs a lot of wives. But don’t be so sure everyone envies him. I myself do not want his job.” Anatole laughed. “Or his wives.”
“But don’t you want lots of money?”
“Beene, I spent many years working for the Belgians in the rubber plantation at Coquilhatville, and I saw rich men there. They were always unhappy and had very few children.”
“They probably would have been even more unhappy if they’d been poor,” I argued.
He laughed. “You might be right. Nevertheless, I did not learn to envy the rich man.”
“But you need some money,” I persisted. I do realize Jesus lived the life of poverty, but that was another place and time. A harsh desert culture, as Brother Fowles had said. “You need enough to pay for food and doctors and all.”
“All right then, some money,” he agreed. “One automobile and a radio for every village.Your country could give us that much, e-e?”
“Probably. I don’t think it would really make a dent. Back in Georgia everybody we knew had an automobile.”
“A bu, don’t tell stories. That is not possible.”
“Well, not everybody. I don’t mean babies and children. But every single family.”
“Not possible.”
“Yes, it is! Some families even have two!”
“What is the purpose of so many automobiles at the same time?”
“Well, because everybody has someplace to go every day. To work or to the store or something.”
“You are a fine teacher. That isn’t the problem.”
“What is the problem?”
“Understand, first, you are a girl. These boys are not accustomed to obeying their own grandmothers. If long division is really so important to a young man’s success in the world, how could a pretty girl know about it? This is what they are thinking. And understand, second, you are white.”
What did he mean, pretty girl! “White,” I repeated. “Then they don’t think white people know about long division, either?”
“Secretly, most of them believe white people know how to turn the sun on and off and make the river flow backward. But officially, no. What they hear from their fathers these days is that now Independence is here and white people should not be in Congo telling us what to do.”
“They also think America and Belgium should give them a lot of money, I happen to know. Enough for everybody to have a radio or a car or something. Nelson told me that.”
“Yes, that is number three. They think you represent a greedy nation.”
I closed the book on French verbs for the day. “Anatole, that doesn’t make a bit of sense. They don’t want us to be friends, and they don’t respect us, and in Leopoldville they’re ransacking white people’s houses. But they want America to give them money.”
“Which part does not make sense to you?” “All of it.”
“Beene, think,” he said patiently, as if I were one of his schoolboys stumped on an easy problem. “When one of the fishermen, let’s say Tata Boanda, has good luck on the river and comes home with his boat loaded with fish, what does he do?”
“That doesn’t happen very often.”
“No, but you have seen it happen. What does he do?”
“He sings at the top of his lungs and everybody comes and he gives it all away.”
“Even to his enemies?”
“I guess.Yeah. I know Tata Boanda doesn’t like Tata Zinsana very much, and he gives Tata Zinsana’s wives the most.”
“All right. To me that makes sense. When someone has much more than he can use, it’s very reasonable to expect he will not keep it all himself.”
“But Tata Boanda has to give it away, because fish won’t keep. If you don’t get rid of it, it’s just going to rot and stink to high heaven.” Anatole smiled and pointed his finger at my nose. “That is just how a Congolese person thinks about money.”
“But if you keep on giving away every bit of extra you have, you’re never going to be rich.”
“That is probably true.”
“And everybody wants to be rich.”
“Is that so?”
“Sure. Nelson wants to save up for a wife.You probably do, too.” For some reason I couldn’t look at him when I said that.”Tata Ndu is so rich he has six wives, and everybody envies him.”
“Tata Ndu has a very hard job. He needs a lot of wives. But don’t be so sure everyone envies him. I myself do not want his job.” Anatole laughed. “Or his wives.”
“But don’t you want lots of money?”
“Beene, I spent many years working for the Belgians in the rubber plantation at Coquilhatville, and I saw rich men there. They were always unhappy and had very few children.”
“They probably would have been even more unhappy if they’d been poor,” I argued.
He laughed. “You might be right. Nevertheless, I did not learn to envy the rich man.”
“But you need some money,” I persisted. I do realize Jesus lived the life of poverty, but that was another place and time. A harsh desert culture, as Brother Fowles had said. “You need enough to pay for food and doctors and all.”
“All right then, some money,” he agreed. “One automobile and a radio for every village.Your country could give us that much, e-e?”
“Probably. I don’t think it would really make a dent. Back in Georgia everybody we knew had an automobile.”
“A bu, don’t tell stories. That is not possible.”
“Well, not everybody. I don’t mean babies and children. But every single family.”
“Not possible.”
“Yes, it is! Some families even have two!”
“What is the purpose of so many automobiles at the same time?”
“Well, because everybody has someplace to go every day. To work or to the store or something.”
