FICTION : World Cup Soccer Craze

Alimatua is an adherent soccer fan and follows both local and international soccer leagues with passion. He is always well informed in soccer matters and religiously adores soccer. Now that the World Cup is in Africa, he has even become crazier and a fanatic so to speak. Though he is an adherent Brazil fan, he hopes against hope that an African team will make it to the quarter finals if not semi finals. Rehema, Alimatua’s wife is at this historic period of time having a nightmare at her home. She wishes the season would vanish as fast as it possibly can to end the menace at her place. Customarily, her husband has made it a routine to come with friends whenever there is a match to watch in order to watch it at home. If not at home he would go elsewhere and come back home at odd hours. Rehema hates this and has on several occasions tried to constrain her husband from the practice but to no avail. Interestingly, Alimatua has a collection of very unique and queer friends. They particularly choke Rehema whenever they visit. She indeed is a clean and perfectionist lady who always makes sure everything is neat and kept in its place. Her living room is well furnished with decorations of every kind. The floor wears an expensive carpet which is taken to the laundry whenever Rehema spots the slightest stain.It is on this one weekend that Rehema will forever not forget down her memory lane. She even considered divorcing her husband out of what transpired that night. Ghana, an African team was playing against Serbia. Alimatua had as usual invited his friends at his place to watch the game together. The invited guests started thronging in Alimatua’s compound at around 7p.m since the match was to start at thirty past eight. Rehema really tried though without success to wear a smile on her face as she kept opening the main door to the over anxious guests to get inside. She had feebly and after arguing with her husband accepted to make some coffee for the visitors to drink while they enjoyed watching the match. Ten minutes prior to the kick off time, the ten plus visitors were all seated in whatever space that was available. Rehema had managed to make them not to enter the house with shoes and sandals in order not to soil her exquisite carpet. However, though they did not soil the carpet, they did spoil the air with their smelly feet! None of them seemed to notice except Rehema off course. “Why on earth should an adult get his mind to be adulterated to an extent that he fancies watching other equally mind adulterated adults chasing around with great enthusiasm a round shaped ball made from a dead cow?” Rehema quipped. It simply did not add up in her mind. Everyone in the room seemed to be an expert on soccer and one wondered why they were not in the field themselves. They conversed loudly and you would think it was ‘football made at Rehema’s’ from the outside. The referee blew the first whistle and hell broke loose at Rehema’s. Whenever a Ghanaian player would be tackling the ball, the whole room would be filled with noise. They would both curse and praise at some point. Rehema even had a very difficult time when trying to serve her guests with the damned coffee she was coerced to make. Their eyes were glued to the screen and any object that came between their eyes and the screen was abhorred.Alimatua noticed Rehema kept on crisscrossing before them and used some bad words in telling her to make herself scarce. “We will serve ourselves the stuff. Take your lazy body to bed!” Alimatua escorted Rehema with the words. She coyly went out of the room and jumped in bed very irritated. The noise coming from the living room could not make her gather some sleep. She noticed her small toddler who slept next to her was also uncomfortable. Rehema gathered courage to go and talk to her husband to get the now mad TV spectators to tone down their voices. She signalled Alimatua to come over to the bed room for a chat from the door but he ignored her. It was until half time that Alimatua decided to heed to Rehemas beckoning. “What’s wrong with you? What is it that you want now?” Alimatua enquired from his now agitated wife. “Please, try and tell your buddies to lower their voices. It’s late and we want to get some sleep,” Rehema requested her husband. Alimatua did not bother to answer her instead he turned back, slammed the door and joined his friends. No sooner had the second half started than the room was back to its market like din again. A few minutes elapsed and the Ghanaian team scored and it was pandemonium! Everyone in the room became literally mad. The sleeping toddler was rudely woken by the loud noise and Rehema could stand it no more. She hurried to the wardrobe, packed her clothes and the toddler’s and left notwithstanding the time. It was not until the game was over that Alimatua realized that his wife had disappeared. He established the morning after that Rehema had gone back to her parents who lived a few miles away. Rehema sent an emissary that she will not be coming back until the soccer season is over and Alimatua’s visit to her parents explaining what he prioritizes, his family or the damned World Cup! And traditionally since he jeopardized her life and that of the toddler when she travelled late at night, he must visit them bringing along a goat! skangongoi@yahoo.com