NOTES FROM THE NSAWAM STREET: The Four Wives of Man

Third article of the series “NOTES FROM THE NSAWAM STREET”  I was having a chat with a great friend tonight ( time was around 23:20 at Mampong Akuapem) and I found our conversation greatly cool enough to be added to the NOTES FROM THE NSAWAM STREET. Its figurative for the four pillars of every man.As narrated by friend below;

"What about my fourth wife being family and friends.My third wealth and status My second being my wisdom, knowledge and intellect.Then my 1st wife being my good deed. All Man, every man has these four wives. Friends and family we love and cherish, lavishing on them all the goodies we have. But in death, they shall desert us. Our wealth and status, the most lovely of wives whom we always desire to show off. In our dressing, speech, manners and association with others we do not stop to flaunt her telling the world, how much we love her. Oh what a romantic man we become with her, constant show and public display of affection towards her. How gentle we treat her. Thinking her our best companion for life. But alas oh my poor soul, at the sight of death she deserts me and leaves I  shattered and broken. Walking only with nothing but lingering fondness of her in my heart.My second wife, oh that virtuous of women. So witty and cunning, advising I and helping me escape my most daring of challenges. She is called Mrs Wisdom Knowlegeson. Once you may think or have thought this wife of mine, no of ours could have talked death out of taking us. Alas my soul, she leaveth me for another right there even before I could have walked away with death.But in all these, our ever dutiful, loyal and loving caring wife, good deed says to us, she calls at us, in her emaciated and malnourished state, ' I would go with you'.  Oh my most blessed creatured wife. Most kind hearted and queenly of all. My only companion in the after world, how bad I have left and neglected you all these while.  I wish but there was an act of penance, strong enough to purge I off all the wrong I have done you.Do I send cowries to the widows for prayers to be said upon my soul in my stead or do I send slaves to the osofo at asonee to atone for all that which I have done to wrong thee. Come my dear,  come my most ill treated of wives, come look me in the face and declare that which you desire off me. Alas I forget myself, I have nothing, nothing is left of me, save my remorse."

After he said that, I thought its one of the normal stuff we have been talking about and making fun of but then something unusual stroked me so I asked him if its a fiction or real life story, first I must admit I was confused. I did not understand him so I asked him to explain and this  how it was explained to me and this is what I learnt.

In reality we all have them. Though we do not love them all same. 

The fourth wife of man are relations (family and friends) we love them a lot and brag about them. That is why very soon all man wants to show you who they know and whom they are related to. We love this wife a lot.

The third wife is wealth. we love this particular woman a lot and take her around wherever we go. Don't forget she is our symbol of status. hence our position in life. We love her real good and carry her everywhere we go. I have not seen a man that did not love this woman more.  Even those that do not have her envision her and use her to disturb our ears.

Then comes our second wife, Knowledge. She is the daughter of wisdom and her mother in law is our most trusted ally in all situations. She is able to talk us out of our most foolish acts and advice us good. We do not particular love this woman as we love our second wife. But we tolerate her a fair deal and are good to her. If we mess up with her, we could not know a lot of things as she would withhold valuable information from us and her mother would not teach us what to say when we fall into trouble. So you see hers is a marriage of convenience but we sure do love her. Some men truly love her but these are in the minority.

For the first wife good deed. We dont really know she exists. We dont give a damn about her. We only married her when we were young and growing up. You see she is more like an akongua yere. Stool wife, we don't love her but cant leave her. We have our other three wives due to her. We wish she died but no she would not. We maltreat her and abuse her much often,  but she is our most dutiful and loyal of them all. We realize her love and notice her too late. When we are about travelling the land of the fathers.

The narrative was Inspired by the Play Every man and my friend is Okine kwaffo akoto Appiah known in the writing world as beautifulnonse.