Kids, a license of abuse?!

I had my first minibus fight Saturday morning! But, fortunately for me, it wasn’t with a “Woyala” (for I like to think of myself as somebody who tries to walk the walk, as well as talk the talk, and I’ve been heard saying that if i had money, the first thing I would “maQwaqwam” next to a Teacher’s training center that could come up with the kind of teachers I had in Junior High, at a tiny public school of only one class a grade that went by both “Bitweded” and “Yeka Misrak Chora J.S.S.”, is “Yewoyaloch Mebt Askebari Mahber”! Coz it breaks my heart, seeing these kids being treated “ke’me immint betach”. It’s as if next to the rulling party, they are the “thorn in the flesh” the whole of Addis would have had liked plucked, if can).

No! This was with a parent (or what Bertie Wooster would call “the dotting uncle type” of parent) to a little girl who looked about 6 years old.

Here is what happened:

After trying to unclog the problem with my weblog Saturday morning, and failing, I decided to head home to my parents’. I bought a newspaper, took a cab and would have immersed myself in its content had I not been interrupted (and disturbed) by the row that was taking place next to me.

This was a man holding what appeared to be a little girl of not more than 6 years old. He was as stocky and loud as I mentioned, and she was as cute and sucking up to the attention as every other 6 year old is & would. Needless to say, they were trying to make the best of their journey… asking questions and giving answers, pointing stuff, taking almost all the space on the chair.

If this was your usual average-sized minibus endowed with enough space to pack a stocky man, a little girl, and a woman with newspaper without any problem, I would have held onto the seat infront of me and patiently waited for my journey’s end. That not being the case, however, I took it for as long as I could and finally asked the man if he could put the little girl on his knee.

This displeased him, as can be seen from the wounded look he gave me. And asked if they were “maschegering” me. I concurred and added that infact they’ve been “maschegering” me ever since they got on (around Addisu Sefer and we were nearing Legahare).

My answer came as a surprise and in a fit of rage, and trying to half raise and half sit himself, he blurted “ok! We will go somewhere else!”. I had my reservations about the wisdom of moving around while a minibus is still in full speed. But cleared my knees out of the way.

That made him mad! He sat back fuming and after a silent brooding, he turned to me and asked what it was about them that bothered me.

I showed him how much space he was supposed to take and how much he has taken.

He declared he was holding a child exclamation mark and looked around him with what looked like approval-seeking eyes. “Yes”, said I, and borrowing a line from my favorite sitcom ‘Sex and the City’ I added that I thought his child was his choice and not mine, so I don’t have to go through any trouble because he decided to bring her along.

This not only stirred all those present, but obviously excited the man.