The Banana Bunch

This past weekend, I dropped Kathy off at the International School of Ouagadougou where she was going to be the first-aid person at a softball tournament. Driving a little way further down the street, I spotted a young lady with a basket of bananas on her head. Hey, we needed some bananas and these looked good, so I pulled over and waved her over.

As I was buying a half dozen or so, a bunch of little kids of various ages and in various stages of dress (or undress!) came running out from a nearby courtyard. “Sir,” they all said, “we want a banana.” I laughed. They were so cute and the bananas so cheap that I simply handed them each one from the bunch I had just bought while the young woman looked on in astonishment. Grasping their fruit, they happily traipsed back to where they had come from.

I looked at the banana seller. “Well,” I said, “you’d better give me some more!” She laughed and began selecting another bunch for me.

Suddenly, all the kids came running back out, their bananas still in hand. Lining up one after another, each child came up to me and said, “Merci monsieur!” Then they ran back inside. I chuckled all the way home.