Mallam Garba's House

5- The very first

"When you follow the tricks I told you tactifully, you will see good results" Inna Tani said to the two younger ladies who sat at her feet listening to her, referring particularly to Sala. She turned the almost finished cigarette stick in her hand and threw it on the ash tray, picking another one and a lighter to light it. Her daughter Larai looked at her disgustingly, Inna Tani was a chain smoker, and there was nothing anyone can do about it, not even her husband. It was one of her behaviors that her five children- all girls never came to terms with.

Sala couldn't be any happier as she got the right solution to the problems she was faced with. She parted with them with smiles.

***

"Well-done Amarya, what can I help you with today?" Sala peeped into the kitchen where Sadiya was cooking, the first time she was cooking on the eigth day of her marriage. "Aunty don't worry, I'm done already. I just want to take this food over to Hajiyar Makka and Inna"

"Oh wait, you can't go like this. Go into your room and change into something nice. Let me go in and pray too, before you come back" Sadiya nodded and went into her room to change while Sala also went into hers, however she came back when she was sure Sadiya was out of sight and brought out the wrap she hid in the kitchen and sprinkled some of its content in the soup meant for the in laws then stirred it. It was a mixture of salt and pepper. Sala went ahead to pour a little quantity of sand into the soup and rubbed charcoal on the side of the new white food flask Sadiya used for her inlaws, it was in such a way that she wouldn't notice it. She finished quickly and left back to her room.

Sadiya, quite oblivious to what Sala did came out and took the food to her in laws, and came back home, eagerly waiting for a feedback of good remarks. They ate the food with Sala who kept praising her cooking skills, more than she supposed to have on normal basis. Their husband came back and was served too.

Meanwhile, the case was different at the in laws' end. The two mothers sat down to eat and the first thing they noticed was the blackness at one side of the food flask, they decided to ignore, but upon tasting the food, the raw taste of excess salt and pepper hit their taste buds, along with little particles of stones. "Ah, does this food taste the same way to you as me?" Inna asked after gulping down water "It does, let's give her the benefit of doubt you know she's still a child, kids of nowadays"

"A child? Hajiya she's 16, we both were not up to that age when we got married and we never cooked this poorly. It's not done, just look at how dirty the dish is. Is that what she's going to be giving our son to eat?" Inna lamented and Hajiyar Makka just shook her head and said nothing.

***

"Why are you looking this way Amarya" Sala asked when Sadiya came back from getting her dishes from their inlaws in the evening. "Inna complained that the food is too salty, peppery and has sand in it. She also said the dishes are dirty" tears welled in her eyes as she knew she tried her best in cooking the food and even serving it.

"Oh Sadiya my dear, I'm sorry it's all my fault. I forgot to tell you that the old women don't eat salt, so if I'm serving them food I fetch their soup before adding any spice at all. You should do that next time okay? Though Mallam does not even know about that, sometimes you just have to straighten the relationship between you and your inlaws without letting your husband in" she smiled kindly, albeit the hidden emotions within "How about the sand and dirty dishes?"

"Don't mind her, she's old. Old people nag alot" Sala chuckled "Now go in and meet your husband, don't leave him to stay alone"

The next time Sadiya cooked, she gave her inlaws a bland soup as Sala advised and this time around, the matter was reported to Garba. He came back home furious. "Don't take food to my mothers again for now, I will take you back home to learn how to cook for a while" he said and Sadiya was lost of words.