The Door of No Return

Kofi’s grandfather Nana Mosi is the tribe’s great storyteller. He starts his tales with “There was even a time,” continuing with pauses, repetition, and smiles before he gets to the parts the listeners wait for (21). Nana Mosi is almost 80 years old, and Kofi hangs on to every word of his stories.

In Kofi’s dream, he races across the jungle past a leopard and her cubs. He runs through grass, rocks, and trees to the river calling him.

In class, Kofi’s teacher, Mr. Goodluck Phillip, asks them facts about Queen Victoria. Kofi answers in their native Asante language called Twi, so Mr. Goodluck Philip slaps his hand with his cane, telling him to use “the Queen’s English” instead (25). Kofi’s hand welts up as his cousin, who thinks he’s better than him, smiles deviously. Kofi tries not to cry, especially in front of his classmate Ama.

Their teacher, Mr. Goodluck Phillip, used to be Kwaku Ansah. He was sent many seasons ago to “The Queen’s Missionary School” (28). When he returned, he’d changed his name and insisted the others needed to learn the same lessons and “improve” as he did.

Mr. Phillip doesn’t smile, frowns when they speak their native Twi, and wears strange new collared shirts. Mr. Phillip now looks down upon their sacred native ways, swearing he’s been anointed to rescue them.

Kwasi, Kofi’s older brother, tells a story about Mr. Phillip. When the teacher insisted that they all speak the “mother tongue” of the queen, a student said his mother speaks Twi. For his insolence, Mr. Phillip slashed the boy with his cane on the buttocks. The boy’s butt was so sore, he couldn’t sit for three days.

Kofi’s punishment for not using the Queen’s English is to stay behind after school with Mr. Phillip and read William Shakespeare’s work. Kofi likes Shakespeare, which he’d never admit to Mr. Phillip. Before his punishment, his crush Ama came up to him at the end of class to cheer him up, encouraging him because he knew the right answer even though he didn’t say it in English. Kofi loved the way Ama smelled like honey and pine.

Kofi has known Ama since they were babies on their mother’s backs as they sold yams and cassava at the market. They grew up together, swimming and dreaming, until Ama’s parents died. Now, Ama lives with her uncle, cleaning and working to earn her keep for food and shelter. Thus, Kofi typically only sees Ama at school.

After reading the English words of Shakespeare, Mr. Phillip praises Kofi’s efforts, telling him to roll his R’s better. Kofi hates the “alien” words, but he just thanks the teacher for his instruction.

Kofi’s best friend, Ebo, is waiting for him outside of school. He’s with a band of younger kids, who are gathering gold specks from the streets and ditches after a heavy rainfall. The gold has flooded out from the Offin River.

Ama, carrying water, timber, and her baby cousin, comes to Kofi with a soft green leaf. She rubs it on his hand’s wound from the teacher, making Kofi blush with affection for her. He thanks her, then they talk about swimming. Kofi thinks he would always swim if she was the river, but it’s too dark for him and Kwasi to swim tonight.

After school every day, Kofi hides out in his oasis: the river. He swims and relaxes until nearly dark, when his brother Kwasi yells at him to get out. Kofi would stay in the water forever, but everyone in his village says the river is cursed at nighttime.

Kofi’s best friend Ebo gives him kola nuts and red berries he picked. He thinks they’re a snack, but Ebo says they’re for him to present to Ama’s uncle when he asks to marry her, saying he’s obviously obsessed with Ama. Kofi denies this, and Ebo teases him that maybe he’ll marry his youngest sister Esi, since the others are married. They tease back and forth as they walk home.

Kwasi and Nana Mosi are playing a board game called Oware. No one ever beats Nana Mosi, so Kwasi is so concentrated that he barely looks up from the game. Kofi’s cousin came around earlier and told everyone about his wrongdoing and punishment.

Kwasi loses three times to Nana Mosi, then finds Kofi counting in English.

Kwasi says Mr. Phillip is miseducating everyone, but Kofi tells him that Mr. Phillip says he’s trying to widen their intellect. Kwasi thinks he’s trying to take away their culture. Kofi asks Kwasi to teach him how to fight, since their cousin picks on him a lot and beats him up. Instead of teaching him physical moves, Kwasi tells him to use his mind. He says their mother Maame is looking for him, and she’s not pleased.

Kofi is punished by going without food or water. Maame is waiting until his father gets home from his job of mining for his bigger punishment.

During the rainy season, Kofi’s father, Papa, leaves for days at a time to pan for gold. Papa brings a shovel he invented.

Before Kofi went to school, Papa took him panning for gold in the Offin River, too. While women panned on the banks, men rowed their boats in the water, diving under to try to find gold. Little Kofi waited in the boat, wondering what lay beyond their village.

When Papa returns home, Kofi’s parents give him a lecture about discipline and responsibility. Kofi doesn’t understand why his caning from Mr. Phillip was so bad, especially since Maame gets mad at him for speaking English at home. They speak Twi in their house; at school, it’s different.

Maame gives him a new kente cloth to wear at an upcoming festival, and Kofi is thankful. They eat yams for dinner.

The harvested yams are ripe, which means they will have the annual Kings Festival in Bayere. It also means they will eat yams for months, which Kofi is not looking forward to.

The Kings Festival is an annual celebration, where Kofi will have eight days off from school. His people will perform plays, dress in kente costumes, bow to the Kings, honor the departed, share speeches about their history, and remember the big war.