Story #1
I was just looking through some blog entries I left unfinished while I was in Namibia. Some of them I may never finish, but there are some I want to see through despite being back in the US. This is one of them. It’s a story Moses told me, which I like, but which has implications beyond simply being entertaining.
Moses - my closest friend from Tsintsabis - is a born storyteller. No matter what language he's speaking - English, Afrikaans, Hei//om - you can tell when he's spinning a good yarn. Everyone around him is transfixed, their eyes glued to him as the story builds, waiting for the punchline because they know it's coming and it's going to be good. He narrates, impersonates, and intonates, winding the story tighter and tighter. Inevitably he delivers his punch line, be it a crucial impersonation, quotation, one-liner, or actual punch line, and the group cracks. The tension built by his story breaks and people's expressions melt from concentrated looks of expectation to easy smiles and laughter.
One of my favorite stories Moses told me is about the Tortoise and the Ostrich, and it goes a little something like this:
One day the Ostrich and the Tortoise were sitting in the middle of the village chatting. As usual, the Ostrich was bragging about his beautiful feathers, his long slender neck, and his strong white legs. "My legs are sooo beautiful and strong," the Ostrich cooed. "I'm really fast, you know." The Tortoise usually dealt well with the Ostrich's bragging, but today he wasn't really in the mood for it. He felt like bringing the Ostrich down a few notches. "Yeah, your legs are great, but you're really not that fast. I bet I could beat you in a race," challenged the Tortoise. "Ha, I'll race you any day of the week. Your legs are so stubby and your shell is so heavy... I didn't even know you could run," replied the Ostrich. The Tortoise frowned. "Ok, let's do it. Tomorrow we'll race 10 km and - mark my words - I'll beat you. Every kilometer just shout 'Are you there Tortoise?' and I'll be right there beside you. You'll see." "Ha, ok, guess I'll see you tomorrow," said the Ostrich as he pranced off to his hut.
The Tortoise walked home and called all of his relatives in for a meeting. They slowly plodded in from the fields and gathered in front of the family hut. "I need to ask you all a favor," began the Tortoise. "Tomorrow I'm racing the Ostrich and I plan on winning, but I'll need your help. I need you all to spread out over the race course and space yourselves at 1km intervals. When the Ostrich runs by and asks, 'Are you there Tortoise?' I want you to say, 'Yep Ostrich, I'm here.'"
The next morning as the sun rose over the tamboti trees, the Tortoise and the Ostrich met in the middle of the village, where the race would start and finish. "You ready for a long day?" joked the Ostrich. "Just don't get caught out there in the dark." "Oh, I'm ready," said the Tortoise "and I'll be seeing you at the finish line... Ready, set, GO!" The Ostrich bolted from the line in classic Ostrich running form with his wings spread, his neck out, and his eyes closed against the dust. The Tortoise waited for the dust to settle, then went into his hut for a drink of water. Meanwhile, the Ostrich was striding along a dirt road on the edge of town. He didn't hear the Tortoise next to him, but at the first kilometer he called out patronizingly, "Oh, Tortoise, are you there?" To his surprise, he heard "Yep, Ostrich, I'm here" so he picked up the pace. At the next kilometer, he called out curiously, "Tortoise, are you there?" Again he heard "Yep, Ostrich, I'm here." His heart was beating quickly and he was getting nervous. The race carried on like this, the Ostrich calling out, the Tortoise responding, and the Ostrich becoming more and more flustered. As the Ostrich turned the final corner into the center of the village, he opened his eyes and to his shock saw the Tortoise standing there with a satisfied grin on his face. "Well Ostrich, looks like I won." The Ostrich stood in disbelief, and in a moment of vain denial stuck his head between his legs into the sand.
THE END
Moses - my closest friend from Tsintsabis - is a born storyteller. No matter what language he's speaking - English, Afrikaans, Hei//om - you can tell when he's spinning a good yarn. Everyone around him is transfixed, their eyes glued to him as the story builds, waiting for the punchline because they know it's coming and it's going to be good. He narrates, impersonates, and intonates, winding the story tighter and tighter. Inevitably he delivers his punch line, be it a crucial impersonation, quotation, one-liner, or actual punch line, and the group cracks. The tension built by his story breaks and people's expressions melt from concentrated looks of expectation to easy smiles and laughter.
One of my favorite stories Moses told me is about the Tortoise and the Ostrich, and it goes a little something like this:
One day the Ostrich and the Tortoise were sitting in the middle of the village chatting. As usual, the Ostrich was bragging about his beautiful feathers, his long slender neck, and his strong white legs. "My legs are sooo beautiful and strong," the Ostrich cooed. "I'm really fast, you know." The Tortoise usually dealt well with the Ostrich's bragging, but today he wasn't really in the mood for it. He felt like bringing the Ostrich down a few notches. "Yeah, your legs are great, but you're really not that fast. I bet I could beat you in a race," challenged the Tortoise. "Ha, I'll race you any day of the week. Your legs are so stubby and your shell is so heavy... I didn't even know you could run," replied the Ostrich. The Tortoise frowned. "Ok, let's do it. Tomorrow we'll race 10 km and - mark my words - I'll beat you. Every kilometer just shout 'Are you there Tortoise?' and I'll be right there beside you. You'll see." "Ha, ok, guess I'll see you tomorrow," said the Ostrich as he pranced off to his hut.
The Tortoise walked home and called all of his relatives in for a meeting. They slowly plodded in from the fields and gathered in front of the family hut. "I need to ask you all a favor," began the Tortoise. "Tomorrow I'm racing the Ostrich and I plan on winning, but I'll need your help. I need you all to spread out over the race course and space yourselves at 1km intervals. When the Ostrich runs by and asks, 'Are you there Tortoise?' I want you to say, 'Yep Ostrich, I'm here.'"
The next morning as the sun rose over the tamboti trees, the Tortoise and the Ostrich met in the middle of the village, where the race would start and finish. "You ready for a long day?" joked the Ostrich. "Just don't get caught out there in the dark." "Oh, I'm ready," said the Tortoise "and I'll be seeing you at the finish line... Ready, set, GO!" The Ostrich bolted from the line in classic Ostrich running form with his wings spread, his neck out, and his eyes closed against the dust. The Tortoise waited for the dust to settle, then went into his hut for a drink of water. Meanwhile, the Ostrich was striding along a dirt road on the edge of town. He didn't hear the Tortoise next to him, but at the first kilometer he called out patronizingly, "Oh, Tortoise, are you there?" To his surprise, he heard "Yep, Ostrich, I'm here" so he picked up the pace. At the next kilometer, he called out curiously, "Tortoise, are you there?" Again he heard "Yep, Ostrich, I'm here." His heart was beating quickly and he was getting nervous. The race carried on like this, the Ostrich calling out, the Tortoise responding, and the Ostrich becoming more and more flustered. As the Ostrich turned the final corner into the center of the village, he opened his eyes and to his shock saw the Tortoise standing there with a satisfied grin on his face. "Well Ostrich, looks like I won." The Ostrich stood in disbelief, and in a moment of vain denial stuck his head between his legs into the sand.
THE END
posted by Will at 7:18 PM
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