story by crispin oduobuk

Well, I've heard of 'posh totty' but a literary hottie in the shape of a man! Well... Pictured above is the writer about whom we speak in the post below - Crispin Oduobuk himself.

And here below is something courtesy of his pen, King M. Enjoy...

King M
By Crispin Oduobuk

Hey friend, I tell you a story. A good story. With a moral in it.

I tell you about a king. I tell you about King Mmefiokmma. See, King M, he living long time ago with big kingdom. Lots of land and people. Just not enough water on one part of his kingdom. So he has like a desert, see?

King M; he a good king. So one day, God says to him: "Mmefiokmma, you're a good king, so I’ll give you the one thing you really need. I'll give you a river so you won’t lack water so much. Good, eh?"

King M says, "It's good," and, "thank you, God," then he sits back and waits for the river.

Soon enough the river comes flowing though. But it’s flowing on the side of the kingdom that don't need it so much.

So King M figures to himself, maybe God forgot which side of the kingdom really needed the river. So he puts up army of workers and they spend a lifetime diverting the river to the side of the kingdom that really needs it.

Problem is, not long after they finish this tedious work, the whole river dries up.

So King M, now wasted by age and disappointment, cries up to God. "God, why have you taken back the river?"

"I didn't." Says God.

"So where's it gone to?" King wants to know.

God chuckles and says, "My son Mmefiokmma, you gave it to the desert, didn't you? That desert been thirsty long before your time. I knew that, but you didn't."

Again King M cries up to God sadly: "God, since you knew the desert was going to drink up the river, why didn't you warn me when I was diverting it there? And since you can do everything, why didn't you just sate the desert so it wouldn't drink up all the river?"

God sighs heavily and King M's whole kingdom trembles. Then God says, "Mmefiokmma, that's the problem with you humans: you just don't get it."

Now, friend, you know the story; you can figure out the moral -- I'm not sure what it is so I can’t tell you. I can tell you though that I like this story and I'd like to try and dramatize it. You think maybe you can play King M and I play God?


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Crispin Oduobuk resides in Abuja, Nigeria. His work has been published in many journals and anthologies, including, Eclectica, BBC Focus on Africa, and Spoiled Ink.

Photo courtesy of the writer.