Nigerian Children

I have been working at the school the past week, and the children are amazing, lively, and full of energy. At first they were scared, and wouldn’t come near us. But as they got to know us better they became more outgoing. Our interactions with them are a game now: chase the onyacha’s (white people) and see who can touch them the most. They also like to mimic our every move, and follow us constantly…

During the afternoon break, I decided to go and play with them, to try and get them more comfortable with me. They stood in front of me, whispering, and giggling, but not doing anything. I asked them if they would sing for me. They nodded fervently. They broke into a Nigerian-ized version of Jingle Bells. I laughed, as Christmas was two months ago, and we are in the season of Easter now. So I asked them if they knew any other songs beside Christmas songs. They nodded again and started singing I want to wish you a merry Christmas, not understanding me. As the musical session went on, they added movements to their songs, singing songs in English, French and Igbo (the language of Enugu state). I tried to do their dances with them and they laughed so hard that they fell on the ground. Soon I started doing my own dances, which they loved and copied immediately. If anyone has actually seen me dance, I am sure you are shaking your heads right now, saddened by all of these new dance moves making it big all over Nigeria. Soon it will be a West African craze, and it won’t be long till they reach America I am sure… But soon after I started dancing, the running commenced, and I was being chased all around the field in front of the school. I tried to explain to them the art of ‘tag’, but instead of them chasing each other, they just kept chasing me, hoping for an excuse to touch me. Duck Duck Gray Duck was also lost on them.

The next morning after our field extravaganza Kerry and I each went into our own class rooms, to hang out with the kiddies. I asked the kids to sing to me again, because I knew they liked it, and it is a good ice breaker. They would sing a song, and I would respond with a song. I sang You Are My Sunshine, which was a big hit. Some of them already knew it and sang along with me. It was a moment that I wished I knew how to play the guitar are thought of my dad. When he was in the Peace Corps in Morocco, he would teach English to his students by way of Bob Dylan. I hope that music will be just as much a part of my time here in Nigeria as it was for him in Morocco. I am going to sing with them every day, and hopefully, they will teach me something about music!