Purple Hibiscus....

“Where is Chinwe Jideze?” Papa asked, when we got to the front of my class.

“She is the girl in the middle,” I said. Was Papa going to talk to her? Yank at her ear for coming first? I wanted the ground to open up and swallow the whole compound.

“Look at her,” Papa said. “how many heads does she have?”

“One.” I didnt need to look at her to know that, but I looked at her anyway.

Papa pulled a small mirror, the side of a powder compact from his pocket. “look in the mirror”.

I stared at him.

“Look in the mirror”.

I took the mirror, peered at it.

“How many heads do you have?” Papa asked.

“One”.

“The girl has one head, too, she doesnt have two. So why did you let her come first?”

“It wont happen again Papa”

Page 46 of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s Purple Hibiscus...