Journal Entery

Date: July 31, 2007

Entery Number: 20

Page/Quote reflecting on: Pgs. 76-85

Poor Ekwefi. She had ten children and all of them died except Ezinma, who in this part of the story is sick with fever and may die. Ekwefi has suffered so much and if Ezinma where to die, I think it would kill Ekwefi. I know what already happens because I've finished the book already, but still. By the time Okonkwo's and Ekwefi's third child had died she was very bitter. Her third child's name actually was a plead,Onwumbiko- "Death, I implore you." He still died and so did every other child she had up to Ezinma. Okonkwo went to a medicine man and found out the the child was an ogbanje which is a child who refuses to die so it reenters its mother's womb to be reborn. Ogbanje children never live very long unless their iyi-uwa is found and destroyed. An iyi-uwa is a stone that connects the ogbanje to the spirit world. There were different methods to try and get the ogbanje to leave like mutilation but most of the time it didn't work and you had to find that iyi-uwa. But Ekwefi went through so much and now Ezinma was going to die, possibly. That's just crazy. Okonkwo and a medicine man even found Ezinma's iyi-uwa and destroyed it which took a while to find because of Ezinma's reluctancey to give it up and then they had to dig for it. Ezinma is the only one that Ekwefi has really got. Ya there is Okonkwo and the other women and their children but Okonkwo isn't the nicest guy and Okonkwo's other wifes have their own children and own problems. But that must have been terrible to have all those children and then not get to enjoy them and also if I were Ekwefi I would be feeling pretty worthless not being able to bare any children that are actually going to live. I would hate to be in her place.