FACHANKAN

s a village in the Jigawa local government area. The village life is interesting, but there is a shortage of religious activities, including traditional healing practices. It’s not that there are no schools; it's just that the people prioritize their trades more. Many of the village girls engage in hawking, and you can often see a young girl selling food and other items. By the time a girl reaches the age of thirteen or fourteen, preparations for her marriage begin. Many of them are made to sit down and thus age prematurely. As for the boys, if they manage to finish secondary school, they are considered to have completed their education. Some parents send their sons to seek wealth in the South or other towns, or they may send them off to become Almajiri (Quranic students).

Now, let's dive into the story.

This is the situation in the house of Alhaji Sani Mai Goro. It’s a large house made of mud with eight rooms, each room having its own occupant. Sani Mai Goro has three wives: Inna Suwaiba, Inna Khande, and Inna Indo. Inna Suwaiba is a woman who loves money and has little patience. She has two children, Hamza and Binta, who is married in a nearby village. Inna Khande doesn’t interfere in others’ affairs and rarely comments on household matters unless her children are involved. She has three children: Ismail (also known as Ilo), Sule, and Abubakar (also known as Abu). Inna Indo, on the other hand, is quarrelsome and sarcastic, always ready for a fight even if unprovoked. She has two children: Iro and Mamman.

Among their children, Iro has a daughter named Sa’ade and a son named Hamisu, who is becoming a young man. Hamisu is disobedient and has a strong desire for women, often chasing after them from a young age. His parents wanted to marry him off due to his excessive desire, but he refused to seek work, opting instead to remain in the village and cause trouble.

Mamman’s wife, Maryama, is also very cunning and secretive. She has two daughters, Bishira and Habiba, who are also disobedient and disrespectful to everyone in the house except their grandfather, Sani Mai Goro, whom they fear.

Abubakar has one wife named Hadiza, who is also quarrelsome and envious. She has one daughter named Na’ima, on whom she places all her hopes and dreams, wishing her to marry a wealthy man from the city. Hadiza rarely gets along with the other women in the house.

Then there’s Sule, whom the younger ones refer to as "Kawu" before calling him by his name. He is the only one who has managed to become prosperous, working in the city where he owns multiple shops in Kwari Market. His business has flourished, and he has become wealthy, so his parents wanted to arrange his marriage with a relative. However, his employer, who initially trusted him with his shop, gave him his daughter Bilkisu in marriage. Despite the family's initial reluctance, the marriage took place, and Sule built a beautiful house in Kano where he lives with Bilkisu and their three children: daughters Khairat and Ifteesan, and a son, Ya Khaleefa. Bilkisu rarely visits the village as she does not like it, despite being generous. She loves her children dearly, and they have grown up privileged and disdainful of the village. Ya Khaleefa, the eldest, is currently studying Law in England. He is exceptionally handsome and well-mannered, but he prefers to speak only when necessary, which commands respect from his younger siblings.