Legend of the hunchback

Legend of the hunchback
 By Segun Durowaiye
Ajewole Onileola was a man with limitations because he was a very ugly hunchback. Human beings are not made perfect by the Creator. And sincerely, no one is perfect. But Ajewole was really ugly in the truest sense of the word.

If there is a competition to choose the ugliest man in the world, it’s quite certain that Ajewole would win the award and claim the trophy. He had a scary feature that could make one squirm with disgust. He was the quintessence Mr. Ugly in modern day pageant. It became increasingly difficult for him to woo a woman because of his ugliness, worsened by abject poverty.

Which woman would marry a man who was an eyesore and without enough money in his pocket? That was the problem and travails of Ajewole. He bore it with hope and endurance. He reasoned that tough times don’t last but tough people do.

He cried unto God one day for a wife because age was no longer on his side and God answered his prayers. He gave him a wife, Kudirat.

Kudirat was a pretty, dutiful and hardworking woman who stood by him despite the fact that he wasn’t rich. Ajewole was endowed with an awesome gift - foretelling the future through dreams. It was through this gift that God revealed to him the secret of healing people with a mystery leaf.

Before long, the whole Odunyo Town, on the outskirts of Lagos came to recognise this amazing healing power of Ajewole. He was called the Father of herbs and his fame and fortune rose astronomically. People came from far and near to see him for one health problem or another; and he healed them from myriad of ailments plaguing them.

He established hospitals and herbal homes throughout the nation and even beyond. Even white people from Europe and America came in droves to visit Ajewole for their health problems that seemed insurmountable for orthodox medicine and he gave them succour and healed them.

Within three years, Ajewole had become a multimillionaire. With this new financial status, a lot of very beautiful and enchanting ladies became attracted to him. Wherever he went, outstandingly charming and beautiful ladies ‘fell in love’ with him and courted his favour, despite the fact that he was as ugly as a beast.

These ladies that swooned over Ajewole begging for his love could really pass for beauty queens any day and anywhere in the world. The bevy of beauties craving his love were salacious and overwhelmingly delectable! There’s a saying that ‘sweet things like sugar always lure ants, just as money lures women to rich men.’

Ajewole himself often wondered what actually rekindled the flame of love these pretty women suddenly developed for him. In the month of June, Ajewole did the unthinkable - he married two beautiful ladies among the number of attractive women desirous of marrying him. These ladies were astonishingly beautiful! His second wife was Bimbo and the third was Munira. They both had angelic features and stood out without blemish. No particular adjective could be coined to describe how beautiful the two wives really looked. Thus the crooked-looking Ajewole now had three wives.

Ajewole’s decision to marry two other wives became the talk-of-the town, as people wondered if he would be able to satisfy the sexual appetite of such a number of women. All the same, he didn’t mind what anyone said.

After marrying three wives, more beautiful women still hungered for the love of Ajewole. He doled out millions of Naira to his wives, particularly the new ones. They rode in the best cars, wore the best clothes and travelled around the world enjoying themselves. His wives worshipped him like a demigod and he in turn spoiled them silly with money. Ajewole had mansions in rich neighbourhoods all over the country and even overseas; and his wives enjoyed the wealth and the razzmatazz of marrying a stupendously rich man.

His wealth continued to grow in leaps and bounds, to the surprise of people. The almighty God was indeed faithful.

Two years later, Ajewole called his three wives for a brief chat.

He called them one after the other.

“Bimbo, can you tell me why you married me?” he asked, “because as an ugly man, I don’t think I’m worthy of being your husband.”

“Oh, my dear husband,” the angelic Bimbo replied, “I married you because of the love I have for you. It’s for the sake of love and nothing more. You’re my darling husband!”

Ajewole told her to excuse him, then he called in his second wife.

“Munira, can you tell me why you chose to marry me, despite the fact that I’m ugly and definitely not worthy of you?” he asked.

The seraphic lady smacked her ruddy lips in adoration and said with glee: “My wonderful husband, the only one that knows the true worth of a queen, I married you because of the deep love and affection I have for you. You can see how beautiful I am! I’m wonderfully sculptured by the Creator, hence, I must marry someone who can take good care of me. I’m married to you because of pure love and nothing more.”

Again, Ajewole told her to excuse him; then he called in his first wife, Kudirat. He asked her the same question.

“Kudirat, can you tell me the reason you married me despite my being ugly and unworthy of a beautiful woman as you?”

“My brave husband,” Kudirat replied, “I married you because I want to support you and build a family, that’s all. The two kids I have for you are enough reasons to stay with you, come rain and shine.”

Two hours, later Ajewole called the attention of Bimbo and Munira and told them point blank of his intention to divorce them.

“What have we done? What’s our sin?” they both asked repeatedly. They were trembling and fidgety. Beads of sweat had gathered on their foreheads.

“I have seen the true colour of love,” Ajewole replied, “and nothing is going to take that away from me. From this very moment, I disown both of you as my wives.”

Three days later, Ajewole filed a divorce suit against two of his charming wives, Bimbo and Munira. They cried their eyes out as the bespectacled, elderly judge separated them that fateful day.

It became a big lesson to watchers of the life of the diminutive hunchback. Kudirat, his first wife, became more dedicated and loyal to her husband. Ajewole in turn showered her with love, affection and the good things of life.

Ajewole knew that his estranged wives married him because of his wealth and nothing more.

There was once a seasoned spiritualist well versed in philosophy who said: “To know the actual sex of the foetus of a pregnant woman, you don’t need a scan. Just put a sum of money in the palm of your hands, very close to the belly of a woman who is five months pregnant, then shake the money very well. If it’s a girl, the foetus will turn and shake well enough; but it will remain still if it’s a boy. That’s the mystery of women.”

That was the saga and legend of Ajewole Onileola, the hunchback who did great feats that even able-bodied men couldn’t dare.

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