PROFESSOR KEKERE

 

PROFESSOR KEKERE

Written By Ify Omeni – The Tale Weaver

It was my friend, Lola who first told me about her. I was intrigued and sought to know more. Then she told me about this inspiring individual. I wrote about her in my book, Footprints of Note and she remains a reference point for me.

Lola and I discussed her when I was telling Lola how much I loved to read. Lola assured me that my case is not as unique as the one she was about to tell me. I was ready to argue with her. Then Lola told me about her.

The little girl that is called Professor kekere. 

The word, kekere means ‘little’ in the Yoruba language, which is spoken in Western Nigeria. So the phrase means, little professor.

Lola told me about this inspiring girl who has a great love for books. She is not yet two years old but she loves books almost to the point of obsession. Her parents spend a neat pile of money buying books for her. She often wakes up from sleep and settles down to read. Many times, she does not remember to eat. Her parents have to push food into her mouth as she sits, engrossed reading her books. A pile of books is always kept in her room, ready for her to read the following day. If she sees a book she has read before among the pile, she would scream and cry until it is replaced with a new one.

That is how much Professor Kekere loves books.

I try to take a peep into her future as I heard her story. I imagine her surrounded by books and almost drowning in them. Maybe she will become a professor in future and read books all the days of her life. Or maybe she will be like me, writing books, editing books and teaching students from books, all the days of her life.

Whatever her destiny is, it will be coloured by the imaginative world of books.

I love books too.

Probably not as much as Professor Kekere, but reading books is one of my favourite pastimes. My best titles are fiction books. They help me escape to a realm of imagination and I love the beauty of the flowery language used in those types of works. 

I always have a book in my bag and I take every opportunity to read. People are sometimes amazed when they see me seated at a public event, my head buried in a book. I always look forward to travelling because it gives me an opportunity to read. I dive into my book the moment I am seated in a vehicle and I do not look up till the end of the journey. 

I have my reading time every day except Saturday and this pastime helps to refresh me.

I use this story of Professor Kekere to discuss the reading culture in my country. I get concerned each time people look at me like I just sprouted horns, when they see me reading. A lady said a man once asked her if she was preparing for an exam when he saw her reading. He said, with so much joy, that he has not touched a book since he graduated from the university. That is how most people think these days.

The reading culture in my country is not so commendable. And technology has not made it any better. In my younger days, there were no cell phones and other technological devices, so people were forced to read. I remember the Enid Blyton books, Pacesetters and Winners series for children, published by Macmillian. I was(and still am) a voracious reader and sometimes read story books to the detriment of my school work.

Today, a lot of people shun reading and go a step further to taunt those who read. In a typical waiting area, like an airport lounge, offices or event venues, more than ninety percent of the people there are often busy with their phones. You can count those who read on your fingertips.

The dearth of the reading culture has made many writers revert to electronic books. Yet the dismal state of the reading culture, especially in my country Nigeria, still stares us in the face. 

But I believe there is a remnant. There are lots of people who read my books that I have published and that of other authors. There are many readers like me who cannot feel complete until they have read at least one book in a week.

I urge these people to remain steadfast. And for those who recoil at the mention of the word, "book," there is a need to have a rethink. Reading is an indispensable tool for the impartation of knowledge. People are surprised at how much I know and I tell them I get most of my information from reading. 

Today is WORLD BOOK DAY, a day set aside by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization(UNESCO), to promote reading, publishing and copyright. It is a day that celebrates authors who give birth to books, publishers who put these books in print and readers who consume the information contained in the books and encourage authors to keep writing. 

Since I became an author, I have come to cherish books even more. I have written eight books – Pearls are not for Pigs, Letter to Thilda, Footprints of Note, Song at Sunrise, Wind of Change, The Ship of Dreams, Spring of Life Book One and Tales of Our Time Volume One. I consider it a privilege to make an impact on my world through the information contained in my books.

Someone once said, “If you want to hide anything from a black man, put it in a book.” Many are convinced that my people do not read, but we will not accept that verdict. 

Nigerians, we should arise and preserve the reading culture. Readers are leaders. I urge everyone to please read, read and keep reading. We need replicas of Professor Kekere amongst us.

© Ify Omeni – The Tale Weaver