In a dark, dank corner of the world; evil is unfolding like a red carpet to the netherworld.
“In one corner of the shrine were: sacred drums, hunting spears, an offertory basket, offering bowls, an omukaka, coffee berries, cowrie shells (ancestors’ money), medicinal herbs, poisonous herbs, potions, strange concoctions plus two cooking pots,” writes the author.
“Cut elephant grass had been strewn over the entire floor and there was also a leopard skin rug. In the centre of the shrine sat an eccentric, elderly woman facing the entrance. Holding a cup of local waragi in one hand, Omusawo took a swig of the war gin, as she sat on a square piece of barkcloth that had been laid over the grass carpet.”
This article sets the stage for what is to come. Carmel, the book’s protagonist, is in a battle for her soul. Yes, a spiritual battle. Before she became the object of arcane rituals and beclouded by the evil they wrought, Carmel lived a relatively normal life.
She was a Born-again blessed with comely looks and an impeccable devotion to the Lord. She always spoke with God.
Ms Jabo, the author, has done an admirable job in using metaphor and imagery (I repeat myself) to express the protagonist’s physical endowments. Carmel, after all, means “vineyard,” “orchard,” or “garden” and reflects the fertile beauty of Mount Carmel’s picturesque slopes.
Her name also betrays her spiritual significance.
Carmel is mentioned as a city of Judah in the Books of Samuel and also in Joshua 15:55. It is mentioned as the place where Saul erects a monument after the expedition against the Amalekites (1 Samuel 15:12).
However, most significantly in the context of this story, in the Bible, Mount Carmel is best known as the site of the Prophet Elijah’s dramatic showdown with 850 pagan prophets.
Now, you know that there is a battle happening. Some of the pawns in this battle will crackle to life before your eyes, in these pages.
There’s Caleb, a man blessed with matinee idol looks and whose heart begins to merge with Carmel’s. This is before strange things start happening to her. Then, later, we see how such trials are not the finish of this budding love story.
Before him, there was Adam. But the Lord spoke to Carmel about him and it turns out that (from a dream she had about him) he was toxic. Adam soon finds his depraved soul’s complement in the spoiled brat Annie-Marie, who latches onto the cash he splurges.
Anne-Marie has an everyday disposition. It reminds us that we too can fall prey to evil if we allow our material cravings to subsume our spiritual moorings. Also, Mama Patience continues to be at cross-purposes with Carmel’s faith, along with a host of other non-believers.
Amidst all this, Noelle, Carmel’s younger cousin, provides spiritual relief as her fixity of devotion to God is similar to Carmel’s.
These characters and others are undercards in a story that explodes with every line and syllable to conjure vivid descriptions of a spiritual battle we have all been conscripted in.
On yes, although this is a book of fiction; it is very real.
“Carmel fought serpentine spirits. Inasmuch as the coiled serpent had departed, there we other spirits that had to be prayed away,” the author writes.
Then, just then, you realise that the Devil always fights on several fronts and on each of these fronts, his power is undiminished by the imperfections which define us all.
This book is well written, it is educative and it, in very many respects, is a reminder that there is a Carmel in us all. We must protect her to protect ourselves and fortify our faith in God.
