When I turned 10, my father’s poultry farm business was on the verge of collapsing. People were not buying poultry. Our only glimpse of hope was the corn mill shop. It was part of my family’s business and occasionally generated income. The corn mill grinder became a life saver when things were not going well with the poultry business.
The Ghanaian economy was still in recession and people needed food to survive. Grinded corn flour was used to make basic Ghanaian food staples. Some simple foods made out of corn flour are Banku, Akple, Kenkey, and Porridge. These are the staples eaten in almost every home.
We were fortunate to be among the very few families who owned corn mill grinder. The corn mill grinder kept us busy.
One evening, we had a long queue of customers who were waiting in line for their corn to be grinded. The queue went all the way to the end of our block. Two of my older brothers were taking turns operating the corn mill grinder. After working for many hours in the morning, they were still not close to being done serving the customers. Moreover, it was getting late and my father was worried that this could continue passed mid-night.
The corn mill grinder started making squeaky noises. My brothers turned the machine off immediately. For about thirty minutes, the machine was still not turned on. Father sensed something wasn’t right, so he went over to the corn mill shop. My younger brother and I followed him. We just knew something interesting was going to happen.
When my brothers saw my father’s shadow at the shop, they became uneasy. You see… his presence was not always welcomed by my older siblings or the customers at the machine shop. He was strict and notorious for instructing them to do things certain ways. If they did not follow his orders, he would discipline them. In some cases, he hit them with any stick he had in his hand.
During this time in Ghana, it was normal for parents to discipline their children this way. My father just took it to an extreme.
My brothers took the machine apart, and they were trying to figure out the situation. After a few minutes, they noticed that the customer had mixed cassava and other items with the corn. This was a big deal. There was a sign in front the shop that clearly stated that customers should not mix anything with the corn.
My father became so upset with the customer that he asked her to leave. Even after the customer left, he was still whining about it. As a result of this event, he became extremely impatient with the other customers and my brothers. The morale at the corn mill shop was so low that some customers left.
He got into an argument with one of the customers in line to be served. She had with her two toddlers. Two little boys. I can’t remember what the argument was exactly about. He basically grabbed and shove the customer’s stuff aside. He asked her to leave. The two toddlers instantly started crying. The customer became emotional and overwhelmed.
In a split second, the 8-inch by 12-foot-long machine belt that weighed 20 pounds came off the running motor and hit my father in the face. It knocked him out instantly. He fell to the ground.
We all froze. For a few minutes, we did not know how to react as he laid on the ground. We were in shock.
Then a miracle happened. He got up by himself. We all felt a sigh of relief. He dusted himself off. Without uttering a word, he marched himself straight into the house and never went back to the machine shop. He stayed at home until all the clients were served. He even went to bed early that day.
The lesson of this story is that we need to be careful about how we treat others. Don’t let your emotions get the best of you.
My father’s intention was pure but his reaction forced the universe to descend upon him. Some call it bad Karma. When you treat people wrongly, it will surely come back to you. It may not happen instantly, as with my father but bad Karma may come back to haunt you.
Treat people like the way you want to be treated.