Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People's Ears - West African

The sun always rises over my kingdom, painting the sky with glorious streaks of orange and gold. But on one strange morning, it simply did not appear. I am Lion, king of this great, green forest, and I remember the unusual chill of that long, dark day when a blanket of night refused to leave. The air, usually filled with the cheerful chorus of waking birds, was heavy with a confused, anxious silence, broken only by the worried whispers of my subjects, from the towering giraffes to the tiniest shrews. What could have happened? A great sadness had stolen the daylight, and as the king, it was my duty to investigate and restore order. I had no idea that this enormous problem, this sunless day that frightened everyone, all began with a tiny insect and a silly, unbelievable story. This is the famous tale of 'Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People's Ears'.

I called a great council of all the animals under the immense shadow of the great baobab tree. The prolonged darkness had made everyone frightened and clumsy. First, I summoned Mother Owl, whose important job it was to hoot and wake the sun each dawn. She sat with her big, round eyes full of tears and her feathers drooping, explaining that she was too heartbroken to hoot. One of her precious owlets had been killed when a dead branch fell from a tree. My investigation began. I questioned Monkey, who admitted to shaking the branch with his mischievous leaps. "It wasn't my fault!" he chattered nervously. "I was panicked by the loud, scary cawing of Crow!". Crow was brought forward, and he squawked that he was only sounding an alarm because he saw Rabbit racing from his burrow in absolute terror. Rabbit, trembling from his whiskers to his fluffy tail, explained that he fled when the great Python slithered into his cozy home to hide. Python hissed his side of the story, explaining that he was only trying to hide because Iguana had walked right past with sticks in his ears, completely ignoring his friendly greeting. This made Python think Iguana was plotting something terrible against him. Each animal pointed a paw, a wing, or a tail at another, and the chain of blame grew longer and longer, stretching through the dark forest.

Finally, the quiet Iguana was called to speak. He grumbled as he pulled the sticks from his ears. "KPAO, KPAO," he said, pretending not to hear at first. He explained that he had plugged his ears because he simply couldn't stand to listen to any more of Mosquito’s ridiculous nonsense. The day before, Mosquito had buzzed by his ear and told him a tall tale about a yam that was almost as big as he was. "A yam that big?" Iguana scoffed. "Impossible! I refuse to listen to such foolishness." All the animals turned to look for the Mosquito. Where was he? The truth was finally out: a tiny fib, told by the smallest of creatures, had caused a gigantic wave of fear and misunderstanding that led to a terrible accident and plunged our whole world into darkness. Can you believe it? When Mosquito heard all the animals blaming him, he hid in a leafy bush, filled with guilt and fear. Seeing that the owlet's death was a tragic accident and not a cruel act, Mother Owl found it in her heart to forgive everyone. She flew to the highest branch, took a deep breath, and gave a long, beautiful hoot that echoed through the trees. Slowly, the sun peeked over the horizon, and glorious light and warmth returned to our home.

The Mosquito, however, was never quite forgiven by Iguana or anyone else, and he carries his guilt to this day. Have you ever wondered why that little insect buzzes right by your ear? He flies from person to person, anxiously asking his question, 'Zzzzzz. Is everyone still angry with me?' And what is the response he usually gets? A swift WHAP! This story has been told for countless generations in West Africa, a way for elders to teach children about responsibility and the consequences of their actions. It shows how one small act, even just a silly word, can create giant ripples. It reminds us that we are all connected, like links in a chain. The next time you hear that tiny buzz, remember the great darkness and the long chain of trouble it caused, and think about the power of your own words.