Free Seeds of Plenty by Jennifer Juo Page B

Agribusiness caps with the maize insignia, swarmed about the farm. The ADA was collaborating on this project as well, hoping that once small rural farmers saw the successes of a “modern” large-scale farm, they too would follow suit.
    The red barn felt out of place and bothered Winston, sticking out in his mind like a bad omen. Winston and Simeon stood at the fence of the plantation, watching the tractors driving around, the metal glinting in the slanting sun.
    “Dis farm is impressive,” Simeon said.
    Winston understood the envy, the longing in Simeon’s voice. When he had first arrived in England, he was impressed by how neat and tidy the streets were. It was unlike Taiwan, where everyone threw trash everywhere, and he had to watch where he stepped.
    “You’ll get mountains of maize, and your farm will look like this too one day,” Winston promised.
     
     

SYLVIA

Chapter 9
    A few days after Sylvia returned from Ayo’s clinic, Ayo came by the house to check on how Lila was recovering from the snake bite.
    “How’s my patient?” he said. Sylvia felt her heart doing cartwheels inside her rib cage. “And how are you?” he added more softly.
    She felt her cheeks redden as if being a doctor gave him the ability to measure heartbeats, even without the stethoscope hanging around his neck. So much had happened between them over the last four days at his clinic, she felt they were no longer strangers. What were they exactly? Friends? She would have to settle for friends, even though she knew her feelings were clearly not in the friend camp.
    “She’s doing well, thanks to you,” Sylvia said, leading Ayo to the living room flanked by screened porches on each side. It was early in the morning, and the glass sliding doors were still open, letting the morning breeze in.
    Patience brought Lila out and handed her to Ayo.
    “Doctor,” Patience said, respectfully. “Tank you for saving her. Tank you, sah.” Her deferential behavior wasn’t in keeping with Patience’s usual brash style. Patience was in awe of Ayo, Sylvia thought, a half-African English doctor, like her in many ways and not like her in others.
    Ayo examined Lila, checking her temperature and pulse. “Everything is going as I hoped,” Ayo said, smiling both at Sylvia and Patience. He handed Lila back to her mother.
    “Would you like some tea, sah?” Patience said.
    “I …” Ayo said.
    “Sit down, sah, please. I will get some tea for both you and madam,” Patience interrupted, her bossy manner coming back.
    It didn’t take much convincing for Ayo to linger. He sat down on the couch. Sylvia put Lila in the playpen where she could sit up safely and play with her toys. Patience disappeared into the kitchen, and they were left alone.
    “How are you doing?” he asked her again, perhaps not knowing what to say.
    “Me? Oh I’m fine,” she said, fidgeting with her long, black hair.
    Her hair seemed to distract him for a moment, and she felt him watching her. She wanted to lay her head against his chest again.
    “How’s Lila doing otherwise, I mean developmentally?” he said as if trying to pull himself together.
    “Actually, I’m worried about that. She’s getting close to eight months old, and she still has no desire to crawl,” she said.
    Just then Patience came in with their tea.
    “I told you, madam, dis is because she not want to move away from de spirit world, dat’s why she not walk yet,” Patience said as she set the tea tray down on the coffee table. “We have to watch for de snake spirits.”
    They both turned to look at Ayo, waiting for his authoritative response.
    “As a pediatrician, I’ll say this. Every child is different. Every child learns to sit up, crawl, walk, talk at different speeds. Although there are general parameters. So I wouldn’t worry if at eight months, she’s still not crawling yet, she might skip the crawling stage and go straight to walking.”
    Sylvia felt relieved, but she still asked in a small