Ekiti Parapo

IKARA YEYE IYALODE

Someone called my wife and asked, “Did your husband truly live a village life the way he’s making us to believe?” Some even thought it was a mere figment of my personal imagination. Those who aren’t from my hometown, can only imagine what sort of life we lived back in the day but those who were born and bred there, will simply smile and remark, “Gone are those glorious golden days”.

It was truly glorious golden days. We were content with the way we lived, No hassle, no worry. No electricity in many homes, television was not in view, no fridge, electric fan was farfetched and charcoal pressing stone was for the rich. No micro-wave, no spaghetti, no pizza or pasta. No complaint. We’re okay!

Let’s talk about “Ikara Yeye Iyalode”, which served as breakfast for school boys and girls back in the day. There was hardly any home, back then, where breakfast, as you know it to be today, was prepared for school children. Everyone went on the streets early morning to buy from those who sold cooked or fried foods, ranging from “reisi and eja dindin, amala and okro soup, “muke elere”, pakere agbado and akara, the mother of all.

Akara is very popular among the Yorubas. The nearest English translation of “akara” is “Bean cake”. It will suffice to say our tongue in Ekiti differs from other Yoruba natives. What you call “akara” is what we proudly call “Ikara”, what you call “Church”, we call “Shursh” and what you call Monday, we call “Moinday”. That’s our tongue. That’s our identity.

“Ikara Iyalode” must ring bell in the ears of those who were already in schools in the 1970s, 80s and 90s, in my town. By the way, the word, “Yeye” (as in “Yey-yey”), in Ekiti dialect, means “Grandma”. Yeye Iyalode, was quite good at what she knew to do best: frying akara. Her dutifulness and skilfulness made her name become inseparable from her brand. Mention Akara and what comes to mind was Iyalode. Mention Iyalode and what comes to mind was akara.

“Yeye” Iyalode built her brand by the strategic location of her business and the consistency in the quality of her product, compelling consistent patronage, making it practically hard for her to record any leftover. She got her lion share of the market and you’ve got to be fast to have your fair share of her product, otherwise, “o ti miss!”.

“Yeye Iyalode” will forever be remembered by boys and girls of our days, for the uniqueness of her brand, “Ikara Iyalode”.

Morack Akin-David

Biographer, Author, Ghostwriter.