Anansi and Turtle

Tonight’s story comes from Ghana, a country in West Africa. It is hot all year round there, the earth is red, and people grow lots of yams. The Akan people of Ghana have a whole treasury of stories about Anansi, the clever spider who is always up to some trick. Grandparents tell them to grandchildren, who grow up and tell them to their own children.

One day Anansi roasted a pot of yams. When they were done, the skins were crisp and charred, the insides soft and golden, and the smell filled the whole house. Anansi rubbed his hands together. He was going to sit down and eat every last bit by himself.

Just then there was a knock at the door. Knock, knock, knock.

Anansi opened it. Outside stood Turtle. Turtle had been walking all day and was tired and hungry. The roasting yams smelled so good he couldn’t help knocking.

In Anansi’s village, if someone came to your house at mealtime, you had to invite them to eat. That was good manners. Anansi didn’t want to share one bit. But if he didn’t, the whole village would think badly of him. So he said, “Do come in, Turtle, and have some yams with me.”

Turtle was delighted. He came in, sat down, and reached out for a yam.

“Wait!” cried Anansi. “Look how dirty your hands are. In my house, everyone washes before they eat.”

Turtle looked down. His hands were covered in dust from the road. So off he plodded to the river, washed his hands nice and clean, and plodded back.

But the path from the river to Anansi’s house was dusty, and Turtle walks on all fours, so by the time he got back his hands were dusty again. Meanwhile, Anansi had started eating.

“Turtle, your hands are dirty again. Go and wash them.”

Off Turtle went to the river again, washed again, and came back again. This time he walked carefully along the grass, and his hands were spotless. But when he got to the table, Anansi had eaten every single yam. There wasn’t a crumb left.

Turtle looked at the empty pot. He didn’t argue, and he didn’t get angry. He only said, “Thank you for inviting me, Anansi. Do come and have dinner at my house one day.”

And Turtle went home.

A few days later, Anansi went down to the river to find Turtle’s house. He was very hungry, thinking about his dinner invitation. Turtle was waiting on the bank.

“You’re here! My house is at the bottom of the river. Let me go down and set the table.”

Turtle dived into the water. On the riverbed he spread out a mat and laid out bowls of greens, roasted yams and ripe fruit. It all looked delicious.

Anansi jumped into the water after him. But Anansi was so small and light that he just bobbed about on the surface. He kicked and paddled and ducked under, and popped right back up. No matter what he did, he couldn’t sink.

Then Anansi had an idea. He climbed out, gathered lots of pebbles and stuffed both pockets of his coat full. Then he jumped in again. This time, weighed down with stones, he sank slowly, down and down, all the way to the bottom of the river, right next to Turtle’s mat.

Anansi reached out for the food. Turtle said, “Just a moment, Anansi. In my house, nobody wears a coat at the dinner table. Please take yours off first.”

Anansi was so hungry he didn’t stop to think. He pulled off his coat.

The moment it left his body, Anansi shot up through the water, up and up, all the way to the surface.

Anansi clung to the bank and looked down through the clear water. At the bottom of the river, Turtle was eating his yams and his greens and his fruit, enjoying every single bite.