Before Lebanese Man Come

Yeah! I get two things and one other thing on my mind now. The first important one, I must find way to get the Akon ticket. The other one again, the Tubman girl now burn my heart bad way. I must look for way to marry the girl. Then I must not forget about my ma mattress business, what make it I not go in the interior for long time. I too shame to go there with my empty hands.

I move from Cellcom office I say let me go check to Lonestar. In fact self I more used to Lonestar cell phone from way Charles Taylor time, and the name sounding just fine, for national pride. But I now reach there, the people vex like hell. Cellcom bring those cheap-cheap bonanza phone, and their own of people all in the bush putting up cell phone antenna – so good network all the way to Guinea, then on top of that, they coming bring Akon again. The place what not get landline telephone in normal days, come see the people all in the bush carrying bonanza phone. The people not get electric current, but they there using generator to charge phone. I say!! Business competition can do good-good thing for the people o!

But the Lonestar people looking sorrowful; and no plenty selling phone until their own of cheap ones arrive. They get the same fine-fine girl them working in customer service. No man job. They just sitting down waiting for their own of cheap phone to come for them to sell to bring customers, but no job there for me. That what make it I say let me go look for one Lebanese friend I get, he get shop to Waterside. That my good-good friend from ever-since we sit we talk some kind of deep-deep something I learn plenty about the Lebanese people I not know before.

That one Sunday, I spy him, he just sitting down – he not want go to church. I not know what-thing come over me I just ask him say, "what you religion?"

He say, "I Druze."

I say, "Whattin?!"

He say, "move from here man, you not know the thing."

I just laughing, he can't speak good-good English, but when he ready, he can just put one-one good something inside.

I say, "Where you learn to talk that one?"

He say, "Move from here man, I born here."

I say, "But you Lebanese man. How you manage?"

He say, "Ever since – my people here. I was born here in Monrovia. But because I Lebanese man, I can't be Liberian. So I can just go Lebanon, I come back. If that was a different place, like America, I would have received citizenship a long time ago. All my children from Liberian women that I have here, they are Liberian. Some of them run away, some I sent America for the war. But I the pa who sitting down here throughout the war, I can't get citizenship."

I say, "Thank God for that self. You get citizenship, the whole country for you. That the best thing the people think to do, not to give y'all citizenship before y'all come control everything."

He say, "That kind of talking is the reason I don't invest any money in this country. I don't care who is in government, so long as I can dash them for whatever I need. I just fix my shop. I fix my house, but as soon as I make money, I send it Lebanon. During the war, most of the Liberian business people ran away. I sat down right here. Not for me, who is able to import?"

I answer him, "the Fula people."

He answer too, "but even the Fula people and the Mandingo people too. You hardly want to accept them because they are Muslim; even though some of them have been in this country since before the Americo-Liberians. Sometimes you can say they not true Liberians, even though you know they Liberian. But they are black, so you agree for them to have citizenship. Me I white, so no citizenship.

So I ask him again, "I say, you Muslim, that why you don't want go to church?"

He say, "No. I'm Druze."

I say, "What-thing you talking so. I not hear that one."

He say, "that's my ethnic group and my religion. That's something we don't like to talk about here too much."

I say, "Wait now; you want tell me say white Lebanese man them get tribe?"

He say, "You never heard about the Lebanon Civil War? We have plenty Muslims in Lebanon; Shiites, Sunnis, we even have Palestinian refugees, then we have Christians. All that one can call themselves Arab, and we have Druze — that one different."

I look at him for long time, I say, "What kind of civil war and refugees you get in Lebanon? That place where so-so money going at. I beg you yah! Don't come fool me man. Just say you Muslim."

He say, "The one that you want to believe is your business, but I'm telling you I'm Druze."

I ask him say, "What thing that-thing you call y'all believe? Y'all believe in Jesus or Mohammed?"

He say, "I don't know too much. I'm young yet to know the thing good, and our religion is a secret religion. We can't talk about it. Only the people that go into it deep can know all about it. The only thing I can tell you is that when we die, we can be reborn in a different person's body. But besides that, I can't say anything more; if you're not born inside, you can't join, and if you're not inside, you can't know. Even I myself don't know enough. Only thing I know, I'm Druze; but over here, the Liberian people can just say, I'm a Lebanese man. They can't see the difference between us.

I look at him for long. I say, "Oh! That kukujamaku something. You want tell me that so-so all of the Lebanese people in this country that this thing, what-you-call-it?

He answer, "Some of the people yes, but not all, you have different-different groups here, and two main ones, the Shiites and the Druze."

I look at him for long time again. I say, "You brave. I not understand why Lebanon war you not able to sit down there, but Liberian war you able to sit down here. But you part, you my friend. The way how your own of religion thing sounding, that just like my society bush. That one self, we can't talk it. But from today you my brother. From now-now, anything happen, just look for me, I your friend, yah?

He laugh at me. He say, "I spent a long time in this country. Anytime Liberian countryman says he's your friend, he's coming to ask you for something. But I like your business! I agree, anything Kato, you're my friend.