Butterfly Kicks Man's Butt, Flies Away

From our local correspondent in the lower Lake Volta region, Ghana

Friday, November 5, 2010

When the obruni couldn't get close enough to the butterfly to take
a photo of it, he snapped these seed pods instead

It was reported that, yesterday, near Lake Volta in the Akosombo Region of Ghana, an obruni (white man) on a bike ride had his butt kicked by a butterfly.

"I was just pedaling along," the man said mournfully, "and out of nowhere this beautiful, teal-winged butterfly passed me from behind.  I tried to catch up to it, but it just left me in the dust."

The obruni tried to follow the butterfly up a hill, he said, but couldn't keep pace with it.

"I was feeling completely worthless," he continued, "getting passed and then beaten by such a small and delicate creature.  Then, on a downhill, it was suddenly just in front of me again.  I pedaled frantically and even gained on it, but on the next uphill it completely left me behind and disappeared.  I was so dejected, and I never saw it again."

This story was told to me later that day by the obruni himself.  I had gone to the dock of the "Dodi Princess" picnic boat on Lake Volta to cover the rising water levels on the lake.

I found the man there, sitting dejectedly under a tree, fiddling with his sunglasses.  The incident with the butterfly, he indicated, had completely sapped his strength.

"I was planning to explore a bit around the lake then ride back to Accra today," he said,  "But I couldn't even make it out to the end of the lake road to Gyakiti, not far away."

The obruni had ridden his bicycle from Accra through Dodowa to Akosombo the day before - given the heat, a feat of either incredible fortitude or stupidity, we're not sure which.

The man attempted then to explain away his poor performance against the butterfly.  "I've heard that the water from Lake Volta gives insects in this region special powers," he said.

Bystanders immediately questioned this assertion.  "But I heard this reliably from a local herbalist," he insisted.

"I'm not at all making it up to make myself feel better."

We think the equatorial sun has probably gotten to this obruni's head.