Chapter 11

Orla's mom and dad have a baby

Orla was now 18 and was old enough to have a baby, however as the population was at its peek and not enough housing to have more children she had to be content in looking after other mum's children, her parents made a mistake and mom had a baby two years ago and the baby was to remain a baby for ever. Orla wondered if there was something wrong with the baby and kept asking Ashby why, but Ashby had no idea what she was talking about and kept saying, she is very healthy and she needs a lot of care. Her father did not notice anything unusual either. Yet all the other members of the tribe did as they use to walk past them with a kind of simpathy which Orla did not like. Orla felt ashamed of her parents and she remembered something happened to her parents when she was very young, but was too young to remember what it was. She had a fade memory about some magical berries that she found and her parents who were very old took them off her and then something very strange happened to them (See chapter 1). After that Tuna looked after her and Tuna had become her best friend and taking the role as parent. Orla wanted to tell Tuna about how the others treated Ashby and to stop them gossiping as it hurt her a lot; especially the younger members of the tribe, that always make cruel jokes.

Orla asked Tuna why the members of the tribe were gossiping about Ashby and Nuru, and that she felt they were insulting her as will.
Tuna said, 'It is because they are afraid and so they are trying to cover their fears, by their gossiping, but they mean no harm, but I will have a word with them as I know it is upsetting you.'
Thank you, I am very grateful to you. Orla said.
'Don't mention it.' Tuna said kindly

Orla was grateful that she knew someone wise as Tuna and wished she was just as wise. A few days later the gossiping stopped about her parents and she thought that Tuna must have told them a thing or two. Orla was a Master Doctor and Adept Farmer and she liked fishing, but she always dedicated herself to healing as she was only one of the two doctors in the tribe, the other Master Doctor was Maui who was 7 years older age 25. Orla liked Maui, but with the oldest member of the tribe Tuna was now 27 and the youngest Tuna's triplets were age 4 with 18 other kids between the ages of 5 to 13. Tuna had named her triplets who were male; Kumi, kobbi and Kupe. In the tribe the villagers always named their twins or triplets starting with the same later at the beginning of their names and sometimes ending it with the same later ending. Tuna liked the name Kupe and named the youngest of her triplets the last born Kupe. They had red hair like their mom.

With the population at 92 Orla made a calculation that she would have to wait to have children until she was at least the earliest age 64, so she was doomed to be childless for the rest of her life, unless there was an event that took away a villager. She was hopping that she would be the one to leave the village and live somewhere else where there was enough housing to have a baby. Orla knew there was no chance of that ever happening, so Orla feeling a bit down decided to relax a lone under the palm tree. Then back to work again to take her mind off her longing.

To be continued