The Dragons, the Giant, the Women: A Memoir

That morning, the Moores walk alone. Many Liberians stay behind at ETMI because it provides food. Gus breaks off sticks of sugarcane from the fields along the road. When cars pass or when they overhear someone yell “rebel,” they hide in the fields. Wayetu sees people lying on the road and asks her father what they are doing. Gus says that they’re sleeping. Wayetu notices the “dark red puddles” that surround their bodies (47). She sees boys, old men and women, and families resting while surrounded by the red puddles.

Wayetu asks what her father is looking for. He replies that he’s looking for a house. To occupy Wayetu and his other daughters, he asks them to tell him the story of Jonah. While they recount the Biblical tale, Brother James spies a house in the distance. It is small and around 50 yards from the road. The front door is open, the windows are shattered, and a rocking chair moves whenever a breeze passes. Gus asks Ol’ Ma to wait with the girls while he and Brother James scope out the house. When they deem it safe, Gus appears and tells them to come. They go to the yard.