Once upon a time, in the city of Port Harcourt lived an eleven-year-old boy named Siki. Siki was the first and only son of his widowed mother. Siki’s father died when Siki was nine years old. He had promised to buy Siki a bicycle when he entered JSSI, so Siki could train for the annual teens cycling competition. When Siki got to JSS1, he asked his mother if she would buy him the bicycle. She told him that she didn’t have enough money to buy him one.
One day, Siki’s friend showed him a saving box his dad bought him. Siki got an idea. There was a carpenter down the street from Mummy’s shop. He would ask the nice carpenter if he could make him a saving box. On his way back from school, he went to the Carpenter’s shop. The carpenter agreed to make him one and asked him to come back to collect it in three days.
Siki also went to the bicycle shop to ask for the price of a bicycle. They told Siki that a bicycle cost eight thousand naira
When Siki went to school the next day, he went to his math teacher, Mr. George, for help. He told Mr. George that he wanted to save money in a saving box for a new bicycle and the bicycle cost eight thousand naira.
‘How would I know when I have enough money to buy the bicycle?’ he asked.
Mr. George asked Siki how much he would put into the box every day. Siki told him that his mother gave him one hundred naira for snacks every school day, so he planned to put fifty naira from his hundred naira.
Together they divided eight thousand by fifty, the answer was a hundred sixty. Mr. George explained to Siki that he needed to put in fifty naira for one hundred and sixty days to have the eight thousand naira to buy his bicycle. They counted one hundred and sixty school days on the calendar and marked the last day. Siki would have to save for eight months to buy his bicycle. He didn’t mind, he was ten years old now. He would be able to buy his bicycle and practice for a long time before he was thirteen.
Every day, Siki took fifty naira out of his snacks money and put it in the box. When Mummy asked him what he was doing, he told her he was saving for a bicycle. When the last day arrived, Siki was so happy. Mummy, his sisters Miebi and Tammy gathered round to watch him open the saving box. They all counted the money together. He had exactly eight thousand.
The next day was a Saturday. He went to the bicycle shop with mummy to buy the bicycle but when they got there, something had happened. The bicycle no longer cost eight thousand. The shop attendant told them that the bicycle now cost twelve thousand. Siki’s eyes instantly filled with tears. All efforts Mummy made to cheer him up didn’t work. He sobbed all the way home. Even promising him that she would give him the balance at the end of the month didn’t stop the tears from flowing.
Siki was still sad when he went to school on Monday. At the close of school, he went to Mr. George and told him what had happened. Mr. George, told him that what had happened was Inflation.
‘Have you heard about inflation?’ he asked Siki
‘I’ve heard it on the news but I don’t know what it means,’ Siki replied.
‘Inflation happens when money loses its value. Inflation eats up the money.’
Siki pondered on that for a moment.
‘But inflation did not eat my money, there was eight thousand naira in the box.’
‘There’s a difference between price and value,’ Mr. George told him.
‘How much is an egg now?’
‘Seventy naira,’ Siki answered.
‘When I was a boy, an egg used to be ten naira. Then it increased to fifteen naira, then twenty- five naira, fifty naira, now it is seventy naira.’
‘Do you think the value of an egg has increased?’
‘No?’ Siki asked, unsure of the answer.
‘You are right. The value of an egg has not increased but the price has increased.’
‘Hmm,’ Siki pondered on that.
‘Since ten naira that could buy an egg when I was a boy can no longer buy an egg. The value of ten naira has gone down. So, if I kept ten naira under my rug hoping to buy an egg with it this year, I won’t be able to buy an egg. That’s what happened to your money. Inflation happened to it.’
‘But what causes inflation? And how can I stop inflation from eating my money? Who invented inflation?’ Siki asked all at once.
‘Calm down. Calm down. I’ll answer all your questions another time. At least now you know that money in a saving box can easily be eaten by inflation.’
Siki nodded in affirmation
‘Since you have been diligent in keeping your money, I have a surprise for you.’
‘What is it?’ Siki asked, shifting forward in his seat.
‘It won’t be a surprise if I tell you.’
Siki pouted at that.
‘I’ll tell you anyways, I’ll buy you the bicycle.’
‘Really!’ Siki exclaimed.
‘Yes.’
Siki jumped out of his seat and hugged him.
‘Alright. Alright. We can buy it on your way home.’
Siki couldn’t stop smiling all the way to the bicycle shop.
After they bought the bicycle, Siki asked Mr. George if he could ride it home. Mr. George smiled at him.
‘There’ll be plenty of time for that. First, let’s go and surprise your mum.’
Siki liked the idea. They walked the rest of the journey home.
As they walked home, Siki daydreamed of the day he would win the State cycling competition. In his heart, he promised to make daddy proud.
Siki and the Bicycle by Blessing Amatemeso emerged 1st runner-up in the 2022 Wakin Kuria Prize for Children’s Literature.
Click to see a full list of winners
