The Black and Red Sweater

In a remote village at the very edge of Africa, there lived two cheeky boys who grew up together. They were the same age, and their small families shared the same yard. Everyone in the little village helped one another out, as the closest town was several days away. It would take walking three days to get to it. It was a journey.

But because the town was so isolated, with only the sound of the roaring ocean and its waves crashing against the rocky coast to keep the townspeople company, everyone who lived there had much, much stronger friendships than people from big cities. Everyone was family.

Over time, the two little neighbours became inseparable friends who spent all their free time together. They played together, helped each other study, and did their chores together. They played jokes on each other which included one of them putting a gardener snake in his room. He replied with putting a skinny brown mouse in his friend’s room. With a lot of cheese. They both found this hilarious.

Time passed, and before the two boys knew it, they had turned into strong, young men. They were strapping lads, and had a lot of girls who liked them. Eventually, both of them had found themselves beautiful wives and started beautiful families.

They decided to build their houses right across the street from each other, so they could visit every day and always be there to lend a helping hand if needed. Because they were helping each other, their new houses grew very fast. One day they would lay shingles together on one of the roofs, the next day they would cut wood for the other’s new fence.

They helped each other cut lawns and mend fences. And they would always end…