Don't Poshoo Me!

Disclaimer: This post might be funny to many readers or simply a waste of their time but it’s about something I keep hearing over and over again and I really hope one or two people learn from it.

Now, I love the word ‘pursue’ and even though I usually pronounce it the American way,- pursoo- I love that Nigerians have their own way of pronouncing the word and do so with such energy and enthusiasm. I love the way we become alert as our eyes look up and our lips form a pout, the way we startle everyone once the sound is heard, the way it sounds: po-shoo.

But what about the meaning of that word? How is the word used? Let’s look at this conversation between two Nigerians:

Bisi: Hey! How did it go last night?  Were you able to apologize to Wale?

Bimpe: No, I tried to but he’s still very angry. Last night, he even pursued (poshooed) me from the house.

Based on the dialogue, it seems that the word “pursue” means “to cause someone to leave a place”. And in this sentence, one would deduce that Wale sent Bimpe away or sent Bimpe packing.

To be absolutely sure, let’s find out what the dictionary says:

http://www.thefreedictionary.com/pursue

pur·sue 

v. pur·sued, pur·su·ing, pur·sues

v.tr.

1. To follow in an effort to overtake or capture; chase: a fox that was pursued by hounds.

2. To strive to gain or accomplish: pursue lofty political goals.

3. To proceed along the course of; follow: a ship that pursued the southern course.

4. To carry further; advance: Let's not pursue this argument.

5. To be engaged in (a vocation or hobby, for example).

6. To court: a lady who was pursued by many suitors.

7. To continue to torment or afflict; haunt: was pursued by the demons of lust and greed.

v.intr.

And the dictionary says.....Error!

I'll explain. If someone pursues you, it means they are running after you in order to catch you or overtake you. Here, if Wale was really pursuing Bimpe, it might have actually led to a reconciliation since Wale might have been doing so to get Bimpe to stop and listen to him. Or they might have been involved in a fight and Bimpe ran out of the house to avoid Wale’s blows but Wale "pursued [Bimpe] from the house" to the church in order to capture her and continue beating her.

But since neither of those happened, since she really meant that  no running or beating was involved, what should Bimpe have said? Well, she could have said, “Last night, he sent me packing” or “Last night, he even told me to get out of the house” or “Last night, he threw my things out and asked me to leave” or “Last night, he threw me out of the house.”

Bimpe, sorry sha. Try again tomorrow. :-)