The Man and the Crocodile

In Sabou, humans and crocodiles get along fine together. The women wash their laundry at the water´s edge, the men fish and the crocodiles swim lazily about… Pascal and his uncle go to visit the 'Old Man', the oldest of the crocodiles. They talk to him, stroke him, shake his foot. The Kaborés are the crocodiles´ allies. A very old pact, made by a Kaboré ancestor, ties his descendants to this animal. The Kaborés do not eat crocodile, but protect it from hunters. For their wishes to come true – for health, prosperity, a good harvest – the Kaborés sacrifice a chicken or a goat to the crocodile, which doesn´t waste any time gobbling it up.