Red Red Wine

During the past three weeks I have been coordinating a professional development training for teachers. Each day at ten am we had a coffee break and my brilliant friend would bring the teachers mass quantities of juice, coffee, tea, and croissants. In addition, she brought me my own bottle of delicious and refreshing bissap. I always saved some to drink throughout the day.

Yesterday, I took a break from my typing to get more bissap and I saw only a ring on the table indicating where the bottle had been. Then I heard the noise of some young men outside the door. Curious, I peeked into the hall, and lo and behold, I saw the bottle. It was empty and in the hand of the one of the gentlemen. I walked over to the duo and politely greeted them. Then I asked if they were part of the conference happening, to which they replied no. Then I asked where they found the bissap they were holding in their hands. The guilty party replied that he had taken it from the room behind us. I kindly informed him that the bissap was MINE and it was for the conference that I organized. Then I asked the two young men if they were students at this school. The bissap-drinker told me that he was on campus to submit his application for enrollment in the English department.

I informed him that I was a professor in the English Department and that if he is fortunate enough to be accepted into the program, he will be in all of my classes. I wished him luck on his application, accepted his apology, and offered him advice that from this day forward: Try to avoid stealing bissap from future professors. His friend started laughing and even the thief himself couldn't help smiling, amid protests that he was innocent.

At this point, his insightful friend chimed in that my (hopeful) future student would be able to make it up to me by bringing one bottle of bissap each morning before class. We agreed that if this compensation was made, we wouldn't need to mention the incident again. We all laughed some more and shook hands. 

Here is a message to my future students: Don't try to come between me and my bissap!!!!

Post-script: The bissap thief is now my student and we recently made this recording of the incicent:
   The Case of the Bissap Thief by deeleeya