--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There is something else I must confess…" description: "\"“There is something else I must confess about Tata Boanda: he's a sinner. Right in the plain sight of God he has two wives, a young and an old one. Why..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e61/barbara-kingsolver-200_number-two_there-is-something-else-i-must-confess-a_210171.png" --- # There is something else I must confess about Tata Boanda… ![“There is something else I must confess about Tata Boanda: he's a sinner. Right in the plain sight of God he has two wives, a young and an old one. Why, they all come to church! Father says we're to pray for all three of them, but when you get down to the particulars it's hard to know exactly what…” quote by Barbara Kingsolver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e61/barbara-kingsolver-200_number-two_there-is-something-else-i-must-confess-a_210171.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e61/barbara-kingsolver-200_number-two_there-is-something-else-i-must-confess-a_210171.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e61/barbara-kingsolver-200_number-two_there-is-something-else-i-must-confess-a_210171.png) > ““There is something else I must confess about Tata Boanda: he's a sinner. Right in the plain sight of God he has two wives, a young and an old one. Why, they all come to church! Father says we're to pray for all three of them, but when you get down to the particulars it's hard to know exactly what outcome to pray for. He should drop one wife, I guess, but for sure he'd drop the older one, and she already looks sad enough as it is. The younger one has all the kids, and you can't just pray for a daddy to flat-out dump his babies, can you? I always believed any sin was easily rectified if only you let Jesus Christ into your heart, but here it gets complicated. Mama Boanda Number Two doesn't seem fazed by her situation. In fact, she looks like she's fixing to explode with satisfaction. She and her little girls all wear their hair in short spikes bursting out all over their heads, giving an effect similar to a pincushion (Rachel calls it the "haywire hairdo.") And Mama Boanda always wraps her pagne just so, with a huge pink starburst radiating across her wide rump. The women's long cloth skirts are printed so gaily with the oddest things: there is no telling when a raft of yellow umbrellas, or the calico cat and gingham dog, or an upside-down image of the Catholic Pope might just go sauntering across our yard.”” [Barbara Kingsolver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-kingsolver/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Illustrates the moral complexity of polygamy and the challenges of praying for conflicted families. **In simple terms:** Family dynamics are tangled and hard to resolve. Key Takeaway Approach such situations with compassion and humility. Themes family faith moral ambiguity polygamy Mood reflective empathetic Type spiritual philosophical When to use this quote - family counseling - interfaith dialogue - community support - personal reflection Key Concepts ethical dilemmas religious practice Questions to Reflect On - What does compassion look like in complex families? - How can faith guide difficult moral choices? A Different Perspective Simple prayers may not solve deep relational issues. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Boanda Sinner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/boanda-sinner-2171134/) [God Wives](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/god-wives-2171137/) [Mama Boanda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mama-boanda-2171135/) [Number Two](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/number-two/) [Pray Daddy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pray-daddy-2171136/) [Says Pray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/says-pray-1286448/) ## Related quotes > [You are in love when¦ every text message, every phone call, every time someone says your name, You pray to God it is him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-are-in-love-when-every-text-message-every-phone-call-every-time/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [God says to us, "Pray, because I have all kinds of things for you; and when you ask, you will receive. 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Because that would really be the perfect way to thank me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ella-frank/tell-me-do-you-have-tate-waiting-naked-for-me-in-my-office-because/) [Ella Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ella-frank/) > [Well, number one I like dancing. Number two I knew it would be challenging because I had never done this type of dance before.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evander-holyfield/well-number-one-i-like-dancing-number-two-i-knew-it-would-be/) [Evander Holyfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evander-holyfield/) > [ “And while \[we\] do have possibilities that are vast and magnificent and almost infinite in scope, it's important to remember that our choice-rich lives… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/and-while-we-do-have-possibilities-that-are-vast-and-magnificent-and/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [“Remember two eighty-six. Livia now counted on the same sort of feverish, rain-soaked determination that had driven Blake to the train station for smile…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debra-anastasia/remember-two-eighty-six-livia-now-counted-on-the-same-sort-of/) [Debra Anastasia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debra-anastasia/) > [I raced because I was paid to do a job and I felt like I had to do the job. Number two: I raced…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lance-armstrong/i-raced-because-i-was-paid-to-do-a-job-and-i-felt-like-i-had-to-do/) [Lance Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-armstrong/) > [Antidepressants are the biggest fraud in the world. Number one, Prozac gives you a royal soft-on like you wouldn't believe, and number two you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-evans/antidepressants-are-the-biggest-fraud-in-the-world-number-one-prozac/) [Robert Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-evans/) ## More by Barbara Kingsolver > [“Jesus was a more reliable backer, evidently, less likely to drink himself unconscious or get liver cancer. No wonder people chose Him as their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-kingsolver/jesus-was-a-more-reliable-backer-evidently-less-likely-to-drink/) [Barbara Kingsolver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-kingsolver/) > [Now I'm starting to think he wasn't supposed to be my whole life, he was just this doorway to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-kingsolver/now-i-m-starting-to-think-he-wasn-t-supposed-to-be-my-whole-life-he/) [Barbara Kingsolver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-kingsolver/) > [Cooking is 80 percent confidence, a skill best acquired starting from when the apron strings wrap around you twice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-kingsolver/cooking-is-80-percent-confidence-a-skill-best-acquired-starting-from/) [Barbara Kingsolver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-kingsolver/) > [“In Bobby Ogle's version of heaven everyone would wind up in one place, criminals and Muslims included.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-kingsolver/in-bobby-ogle-s-version-of-heaven-everyone-would-wind-up-in-one-place/) [Barbara Kingsolver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-kingsolver/) > [“Weeds are job security for the gardener.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-kingsolver/weeds-are-job-security-for-the-gardener/) [Barbara Kingsolver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-kingsolver/) > [“It's what you do that makes your soul, not the other way around.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-kingsolver/it-s-what-you-do-that-makes-your-soul-not-the-other-way-around/) [Barbara Kingsolver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-kingsolver/) > [“Lusa turned to Crys, her eyes shining. 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I always believed any sin was easily rectified if only you let Jesus Christ into your heart, but here it gets complicated. Mama Boanda Number Two doesn't seem fazed by her situation. In fact, she looks like she's fixing to explode with satisfaction. She and her little girls all wear their hair in short spikes bursting out all over their heads, giving an effect similar to a pincushion (Rachel calls it the \"haywire hairdo.\") And Mama Boanda always wraps her pagne just so, with a huge pink starburst radiating across her wide rump. 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