Chielo is friends with Ekwefi, and they get along well. Chielo sometimes gives bean cakes to Ekwefi to give to Ezinma. However, when Chielo becomes the priestess, she becomes like a completely separate person with no empathetic relationship with Ekwefi. Ekwefi is afraid of this incarnation of Chielo.
Ekwefi and Chielo are quite friendly with each other, with Chielo often giving Ekwefi bean cakes to take to Ezinma. Chielo also calls Ezinma 'my daughter', implying the closeness between the two women. However, when Chielo becomes the priestess, she loses her humanity and it scares Ekwefi.
Ekwefi was first married to Anene, a man she did not love, for two years. Nine of ten children that she bore died in childbirth, while Okonkwo's other wives had many healthy children. Ekwefi was occasionally beat by Okonkwo. Ekwefi was nearly shot by Okonkwo's gun when he was in a rage. Ekwefi had to let her child go with Chielo in the middle of the night as Ekwefi worried about her.
Ekwefi means that she prays that Ezinma will remain alive, now that she is ten years old. Many of Ekwefi's children have died during their infancy, and Ezinma had bouts of sickness as a child including one serious bout when she was 9.
Chielo helps show some of the religious culture of the Igbo. Further, her story serves as a way to reinforce the Ezinma-Ekwefi ties, as well as make Okonkwo out to be a more sympathetic character, despite his harsh outwards demeanour.
Ezinma is now 10, and ogbanje generally stay if they do not die before turning 6. Both of them care deeply about Ezinma. Ezinma has not been sick in some time, implying she has also been sick earlier.
Ezinma was an ogbanje child and Ekwefi is her mother. Since an ogbanje child is on whom dies but comes back to cause the mother pain, this shows that this was what Ezinma was supposed to do. Ezinma is the only child Ekwefi had and this was why. Because she is the only child, Ezinma and Ekwefi are very close.
Chielo is the priestess of the Oracle of the Hills and Caves in the village. She has a special relationship with Ekwefi, who is Okonkwo's second wife, because she is close to Ekwefi's daughter, Ezinma. Chielo often visits Ekwefi's compound to take Ezinma on spiritual journeys.
Ekwefi recoils from Chielo because Chielo embodies the spirit of Agbala, the Oracle of the Hills and Caves. Agbala is a powerful and feared deity that commands respect and obedience from the villagers. Ekwefi, like others, is in awe of Agbala's spiritual and mystical presence.
Ekwefi follows Chielo because she is devoted to her daughter, Ezinma, and is concerned about her well-being. She trusts Chielo as the priestess of the Oracle of the Hills and Caves and believes in the power of the deity. Ekwefi's love for her daughter outweighs her fears and doubts, leading her to follow Chielo to protect Ezinma.
Ekwefi was powerless to stop Chielo from taking Ezinma to the Oracle because Chielo was the priestess of the Oracle, which held significant spiritual authority in the community. Chielo's actions were seen as divinely inspired and were not to be questioned or interfered with. Ekwefi had to respect the traditions and beliefs of the community, even if it meant temporarily relinquishing her parental authority.
Ekwefi follows Chielo as she goes to the other village and finally back to her cave. She then waits outside the cave, not daring to invoke the god's wrath upon herself. While she is following Chielo and Ezinma, Ekwefi tries to take care not to be discovered by Chielo, and thus displease the gods.
In Chinua Achebe's novel "Things Fall Apart," it is Okonkwo who follows Chielo and Ezinma during their journey to the Oracle. Okonkwo is Ezinma's father and he accompanies them to the shrine to ensure Ezinma's safety.
Ekwefi and Chielo both hope that Ezinma will stay in the physical world and not be taken by the spirits like her other siblings. They value Ezinma's presence and want her to live a full and healthy life.
Ekwefi tells Chielo that you cannot find a mouth with which to tell the story because she is conveying the indescribable pain and anguish she feels at the prospect of losing her daughter, Ezinma. The depth of her emotions cannot be adequately expressed through words alone.
Ekwefi was first married to Anene, a man she did not love, for two years. Nine of ten children that she bore died in childbirth, while Okonkwo's other wives had many healthy children. Ekwefi was occasionally beat by Okonkwo. Ekwefi was nearly shot by Okonkwo's gun when he was in a rage. Ekwefi had to let her child go with Chielo in the middle of the night as Ekwefi worried about her.
Chielo, the priestess of Agbala, appears in front of Ekwefi as she waits tearfully outside Agbala's cave. Chielo eventually takes Ezinma, Ekwefi's daughter, with her into the cave for a special ceremony.
Ekwefi means that she prays that Ezinma will remain alive, now that she is ten years old. Many of Ekwefi's children have died during their infancy, and Ezinma had bouts of sickness as a child including one serious bout when she was 9.
Chielo delivers the message that Ezinma must accompany her to see the Oracle of the Hills and Caves. The message indicates that Chielo is acting as the priestess of the Oracle and is taking Ezinma to fulfill a spiritual duty rather than for any harmful intention.