First of all, HAPPY New Year to you all!
Welcome to 2025!
At the moment of writing this, it’s exactly 8:20 a.m. on New Year’s Day morning. I’m lying in bed, cracking jokes with my siblings. This is possible because the first plan to execute in the first set of hours of the New Year worked out. What could that be?
Normally, early in the morning on New Year’s Day, we are supposed to be snoring so hard and probably waking up around 10 a.m. or 11 a.m. This is usually because my church holds a very long all-night service for the crossover night, spanning from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. However, this time around, my siblings influenced the entire household to head home immediately after the Happy New Year shouts (from 12:00 a.m. to 12:30 a.m.). They didn’t want to feel exhausted throughout the day from not sleeping. I was completely convinced by their idea, and that was it—we left church around 12:50 a.m. without feeling guilty at all. Lol. The first plan was executed perfectly.
Next phase?
As I continued writing, surrounded by lots of chatter and laughter, I eventually walked outside after waiting for hours for the crowd in the compound to disperse. I didn’t want to face the stress of greeting an entire community. Fortunately, only a few people remained from the first phase of “gathering, drinking, and chopping” in my compound. My dad has a lifestyle of hosting people for merriments, and during periods like this, there’s always a swarm of people around. Greeting everyone can be endless, so I try as much as possible to dodge some of them. Thankfully, the plan worked this morning, but I don’t know how long I can keep it up since the day is just starting.
By the way, Mom has brought out several tubers of yam to prepare pounded yam, which really got me curious about how they plan to make enough to feed the multitude currently at home. It’s a tradition in our family, but things have changed a lot. Seeing them go through the stress of pounding such a large quantity seems exhausting. Nonetheless, I’m patiently waiting for the food because I haven’t tasted pounded yam in a couple of years.
The other plans:
I’ll be staying at home all day—eating, chatting, laughing, scrolling through my phone, and probably sneaking in a nap. I’ve already used the toilet to empty my stomach in preparation for the feast. I just hope I don’t get stomach issues like I did after eating on Christmas Day.
Luckily, there was power throughout the night, so my phone and three power banks are fully charged. It’s going to be a really sweet ride today. Even if we lose electricity, the generator’s fuel tank is filled, so we’re covered.
Thanks for reading.
This is my entry to Hivenaija prompt of the week.
Photos are mine