I managed not to runaway from home. Being nurtured by an African mother isn’t child’s play. My mum always wanted me to be perfect for her. Maybe not perfect but I have to listen to her, do all what she wants and stay away from the ones she doesn’t want. But what if there are things I have to do? There’s no liberty because my mummy wouldn’t let me.
Everyday wasn’t easy. It was full of tears and me thinking of an escape route. I just wanted to leave that house and go out like my seniors did.
Daddy Odun, do you know what Abojode did today? just as my mum calls my dad, Daddy Odun, she reports me to him every night when he gets back from work. Once she reports me to him, my heart skips a bit.
What will my daddy do again this night? Will he scold me or what,? that was my greatest fear and what I ask myself whenever my mum is busy reporting me to my dad. At some point, I developed the habit of sleeping early before my dad gets back from work so she wouldn’t complain.
It was so tiring and I wanted to leave home. I wasn’t doing so well in school but started to study more so I can pass my external examinations and gain admission into the university.
At least, when I gain admission, no one will complain about my attitude, not getting home early or every of my behaviors. Then, the only dream I had was leaving my parent’s house and living alone as an adult.
I worked hard and gained admission into the university. For about four months, I had to stay with my granny till my father raises enough money for my house rent and immediately he did that, I moved out of my granny’s apartment to mine.
Finally, I am free from my parents wahala(troubles). Now, they wouldn’t know if I am doing the right thing or not, I said to myself. That was a dream come true.
I was as little as sixteen then but I was already living my dream of living alone, making decisions for myself and not having to be a mummy or daddy’s girl. My dream went perfectly well, things were going on well until I started to make wrong decisions. That wasn’t all, I realized that I was just a kid who was lucky to escape from her parent’s crib.
I could barely make decisions for myself, I couldn’t make a proper meal for myself and wasn’t old enough to live alone as an adult just like my dream implied. Then, the funny thing happened. I did what I bragged not to ever do.
Wow! What are you doing at home? It’s not holiday yet and why do you even look very lean? Are you okay? Come inside, okomi (my jewel), just like every African mother will do, she bombarded me with questions even before giving me a hug.
Mummy, I have not been eating well. How can a lecturer tell us to get to class as early as 6:30 am? What time does he now want us to wake up and get prepared? I can’t even make a good meal for myself even though I truly don’t know how to make one, I yelled with a cracking voice but to my surprise, my mum was laughing at me. I wasn’t funny but I wondered what could have made her laugh.
Really? I thought you have always wanted to leave home so that you can be a big girl? But see now, you came back home to get some more training, immediately my mum said this, I knew I wasn’t old enough to live the adult life I have always wanted to.
I spent a week at home with my mum teaching me how to make various meals, wake up early and multitask. And when I got back to school, it still wasn’t easy and it felt like I was starting all over again and during holidays when I go home, I’m always open to more training from my mum so the adult life wouldn’t be like a big deal to me.
That’s how I started living as an adult since sixteen even though I hadn’t attained the adult age yet. Here I am today, still living alone as an adult for so many years and it has gotten better or worse because I now foot my bills, cloth myself and cater to all my financial responsibilities and others.
Here I am today, still living as an adult and living the dream I have wanted so many years ago. It’s never been easy but I’ll keep pushing.