GONE

GONE


Home


Favour Samuel

Jan 30, 2024

Share: Centered Image            
Does anyone really recall their childhood memories?
I don't think so because I just woke up and saw myself as a six year old girl.
Yes, you may have a different story to tell but this is my story and I can actually narrate it my way_ooh is it really my STORY? Well, it's left for you to find out at the very end.
Dad and Mom were the perfect parents any youngster would wish to have. Their love for me was exceptional, especially dad_we were very close.
I still remember him taking my side whenever I had this tiff with mom and I was so fortunate to have them both and happy to call them my parents cause they were literally my heroes. What else can a child ask for?
Clock never ticks backwards, does it?. Those cherished moments flit past like a mirage—they appear to be there but aren't. We just want to survive on this delusion of self, for some reason.

Olivia, Prisca and Calista were returning home from school that day. Olivia rushed to the door handle to open the door. Slightly opened the door to let herself in_Dad took out his leather belt he was wearing on his waist and continuously whipped it on mom's body..
Even though I could see the immense suffering and grief on her face that day but she grinned and said “Olivia, go upstairs to your room with your siblings”
He was my hero, my role model. I…looked up to him and wished one day to be married to his likes.
We never know the true meaning of things until we actually grow and things don't seem clear till you come closer.
Never for once could I remember a moment where mom and dad had a proper conversation again_ the lovey-dovey parent I knew was long gone.Dad always got a way of rubbing it on her face.
" it is all your fault"
"Why can't you be like other women?"
Mom would cry her eyes out, pray by all the most means she deemed holy___ only if God would answer her, this one thing she needed to save her marriage.
Countless times I asked her why she was crying. She either tells me how something got into her eyes and all that. She still saw me as a little child. I wasn't that six year old Olivia, I knew something was truly wrong.
Despite how frustrating and painful it is, yet out of the pan into the fire___He escalated. He would beat mom, leaving all kinds of bruises and this time he made it obvious. When we asked for our fees;He always told us how useless we were to him and how spending and training us was totally pointless. Did he really say that to me, to my siblings? He called me his treasure or was I hypnotized to believe so then?
For days we were sent home because of school fees. Mom will run around to make up money for us before we could resume_it was so intense.
Mom got pregnant again. We had our breathing space but Joy and happiness never came to stay for too long.
"You had another abomination"
"Another girl child, that will never amount to anything but expenses"
He refused to spend any dime; Mom was left with no other option but to work as a cleaner for months before she was allowed to leave the hospital.

Stuck between a rock and a hard place. Mom was going through hell but how could I be of help to her? How can this sorrow cease? I understood her pain but what could I do?
When we returned home. Dad got another woman, he called her our second mother. My mom was who I only needed and I never wanted another. Mom's heart must have scattered into pieces because I felt lost, lost in this wilderness of rejection and I did lose my father, my favorite person at that very moment.
How can one be this calm? She swallowed a bitter pill. It was her chance to escape, to be free at last from all these torments but she stayed. For what exactly?
On one occasion, Calista ran to him in the sitting room.
“Don't ever come close to me again, CURSED CHILD”

Yes, he said that. All he had left for us in his heart was hatred. Was it our fault to be born this way? God, should have made me a boy, at least mom will be happy and I will have dad's love.

That was the limit mom could take. She was ready to end it.
“How could you call our child such”
“And here I was thinking you will come back to your senses and understand that I'm not to be blamed for giving you these amazing daughters”

I haven't seen dad since that day. Mom packed up our stuff and never looked back. And dad never did stop her, I guess he was happy. He was finally free from us, the cursed children.
Don't ask how I felt then
Cause it was hell for me;all I knew about him in my memories were complete opposite. I was broken, but how then did mom take all these? She must have felt miserable.
She found strength and willpower amidst all this situation. She called us her strength_Basically living for us. Mom did all she could to see us through school_She broke a lance just for us. She wanted to prove to men like my dad that a girl child is also a bundle of joy every family should wish for; that we were not cursed just because we are born female and she did.
It was her story not mine. Her story through the journey of toil, misery of a marriage and to state the fact that either girl or boy, child is child regardless and all they need were their love and training to see them do wonders.
Well, I am proud to be a Girl Child. YOU should too.

Related Posts



DARK ROOM

In the dark room, this feeling crapped in. I felt so uneasy, like i was…


The things, I never say

Dear diary, It's been awhile since we last talked. Yes, it's been three months since…


The things, I never say

Dear diary, It's been awhile since we last talked. Yes, it's been three months since…


Mon Cher Amor, My Sweet Love, My Valentine

She always stood firm with her armor willing to fight. with her shoulder up high…


A LETTER TO MY HIGH SCHOOL FRIENDS

“Hey, after the WAEC Exam, what's next?” “What are your plans?”


BROKEN

He dared to ask me not to take his son away from him. His son?…


CRACK

Growing up, we were taught to have big dreams and work toward achieving them. We…


NOT AGAIN!

I never knew what it was like to have a father figure. I happen to…


NOT AGAIN!

I never knew what it was like to have a father figure. I happen to…


CENSURE.

MONDAY, 9:35am Awka, Nigeria


HER STORY

Their chants repeat in strong rhythmical manners to my hearing; a vocal praise full of…


BOOK REVIEW — THE DEVIL IN MY HEAD.


BOOK REVIEW; YOU ARE YOUNG NOT STUPID BY KINGSLEY NNAEMEKA


COMPARE AND DESPAIR

Ade and Emeka have been friends way back from their university school days. They were…


SOCIAL MEDIA


BOOK REVIEW _ WE SHOULD ALL BE FEMINISTS.


ONE OF US IS LYING.

LEO POV


ONE OF US IS LYING 2

SANDRA'S POV


SELF-HELPY_ TWO WOMEN ON A TRAIN

I couldn't sleep well at night. Different thoughts came flashing before my face. Yea, this…


BOOK REVIEW — THE STUDENTS' BLUEPRINT TO SUCCEEDING AT BOTH SCHOOL AND ONLINE BUSINESS.


LIFE HAPPENS

We all had our lives planned out. “ I will have my first degree at…


BEING A TEEN

Hey, come closer. My name is Chukwuzaram Ofordebe but my friends call me Zaram, which…


PARENTHOOD AND PARENTING.

Parenthood comes with the most tedious and challenging moment of any parents. It is time…


THE VOICE.


TALES OF A YOUTH


WHY YOU'RE BROKE! BY EMMANUEL AKPE

BOOK REVIEW WHY YOU'RE BROKE!


The Smart Money Woman By Arese Ugwu

“Success is deeply rooted in having a solid plan that is tailored to what you…


BLISS

It's raining cats and dogs today, it seems like the earth would be swallowed. It…


LOST WRITERCRAFT

I ANONYMOUSLY WRITE TO ALL WRITERS OF THE WORLD.


A MESSAGE TO MY FATHER

I don't seem to tell you enough how lucky and thankful you made me. I…


BOOK REVIEW — THE HOUSEMAID

BOOK REVIEW


BOOK REVIEW — THE HOUSEMAID'S SECRET

BOOK REVIEW BOOK TITLE: THE HOUSEMAID'S SECRET AUTHOR: FREIDA McFADDEN GENRE: PSYCHOLOGICAL THRILLER


STRESS OF MOTHERHOOD

Motherhood is no child's play. It requires commitment, dedication and likewise more. It is just…


IF WE MUST LIVE

Can one really elude these pains from oneself? In slavery I was born and the…


BOOK REVIEW— THE HOUSEMAID IS WATCHING

BOOK REVIEW


VALE OF TEARS

I stood still and all I could possibly see was life flashing before my eyes.…


BEFORE YOU DIE.

When we are asked by a person—”When is it best to die?” Almost time our…


CAGE OF DEPRESSION


WHO ARE YOU?

During those lonely moments, she would stand before the mirror hung right in front of…


CHILDHOOD TRAUMA

You know when they say “Train up a child in the way he should go:…


BOOK REVIEW — THE 85 UNDENIABLE FACTS OF LIFE

BOOK REVIEW BOOK TITLE: THE 85 UNDENIABLE FACTS OF LIFE BOOK AUTHOR: ROBERT WILLIAM


BOOK REVIEW — HOW TO DIE FAMOUS


BOOK REVIEW: THE PERFECT MARRIAGE


MY BODY IS MY CRIME


BOOK REVIEW: AFTER I DO


BOOK REVIEW: NEXT LEVEL THINKING

BOOK REVIEW BOOK TITLE: NEXT LEVEL THINKING BOOK AUTHOR: JOEL OSTEEN ‘10 POWERFUL THOUGHTS FOR…


DEAR SOMI


BOOK REVIEW — AN ANONYMOUS GIRL BY GREER HENDRICKS & SARAH PAKKANEN

BOOK REVIEW


BOUNCING BACK FROM FAILURE

It was the weekend, which is the best day of the week for me. I…


BOOK REVIEW: VERITY BY COLLEEN HOOVER


BOOK REVIEW: CONFESS BY COLLEEN HOOVER


ADULTING 101: HOW TO NAVIGATE ADULTHOOD

Bad day has a way of playing with one's mind. You feel less of yourself,…


BOOK REVIEW: EAT THAT FROG! BY BRIAN TRACY


BOOK REVIEW: THE ART OF CREATIVE THINKING BY JOHN ADAIR


BOOK REVIEW: THE SEVEN HUSBANDS OF EVELYN HUGO BY TAYLOR JENKINS REID


BOOK REVIEW: IT ENDS WITH US BY COLLEEN HOOVER


LOST

I have always heard people say that our 20’s is the best part of life…


THE BITTER TRUTH

And at that moment your life starts flashing before your very eyes. It is really…


BODY POSITIVITY AND SELF ACCEPTANCE

I never really felt beautiful. Yes, you read right. Back then in secondary school I…


THE MISFITS


BOOK REVIEW: ADANNA BY ADESUWA O'MAN NWOKEDI


GRATITUDE


BOOK REVIEW: AKWAUGO BY ROSEMARY OKAFOR


MORAL DILEMMA

She was lying on the hospital bed and her bloodshot eyes were gazing to nothingness.…


BOOK REVIEW: INFLUENCE HER BY AKANINYENE AKPAN


THE GOLDEN CHILD

Growing up, I always thought that my sister was the golden child. She was smart,…


BOOK REVIEW: OGADINMA BY UKAMAKA OLISAKWE

BOOK REVIEW BOOK TITLE: OGADINMA BOOK AUTHOR: UKAMAKA OLISAKWE GENRES: Young Adult Fiction, African Literature,…


POWER OF VULNERABILITY


UNSPOKEN FEELINGS

I sat at the plastic chair in my small room, staring blankly at the wall.…


INADEQUACY AND INFERIORITY


ALWAYS CHOOSE 'YOU'

I grew up in a family where I was taught that putting others first was…


DISCOVER YOUR PASSION

THE DAY I FOUND MYSELF…. Those days are still vivid in my memory – days…


BOOK REVIEW: I AM MALALA BY MALALA YOUSAFZAI WITH CHRISTINA LAMB

Centered Image