My DAD, My MOM and I

       "I am from an average home, where we never begged and we are never satisfied".

I am the last born of my Family and the favourite of my parents. I actually loved my Dad more.
  Several times I've overheard my parents whispering sadly to themselves in our single room apartment. My father will say to my mother  "I sometimes wished I never had a family of my own, it will have been easy to run away in the pursue of what to survive on, infact I feel like a failure as a father and husband not knowing how to give my family the best life they should have".
My mother will say "It is not money that defines a home, but the happiness and togetherness they share, ( I also supports that school of thought). Let's stay hopeful afterall it gets better by the day".

One Morning, My father was fed up and decided to ease himself the stress of children upbringing, he scattered us all over. My eldest brother was taken to my Uncle's place in Lagos, my Immediate senior brother was sent to Grandmother's place, and I was sent to the house of My Mother's childhood and best friend, who lives somewhere in the east.
This was how I started to hate my own once lovely parents. I never wanted to speak to them on phone even when I had the opportunity to do so, because whenever I do, my mom will drop the call with tears saying " she misses me" I usually feel she was lying about that, after all you agreed with Dad to send me here.  I didn't know if it was the same feelings with my brothers over there, but to me, the separation was like been sold into slavery for the sake of poverty. An offence I promised never to forgive. I agree we had nothing and to get the best of education, my parent took such decision, this was to them the best and to us the most heart breaking decision of our lives.

          I was nine(9) years old when I got to Mrs Abimbola's house, I did everything a nineteen (19) years old will do. Mrs Abimbola who usually come visiting my mother and had the most friendly look any child can fall for, treated me like we never met. I was a complete stranger and the kids were happy that, they now have a maid. I was surprise as to how they make me do all the chores. How they will gather up and beat me like a pauper, Whenever I refused to help them wash their clothes. For Heaven's sake, this are my seniors and grown up girls, they should be the one to assist me but rather they will force me to do it all.

Oh No! This isn't fair enough I would cry to myself alone in the rest room for the fear of been  caught, I had thought of many ways of escape but none worked! I lived with them up until  eight(8) years when everything I do has become a part of me and I do them as my daily routine.
       I came back to my parent after eight years, done with my secondary school education, so here is my mother trying to relate with me the same way she did before we were torn apart.

Ooopz!
Little did she realise that I had learn to be on my own for eight(8) years without the love of a mother or the comfort of a father.

Here is what we are saying:

Dear parents, no one can treat your children better, nobody will love them the way you can! No one will have compassion on them the way you would!
Hence! Be aware that no child(ren) is happy living outside the comfort of their home. Poverty or not, is no genuine reason to send away your children from your shield and comfort zone, except they are old enough to take care of themselves.
  I don't care how closely related to whoever, please keep your children within your abode. You don't know exactly what they are passing through outside the home. Some kids can be bold enough to express and explain it to you, some children will not say anything to you because they know you won't believe them!

Here is what we are saying:  No condition is permanent, and we can't be poor forever. (Jeremiah 29:11)
Let us stay with you, pray with you and grow with you. Nobody can be like my Dad and Mum to me


Yetunde Adedokun

KidsAdvocate