She is sixteen years old and has a baby, living with her husband of eighteen years and he is a butcher, he doesn’t bring money for food, to make a living she gets a table at Orie-ugba market, Ugba community, where she sells fresh tomatoes for a living, she always feel the pains of the hot sun and the slashes of the rain on her skin, talking out of experience, it’s the worst experience ever.
I got the sight of her one morning coming for the day’s normal ritual, to keep the world she believes in, moving, she was limping one of her leg, and was walking slowly, I was moved because she was fighting tears as she walked across my mum’s shop, I told mum “look at this girl she is crying”. “Chidiogo! it’s not your business kpota ndi ga azu anyi afia, maka ego iga eji naghachi school”. (Look for customers that will buy goods so that you will go back to school).
I was disturbed, I traced her to her table, and I start by buying tomatoes, that’s when I had a very close look, Amara is very pretty, she is a paragon and she is endowed. The third time I went to her table, “Is he your child?” I asked, she nodded in affirmation, “wow what’s his name” I asked again, “Chinonso” that’s what she told me, I smiled at the baby he smiled back. I left.
I found myself sitting with her the next time, I asked “what is your name” she told me Amara (Grace). “We are friends now OK, feel free to tell me anything, am a friend” I was surprised she smiled and said “I don’t have a friend”. “Wow I love that!” I exclaimed. “Tell me about you” I requested. “My parents had a problem and they got divorced, my mum left me with my dad, at a point I couldn’t hear from mum again, but her corpse lies in state. My step mother drove me out of the house while my dad watched me live in tears, no destination in mind”
“How old are you then?” “I was only fourteen”. She replied
“What! A mother has a mind to do that to you?” I exclaimed out of surprise She smiled and said “… that’s life we live in”.
A family took me in and I fell in love with their son, although his parents warned me not to do anything serious with their son, but I can’t help it. How old was he then? Sixteen… She replied. “ I got pregnant for him and his parents asked me to give them the child after given birth and move on, but I refused I told them no that I want to live with Chinedu, because I love him”.
“What Rubbish..”. From papa Chinedu, and “Are You Stupid?” From mama Chinedu.
“Papa Chinedu rented a house for us, and gave Chinedu small cash to start a business, because he doesn’t have any option at the moment, I was grateful at least they didn’t abandon us. Immediately I gave birth, Chinedu started misbehaving and he has been that way until now”.
She had continued “What made you cry on Wednesday morning?” I asked her, she was shocked she looked at me with pain. “How did you know?” she asked “I saw you crying so go ahead and tell me we are friends now, what happened?” I assured her “It’s my husband… In my mind I was thinking A guy of eighteen years ( my husband) what does he know? I can’t fathom. He rapes me every morning before going out and am pregnant again”. She said. This took me some minutes to digest. Finally I got back my voice and asked her “Does his mum knew about it? No, she stopped calling when I warned her to stop meddling in our family affairs”. This sounded strange to my ear “…Did I just hear you say family? Where’s your ring?”
“Amara the best thing to do now for yourself and your baby is to return Chinonso to mama Chinedu it’s not too late and start your life afresh, for a new beginning” I advised
She looked at me with tears rolling down her cheek “Chinedu is my life, I prefer here I always come to sell every day, nothing is left for me again, and this Buhari era is not helping, I can’t do anything again, no strength, no vision, no dreams, no hope”. I was shocked but summoned courage to ask her “Do you go to church” and she answered, “Since I packed in with Chinedu I have not attended any Church. You need to talk to God he can save you, I managed to say, I don’t think so, he doesn’t know people like me” she replied with pain, and requested if i should go for now, I left because I couldn’t control the tears in my eyes, believing prayers will work for her to make her rebuild and rekindle her dreams and hopes.
Immediately at 5:30 am on 2nd Jan 2018…
I received a call… Amara is dead at 17 years.
RIPs, Gone So Soon, I was in pain…. why would she give up?
Amara gave up everything, of course Chinedu will remarry and already has a son, he didn’t lose a dime.
