When I was little, life was simple. I was incredibly lucky to be raised by parents who catered for my needs. As normal as this sounds, I grew up in a closed society where it looks normal for kids of my age to either cater for themselves or contribute to the family's income purse. I had friends who sold nylon/sachet water before eating. While I was still in bed in the morning, some of my mates were already out there selling edibles. If they do not make sales, they'll probably go to school hungry. Growing up, I saw a lot of poverty all around.
Despite the financial challenges, my friends and I had our moments of immense joy. We trekked several miles to school in the early morning cold and laughed heartily as we trod back to our homes after school in the hot afternoon sun. Despite that, we were never broken. After filling ourselves with whatever we could get for lunch, we'd be out in the backyard, running after any round object in the mould of a football. And when one of our parents had mercy upon us and bought us a rubber ball, our joy was indescribable.
Every afternoon, we'd kick the ball to no end, sustaining bruises, cuts and varying amounts of injuries in the process. Not even my mama's regular reprimand could stop me from having a kick-around with my friends. We were little, annoying, resilient and stubborn as hell. But, we were very happy too. We never had to plan for the next day or the next year or the next meal. We lived in the present and never bothered about goals and achievements. Even when we scored zero in our exams or came last in class assessments, we'd only worry about that moment. Five minutes after getting beat for being 'unserious' we are out there playing again. We were inseparable.
The only day when we had to think and plan was on Christmas Day. Clothed in the best we've got, we'd come together as a group to plan our assault. Despite the dire financial situation, most families cook on Christmas Day. Our goal is simple: go to as many houses as possible and eat as much as possible. Our parents understood this and will never rob us of this one opportunity to roam freely and have fun. Once I bade my mama goodbye in the morning, we won't set eyes on each other till 7 pm. We'd go to houses of people we know and trust, places we believed we would never be harmed. Poor little kids! We never knew life could get hard.
If I was granted one holiday wish, it would be to go back to those times and watch as I lived a carefree life with my little friends on Christmas Day. To listen to what we said and experience our raw, unguarded happiness once again. Most of the little ones I grew up with already moved on in search of life. I don't even know the whereabouts of about 90% of them. We had no social media to keep up when we were little. Life pushed us in different directions, and we couldn't keep up. I'd give anything to go back in time and spend one more Christmas holiday with you guys. I'd love to witness once again those times when we fought battles with 'disco lights', 'knockouts' and 'banger'.
I really do miss you, dear friends.
