Hahaha! What an interesting topic, @hive-naija. The kind of myth I heard while growing up ehnn, even a book wouldn't contain it all.
There's no way you grew up as a typical Nigerian child and didn't have a myth to share. I think myths were something our parents or others told us to either scare us or make us believe in them.
When we were kids, I remember we were told that once anyone crossed your legs while you were sitting down and they didn't cross them back, you would give birth to a child looking exactly like that person, or your child would be born as a dwarf, or some other terrible thing you could not relate to or connect with would happen to you.
So there was one particular time my aunt and her kids came to visit us. It was during the summer; everywhere was hot and there was no light, so the whole family was sitting outside. I was also sitting down on a mat, and then my aunt's daughter crossed my legs. Ah, all hell broke loose. This girl in particular was so annoying and stubborn that no kid liked playing with her because she was a bully, so the thought of having a child like her was a no-no for me. That was how I started shouting, Grace (that's her name) better come and cross my legs back; God forbid that I should give birth to a child like you, holy ghost fire, back to sender, come and cross my legs back, oh. And this annoying girl was just laughing at me. Now that I'm grown up, each time I remember that incidence, I cannot help but laugh at not just my ignorance but my foolishness in accepting what I was told without going the extra mile to verify if it was true or otherwise.
When I started seeing my period (menstrual cycle), my mom sat me down and told me that if any boy touched me, even if it was on my shoulder, I would get pregnant. This affected me physiologically; at first, I really was not concerned about it because I went to an all girls school and rarely went out. When I went to the university, I noticed how scared I was of staying or sitting close to guys, even in the class room. At this time, I was already an adult, so I knew everything I was told as a teen was a lie. But still, somewhere in my mind, I was avoiding guys. I remember joining a fellowship that likes hugging, Kai! It took me a while to adjust.
Another one was if your palm is scratching you that means someone will dash you money. Eesh!
That's how, whenever my palm is scratching me and we have a visitor at home, I will expect the visitor to give me money when they are leaving. Omo nothing! After having plenty of expectations that got dashed to the wall, I stopped believing that nonsense.
Or is it the one that whenever my mom wants to send you on an errand and wants you to return on time, she will spit on the floor and tell you that if you do not return before the spit on the floor drys off, your navel (belly button) will swell and start paining you. Omo, come and see the marathon we had to run on the road while on the errand, all because we were scared of some misfortune befalling us.
Looking over our shoulder, it is really laughable, but the truth remains, while it lasted, those myths scared the living daylights out of us.
This is my entry into the @hive-naija contest.
THANK YOU FOR READING TO THE END 🤗
