My childhood was not an easy one in every angle, i can tell you for sure but some challenges are just part of what makes us stronger especially when you see them as stepping stones.
While growing up my father was a chef and chief cook for one of the government officials in lagos Nigeria then. His boss was a Nigerian married to an European woman, a beautiful woman. she was a very nice woman but the husband was not really a good person, he was always shouting at my dad then.
My family and coffee.
Nigerians are not too known for drinking coffee because of the type of weather we experience, so only few who came in contact with the foreigners either by working with them or schooling with them as well as working for them tried coffee and enjoyed it.
On my father's case he developed the habit of drinking coffee on daily basis because of his Europian boss who will always want a cup of coffee no matter the time, gradually my dad thought my family how to enjoy coffee.
I remember vividly that was the time everyone in my family where taking coffee in daily basis, immediately our boss found out that we take coffee, whenever she buys coffee she will buy a tin of coffee for us and some beverages for my younger ones then.
Every morning my mother will heat up a Kittle of water and we all will enjoy coffee before breakfast, sometimes with milk or without milk, my younger brothers never liked coffee so they had normal beverages and milk.
Few years later my father resigned from the job saying he was tired of the mans maltreatment and we went back to our home town, few months we enjoyed coffee and tea every morning but after few months life became difficult and everything changed including coffee intake.
No more coffee.
After some years when i developed issues with my studies, the doctor advised coffee intake so gradually my family started taking coffee once again till two drastic events that automatically changed coffee from the family best tea to being a poison.
After i abused coffee and it dealt with me my mother insisted that no more coffee intake in our home, no one knew that my father was privately taken coffee and the unfortunate aspect was that he mixed it with Lipton tea and takes it more frequent on daily basis, everything when overused has negative effects to ones health
One Sunday afternoon something shocking happened.
My father started having serious seizure, my mother called me and we rushed him to the hospital, after all effort to resuscitate him he came back to life.
After series of test it was found that he had a lot of caffeine in his body, funny enough it was same doctor that handled my case, he was soo upset with my father.
We couldn't believe it because we never saw him for even a day, we quickly rushed home, rushed into his room and saw many sachets of Lipton tea and a tin of coffee.
My mom became sooo upset because its not quite long i was also admitted, I nearly lost my life due to excessive caffeine and my father was aware of the situation, the question was why did he went ahead to abuse coffee intake.
We spent a week and some days in the hospital after which we paid over 100hive for hospital bill just because of coffee intake.
Immediately we came back from the hospital my mom said No more coffee in this house
That was how coffee turned to a poisonous drink in my family not for me tho.
I never took coffee till i left home and became independent so i started taking coffee in moderate because all this years i never forgot the aroma of coffee, it was just in my to-do list and i started enjoying coffee once again as i left home.
Current situation
Lately when i visited home and my mom saw that i now take coffee she was not really good with it but am now an adult so she can only advice me not to stop me from what i want to do.
Even at that i couldn't enjoy my coffee on daily basis she restricted me from having coffee for some of the days, but other days she's not always at home i enjoyed my coffee in peace.
My family can only take beverages with lots of milk, bo more coffee in my home, even my father is scared of coffee 😆😆😆.
All photos are mine