Clara sat in her office reading Ada's newest story for her magazine and truly she was enjoying it.
She couldn't believe that marriage could be interesting the way Ada makes it feel except of course Ada wasn't telling the truth. She knew her friend so well to know that Ada would rather not say anything than lie about what she was saying. So it had to be the truth.
That means marriage was beautiful if the parties worked together to make it so. Her own idea of marriage on the other hand was a wacky one.
The one her parents handed over to her.
She got up from her seat and walked to her window at the office as she allowed her mind to go down memory lane. To the memories she had tried so hard to suppress.
***************
'Clara! Clara!! her mom called out to her from the kitchen were she was making dinner.
'Ma!' She answered as she ran to go to her mum in the kitchen. She recognised that tone and she knew what it meant.
'Men are evil and all the same, all they want is what's between your legs, but you my dear have to be smart.' Her mother said to clara who was going to turn 11 on her next birthday.
'Take your father for example' She continued
'if I'm not the kind of smart woman that I am you think I will be where I am today? If he makes perm, I will pack my load and leave him because I have my own secret plan. So nobody can take me for granted. No body! Clara's mum said waving her index finger in the air to drive her point home.
This had become a norm for some time back in their home
Clara had to seat through this sermon from her mom almost every other day and her young heart certainly couldn't contain everything she heard.
Her mother made everything about her relationship with her father open even down to their sex life. She was literally washing their dirty linen in public only this time she was the public.
Later that day, it would be the turn of her father and yet she had to listen but she loved her father more.
Maybe it was because he always bought things for her or maybe be cause he always told her he was proud of her no matter what she did.
She decided that if her parents ever had a divorce or split for any reason, she was sure going to move in with her father, her mother bitterness could choke you if you stay with it for one full week, that was not a better option. But moving in with her father never happened.
'Ibinabo! are you there? Her father called out to her from his room after he returned from work later in the evening. He always loved to call her by her native name, maybe that was another thing that endeared her to him.
'Papa, I'm coming' she replied. She was glad he had sent for her, that was the perfect escape she needed to leave her mum bitter talk.
She walked fast to her father's room heaved a sigh of relief before turning to face him with a smile.
'Papa how was work today she asked him as she sat on the chair in his room.
'Work was fine my dear' and how was school today? He asked his daughter.
'It was fine papa. She responded.
Her father smiled.
'Ibi! I know one day you will be a woman and a wife to somebody, please when that day comes' he continued. Don't become like your mother.
This was the part that Clara didn't like about her father too, bad talks about her mother. She knew her mum wasn't a saint and she too also avoided but he didn't have to dump all the info onto her. Her head almost always felt like exploding after each talks.
'Please don't be like her, she's evil' he continued
'She is wicked. All women are wicked actually only a few of them have a good heart. Please be among the few.
'How can my own wife disrespect me in public' he continued saying 'And even call me names in the presence of the whole neighbours?' He asked to nobody in particular
'I was going out was it last week or so when one little child came towards me smiling and calling me 'Uncle Idiot' thinking 'Idiot' was my name obviously because your mother always called me that when I'm leaving the house.
Clara felt sad and placed her hands on her kneels while her palm held her face.
What could she do than listen and listen again.
She often wondered what went wrong between her parents, how the love they once shared went sour. Though if she was honest the tension started maybe before she was even born because she grew knowing that there was no such thing as love between her parents.
The love they once had, turned into hatred and graduated into resentment and bitterness.
From that tender age, she vowed to stay single.
'What was the use of suffering so much torture, staying with someone that you obviously hate' she imagined.
She often went to bed in tears.
She couldn't let anyone into what was going on in her house and been an only child didn't make it easy.
*********************
She sighed again as she shook her head to make the memories go away. They just couldn't stop.
*****************
'Its time for me to finally leave your father Clara,' her mother was saying as she angrily stuffed her box with her clothes
'Mama, you can't leave me alone, please don't go, please mama don't go' a twelve year old Clara begged.
'My dear you won't understand' her mother said still taking down her belonging and folding them together.
'Your father is not a man, he can't even take care of me. My skin was glowing before I met him, I had all that I needed before I married that man, but look at me now, twelve years after and I can stand with my mates because of shame.'
'I will talk with Papa, mama I promise' she begged.
Her mother didn't listen to her.
'I just have to leave' I just have to.
'Mama, where will you go to?' Clara asked with tears soaked eyes.
'I am a smart woman Clara I told you that before. I have been secretly building a house for my self for a while back now. It is now complete so I will move in there with you.
'A house?' Clara asked with her eyes wide open from shock
She couldn't believe her ears. Her mum had a house unknown to her father and herself. What else was she doing secretly she wondered.
Just then they heard a knock at the door. They both stopped talking and wondered who it was. The knocks came more frequent.
'Go and see who is at the door' her mum ordered her out of the room as she continued arranging her belongings.
'Mummy, its police oh' she ran back to let her mum know
Clara watched her mother arrange her hair and straighten her clothes as she made to go out to the police waiting for her outside. She shut the door after her.
After a brief moment she heard a maddening shout come out from behind the door.
Clara ran to the door and ran as she saw her mother rolling on the ground. Something was not right.
'Mama what is it? She asked repeatedly
All she got from her mom was a continuous shout of
'Ewo ohhhhh, Ewo ohhhhh' as the neighbours surrounded their house.
'Mama Clara?' Different people were calling out to her trying to fathom what could have happened
Her response was more shouts and crying and then she dropped the bomb shell.
'E don die oh, e don die!'
At first Clara didn't understand what she meant until one of the women came and grabbed her too and said
'Oh my pikin sorry, sorry oh your papa don die.
She couldn't believe it. Her world crumbled with those words and she wondered if she would ever recover for the shock those words sent her into.
***************
TO BE CONTINUED...
Sent from my BlackBerry wireless device from MTN
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