Remembering Aunty K

It is amazing.....1 decade, gone like that. 10 whole years.

I dont have much memory of you because you had relocated to the North way before I was even born. But I definitely remember you as my mother's sister, the really pretty one who looked so much like Omotola, the one who was sooo gentle and quiet, the one who smiled with both her eyes and mouth....the whole face really, the one who was very fashionable (her clothing pieces were very delectable and classy), the one who was very giving (especially financially), the one who gave me my first real set of cousins (the others were just cousins by language), she would bring them all the way from the North down to the West to spend a few weeks with us, the one who could make all these exquisite drinks and confectionery (ginger drink, kunu, yogurt, etc). She was beautiful in and out!

She wanted a boy. We all wanted a boy for her. In my young head, it only made sense. Humans should have offsprings....males and females alike. She had 3 girls. That would have been her 4th child. I do not know if it was a girl or a boy, but I know whichever it was, it would have been loved fiercely.....had it lived.

Today, 10 years ago, Mum was restless. She just had to make the trip to the North to see you, since she had been told that your condition wasnt improving. I am not sure that she told your husband that she was coming. She dragged Aunty T, your twin, who was coincidentally sick, and made the journey with her. It must have been the twin-telelpathy-thing going on with you two...how cute!!! They didnt make it in time though. We had lost you about 30 minutes before they arrived there.

The few days after were.......dark...in the house. Mum.....amazon Ma Petrillo, Mother of Africa Ma Petrillo, would just lay on the lower bed on the "double decker bed" in the room, whimpering. As I later came to understand, for her, it was like losing a child. In fact, I am coming to understand that you, as well as the rest of you, her siblings, are her children.....me, my siblings as well as your children are her grandchildren.

I am sure that you know that your 3 girls have become Western Nigerians since then. Apparently, you havent been lounging in heaven, cos, your girls are growing up to be fantastic adults

Ada-d-Tailor

Your Ada now fancies herself a Fashion Designer. She has been learning how to sew for a few weeks now and it has been "hell" in the house! We are almost at the point of hiding the curtains from her. She's been redesigning and re-sewing everything. The funny thing though is that, Aunty K, your Ada doesnt like school!!! Where on earth did you get her from?!! It is quite nice actually, to see her passionate about something, for once! She is graduating from Uni. next year. I bet you would have been proud of her. Oh, did I forget to mention her sense of humor? She is a jester!


Your mini-you wants to becoming a lawyer. She looks very much like you and has the slant of Aunty T's shoulder (hehhehehheh, she hates to hear this). Sometimes, we beg her to talk, lest her mouth smells and at other times, we beg her to shut up. She loves all those mede-mede food serenren that you like too. She makes the meanest pot of plantain porridge. She is the logical one and her head isnt big for nothing (I see you baybee), omo yen mo iwe!

Your obi....last card is a nutcase. I am yet to see a more happy-go-lucky child. Yes, she is your Obi because she has asked us to call her "The Boy" for some time now. Frankly, I dont know where you got both your Ada and your Obi from because they are such deliciously annoying humans. Her sense of humor is off the wazo. She never gets angry, never cries, isnt sensitive, always ready to help and can find humor in EVERYTHING! She is nevur evur serious! She is graduating from High School next year.

If nothing else, I am grateful for the 3 extra sisters you gave me. It was difficult in the beginning, it was! But, given the situation at that time, I wouldnt have had it any other way. I wish I had paid more attention when you were teaching me how to make Yogurt sha. The last Zobo I attempted making ended up like a herbal drink. *shivers*

I guess all I am saying is, 10 years after, 10 years since all of our lives changed, 10 years of learning, the pain of the loss only gets a bit easier to deal with, it never goes.

We bless God for your life, Aunty K. Continue to rest in the bossom of our Lord.

Real quick question, Aunty K: Do you see a set of twins in my future? Is it two boys, two girls, or a boy and a girl? Abeg, make it happen o! One boy, one girl. Help me influence it with Baba God. Thanks.



Cheers to a life worth remembering!