Life With Tutu

Days drew into weeks, weeks drew into months and then years. Time flew like the wind sometimes to Femi's dismay. Femi's mother never gave up inviting her for church programmes and either sending or bringing holy water/ oils for her to use. A one stop cure for her barrenness. Femi collected them dutifully…and threw them in the bin whilst Wale looked on in uneasiness. She had gone to see some specialists in secret and the results were all the same, nothing could be done to make her fertile. She had cried and cried and eventually wiped the tears off her eyes… and heart. Wale's relatives who depended on her more or less for their livelihood were in no position to put pressure on her, at least to her face. She had decided to be calculatingly generous to them because of that same reason.  She raised funds for herself and Wale to start their own indigenous automobile repair company with branches in Lagos and Abuja. Wale was the MD/ CEO. Femi was concerned with making her husband h...

It was night time. Femi was leaning against the window sill in her room, tears running down her face. She found she couldn’t stop the tears, it appeared her tear ducts had a will of their own. Her mother's words kept playing in her consciousness. She had promised to visit a gynecologist that week even though she knew there was no point. There never was a point to it all. Abruptly, she started pulling off her clothes, in a hurry. Finally she was left with just her bra and panties. She moved like a zombie to the standing mirror near the bed. She squeezed her flat belly as she slowly sat cross legged on the tiled floor, weeping uncontrollably, almost willing herself to get pregnant. Finally, exhausted, she spread out on the floor and fell into an uneasy slumber. Wale found her thus and not wanting to wake her up, covered her with the duvet he pulled off the bed and he retired to the guest room. Femi woke up with a start. Groggily she stood up, her muscles feeling very sore for she was...

The latest couple in town travelled to far away Greece for their honeymoon. Femi had always been a lover of Greek mythology and so she spent hours exploring with a reluctant but besotted husband in tow. Love is a beautiful thing, especially a love that transcends time. The nights were spent in each others arms, nights of endless pleasure, pleasuring and being pleasured. To their dismay, their one month honey moon was soon over and they had to return to Nigeria. Life quickly fell into a steady rhythm. Femi found herself trying to juggle being a working class lady and a wife catering to the needs of her husband and sometimes, his large extended family. Wale was from a dirt poor home and his family knew his wife was from a comfortable home and expected her, now that she was married to their son, brother and nephew to help them. Femi was initially open to assisting them as it was obvious she was earning way above her husband, but when she discovered they were greedy and grasping, she stopp...

Femi was sure theirs was a match made in Heaven. She marvelled at the strength of the love she shared with Wale. Life could only get better and better ‘ I worry about you Femi' said her father one evening. He was seated on the lone couch in her room whilst she was seated at the edge of the bed facing the couch. Femi gave him an exasperated look because she knew what was to follow ‘I wonder why you trust this guy so much. Do you know the number of girls I dated and disappointed before I married your mom?’ ‘Ah, dad, Wale is no player' ‘Oh so your father is now a player' Her father asked feigning anger Femi moved beside him on the couch, hugging him “Noooo. That’s not what I’m saying. Wale loves me very very much. He wouldn’t do anything to hurt me. And, he can never ever let me down. Dad, the guy is crazy about me!’ ‘Hmmm’ her father replied, pensive ‘ Trust no man, Femi. I’m a man and I know what I’m saying. I don’t want someone that will break your heart.’ ‘ He won’t!. He d...

Femi knew she was hopelessly in love…for the first time ever in..her existence. Wale was the centre of her universe. Her darling who could do no wrong. She discovered Wale was in the school on a partial scholarship. His parents were dirt poor and he had to do odd jobs during vacation to make ends meet. Femi was determined to help him as much as possible and so, her allowance plus monies she made by the side, she shared with him. They were like two peas in the pod. From year three they started winning the couple of the year award on campus up until they graduated. Femi discovered Wale wasn’t good at the practical aspect of Mechanical engineering and decided to do his project work for him, as a result he got a distinction and this adhered her to him even more. Service year brought about a separation. Femi was posted to Lagos through her father's influence whilst Wale was posted to the north. Femi had tried to persuade her father to influence her lover's posting but her father was...

She found herself going down memory lane. She was born the second child in a family of four, all girls: Oluwafemi Deborah Santos. People always thought she was a boy before meeting her and she liked it. ‘Twas fun seeing the look of shock/surprise on peoples faces. The scan result had shown she was supposed to be a boy and her father had insisted on naming his supposed first male child, even whilst in the womb, Oluwafemi. He had refused to change it when she eventually landed one cold rainy night. Her mother was able to squeeze in the name Deborah upon seeing her feisty baby girl.  She was a tomboy. Always imitating her father and hanging out with boys in school. Automatically, she was her dad's favourite. Femi would be the one to buy gas, fill the gen, change deflated tyres, climb the roof to change the position of the antennae and even go with her father for some of his….political meetings. Her father had her enrolled in martial art classes. He wanted his favourite daughter to be ...

Femi looked at the wailers seeing….yet not seeing. She had cried so much she was numb. She was seated betwist her elder sister and mother. She wondered how she would have coped….without them. They were her bulwark. The wailers were apparently tireless. As one set left another came in to continue the wailing. Idly she wondered if her late husband could see or hear them. She wondered at the state of their vocal chords and lungs…at this stage. Her eyes roamed the sitting room that had turned to the wailing room. Just a few days ago there was so much sunshine and happiness here. Her husband and best friend was still alive, vitality his middle name. She sighed and her mother looked at her with utmost concern. She tried to give her a reassuring look. The sitting room looked so dirty now. In her depression she had ordered the two maids to leave her house. Normally guests were not allowed in with their footwear, but now, no one could be bothered with those rules. What was the essence of cleanl...