Chapter 1

1228 Words
Tired of living all his life in the village after graduating from secondary school, Wale was getting depressed. Although he passed out with good grades, he had little or no hope of advancing his education. No thanks to the poverty-stricken family he was born into. His father was a carpenter who could barely provide one decent meal for the family, and his mother was a petty trader that hawks cooked rice to support the family. Wale was the firstborn of the family and has three siblings; Marvin, the second-born was 21 years old, Jamal, the third-born was 16 years old, and Lola, the baby of the house, and his only sister, was 5 years old. Wale was 25 years old and at that age, he felt embarrassed to still be living with his parents and even worse being fed by them. He was sitting under a mango tree in front of his father's dilapidated house. He turned to look at the house. Oh my God, he thought. The house was such a sorry sight. Thank God it was the harmattan period because, during the rainy season, the roof leaks in more than twenty places whenever it rains. Whenever it was raining, Wale and siblings get as many containers as they can to put under the leaking parts. He turned his head and looked at the numerous cracks on the walls with the outrageous number of lizards running in and out of them. "I have to do something about this house", he muttered. On second thought, he said, "No, I have got to do something about my life!" He shook his head in self-pity, as he muttered "God help me". Just then his little sister Lola came out of the house wearing a tattered pink dress that had seen better days. She was looking very malnourished and frail and looked very sad. Wale was looking at her as she walked up to him, and she said "Brother Wale, I am hungry." Immediately, he got up to meet his sister and carried her in his arms. Oh my God, how frail and malnourished she looks, she's as light as a feather, he thought. "How are you Lolly baby," he said calling her by the name he fondly calls her. "I am hungry brother Wale," she said. He smiled at her and said, "Alright, Lolly baby, let's go to the kitchen and get you something to eat". He walked into the house and headed to the kitchen with his sister in his arms. Entering the kitchen, he set her down and opened one of the cupboards. He brought out a small bag containing Garri (dry edible granules made from the cassava plant). He opened the bag and took a plastic cup from a small aluminum tray that displayed an array of colorful plastic cups which was on top of the cupboard. He dipped his hand into the bag of Garri and put two handfuls inside the cup. He bent down and took off the lid of a clay pot beside the cupboard and took another cup from the top of the cupboard. He took some water from the clay pot and poured it into the cup of Garri. He took a small plastic bottle containing salt on top of the cupboard, opened it, took a pinch of salt, and added it to the cup of Garri that was already swelling because of the water added to it. He opened the cupboard again and brought out a piece of coconut, he broke it into two and gave one part with the cup of Garri to his sister. Lola smiled, collecting the cup of Garri from her brother, she said, "Thank you, brother Wale". She joyfully held unto her brother's hand as they walked out of the kitchen. As they came outside, Lola sat on a small stool beside the house and hungrily started eating her food. Wale went back to sit under the tree. Looking at his sister, eating the food as if she had not eaten for days, he felt more miserable and helpless than before. From a distance, he saw his father whistling as he rode on a bicycle that had seen better days. His eyes swept over his father from head to toe, he was a perfect picture of poverty! His father rode into the compound and rested his bicycle against the wall. Wale greeted him and his father responded with a nod. Lola also greeted him and he smiled at her. He walked up to her and carried her in his arms. The little girl clung to the cup of Garri as if her life depended on it. She offered her father a spoonful of Garri and he declined with a smile, saying "Thank you.". He set her back on the ground and went inside the house. Just at that moment, Wale made up his mind to leave the village and travel to Lagos the following week. After all, Lagos is one of the best cities in Nigeria as he has heard from several people. I have to leave this village cos it holds no prospect for me, he thought. He decided to tell his parents that evening that he wants to relocate to Lagos. Later that evening, just before bedtime, Wale left his room and headed to his parent's room. He knocked on the door, and he heard his mother's voice asking "Who is that?". He replied that he was the one. The mother asked him to come in. Wale turned the doorknob and entered his parent's room. His mother was sitting on the bed while his father was sleeping. Wale looked at his mother's face in the dim candlelight. Her face was looking old and wrinkled. She looked way older than her age due to the stress she goes through daily. His mother asked, "Wale my son, I hope there is no problem?" "No Mother, I just want to talk to you and Papa," he replied. His mother tapped the shoulder of his father who was fast asleep and he woke up asking what was the matter. The mother told him Wale wants to speak to them. The father sat up and asked, "Wale, I hope there is no problem?" He said he just wants to talk to them. His parents said they are listening. He then told his parents he is fed up staying in the village and staying idle, and he wants to travel to Lagos the next week to find a job, and he is tired of wasting his time in the village. "Do you know anybody in Lagos?" his father asked. He replied that he has a friend in Lagos who was his classmate but relocated to Lagos when they finished secondary school. He told them the friend has been inviting him to come to Lagos and had sent him the address of his house in Lagos. "It's alright my son, there is no problem, it is for your good and ours as well," he said. His mother who had kept quiet all the time they were talking said, "Is this what you want?" Wale replied in the affirmative. His mother said, "Okay my son." Wale told them goodnight and they answered back. He left the room, closing the door gently behind him. Then he walked back to his room feeling happy.
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