ITOHAN!

On the 16th of March 1996 a girl child was born into a family, that was me. I was born at First Consultant Hospital Obalende, Lagos, Nigeria. My family as at then lived in Enugu because of the nature of my dad's job as a coal miner. Before my birth, there were  series of controversies my family was undergoing. My mother was fed up of the ill treatments meted out to her by my paternal grandmother just because of the difference in ethnicity between my parents even though they were both Nigerians. My mother hails from Akwa Ibom state, and my Father is an indigene of Edo State. 

              I am the third child and unfortunately my mother found out she had conceived during the period grandma was living with us with the pretence that she (Mama Benin) as we fondly called her came to visit her son (Daddy) and was really torturing my mum especially when dad was away in the office. What triggered my mother was when a young lady came to live with the family. According to my mum, her name was Odion and she was looking extremely awful with her poorly bleached skin and her veins so exposed one could easily mistaken her for a what not... 

               She wore a red floral gown and heavy makeup like "ayamatanga" with her scruffy looking hair like a road side mad woman. Oh did I forget to mention she was just arriving from Benin (Edo State) that day because mama requested for her to come live in her son's house as a potential daughter in law with plans to kick my mom out. But mama no try ooo even if she wan bring anoda wife shey na dat kain person she see of all the fine girls wey dey benin? Well, na she sabi!

            Odion stayed with my family thanks to Mama's prowress and within days she started showing her true self. She would gist with mama all day long doing nothing but eat, sleep and rain insults at my mum for no just cause, dragged the kitchen with my mum, beat my siblings at will, to crown it all she was a dirty pig. The fact that my dad had little or nothing to do about all these made mom fed up to the brim and so she decided to leave my dad, my elder sister and brother with his mum since daddy was a "mummy's boy" and had no power or say to put an end to all the shenanigans that occured at home. 

             She could have left with my siblings but because school was still in session and she wasn't financially stable to cater for their needs and she hated to be a burden to anyone not even her own family, she had to leave them behind. Mum left for her sister's place as she had already decided to leave the marriage no matter how hard my dad would plead with her so she decided to make her unborn child as confidential as it can be which means all along nobody from my dad’s place including him knew she was pregnant. She never wanted me to come close to home and all those dramas.

               Away in Lagos State, Nigeria, living with her elder sister who married an Igbo man she never took good care of herself, she was emotionally drained from all that had happened with her family and with the conscience of keeping the pregnancy away from daddy trippled her fears for the child coupled with the thoughts of how my older siblings were faring. She went into taking alcohol for comfort and never did any of the rituals pregnant women do practice during their trimesters not even for once went for check up or X-ray on her child. She left me to my fate to either die or survive . Being a survivor that I am na, your girl scaled through it all. Lol! Fast forward to the noon of 15th March, she had her first contraction. I kept hitting hard until she was rushed to the hospital by my big mummy(her sister) and her husband.

         I came into this world as at 2am, March 16 but not without complications. I had terrible breathing problems this was as a result of the blockages in my lungs. I was diagnosed with Pneumonia by the doctors, big mummy had no other choice than to put a call through to my father as she felt at this point he deserved to know he just had a new born and she couldn't handle it all alone and his presence will help mum heal. Dad on the other hand was already frustrated during those months of my mum's absence and hurriedly came down to Lagos the next day. 

           On his arrival, the doctors told him I was born with pneumonia as mum was exposed to cold and as I said earlier didn’t take care of herself. Meanwhile, mom had no idea what was up because she was medically induced to sleep to reduce the pain after her vagina was sewn due to the cut she had on her as my head was quite big it couldn't pass through and she had to be cut open a little to expand the passage of the baby. Honestly my head is still quite big till date. Lol! 

            My mother and I spent 3months at the hospital. As expected of a Nigerian child to be christened on the 7th day of its birth, mine was delayed because I was ill. When we were finally discharged, my birth brought peace back to my family. Mama Benin felt for my mum and decided to let them live in happiness and my parents reunited. Odion as mum later learnt was sent packing cos mama couldn’t cope with her lazy and dirty ass and she saw the difference and importance of my mum instead. On the day that was set aside for my Christening which was already in arrear, my daddy said I was to be called ITOHANOSA, which means God has shown me MERCY!