The backwash of polygamy

Hello Steemit, I met with a friend of mine who would like to share his story with you guys. I hope you will enjoy it...

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Number of times I have heard of people saying or calling "daddy", "dad" and "father". Those words have not been familiar with me. I don't use them and it's not my fault. At times I doubt their existence. Those words are meant to be used by everyone in this world but unfortunately for me I have not used them.

Since I was born I only know and use "mum", "mummy" and "mother" simply because the person who supposed to bear the "dad" never "existed", in fact he was responsible for the death of my youngest sibling. Of course I know if there was no "dad" I wouldn't have existed, as even the category called "bastard" in one time had dad (at least during their conceptions).

Whether I had dad during my conception is not debatable as the person I call my mum today couldn't possibly impregnate herself. It happens that those whose dads are dead are far better than me as they can proudly say "when my dad was alive", but to me I can't say if mine is alive or not. In fact, I get upset whenever any issue involving dad is raised.

It all began one night at about 12:00 am during the eighth month of pregnancy that finally brought my beautiful youngest sister Higboru to this world.
"Saboba run! He's started again" was the only statement that woke me up from outside the building where I was sleeping. And that was my mum calling on me to escape for my dear life. On waking up, I saw a man with slaughterous matchet chasing my mum around the compound with the intention of stabbing her with the matchet.

Little did I know that this same man was the one they called my "father" until when the eldest of my siblings came out of the house and said "dad have you started again?" At this point I stood motionless. I earlier wanted to call for help when I thought the man was a stranger but when my eldest brother threw his fainting question I became speechless when I realised it was my father.

Thoughts began to run over me. If my eldest brother could not do anything but stood afar to question the man who was "possessed of demon", how could I who was still young do anything?
My mum begged my brother to take me along with him for escape because she had known that if he was unable to catch her he would come after us. That day was my first day of leaving my mum behind while in danger. Because even though I couldn't do anything at that age, I could still wait and cry with her.

While we left, the race between my mum and my dad (although after that day, I deemed it necessary not to address him as my dad) continued. My mum was able to maintain the race for a while by running round the compound, coupled with the drunken state of my dad until he finally caught her. Immediately after my mum was caught by my dad, he lifted up his matchet to stab my mum when one of the youths of our community who was gifted with no other thing but to beat those men who did beat their wives rushed in while we were still on our escape. "Hey, killer! If that matchet moves an inch from the height you raised it, I will give you your eyeballs in your palm today" was the only statement and voice that my dad heard and stood still. Before Lakki could get closer to him the matchet fell down from his hand and he quickly knelt down and began to beg as he knew that whenever Lakki caught any man beating his wife such man was in for trouble.

Lakki was not a soldier but he shared same attributes with the military. He always wanted his orders to be obeyed to the last. As punishment for allowing the matchet to move an inch as against his command, he gave my dad "frog jump" and faced the crowds who came to sympathise with my mum and spoke thus: "Any day I see any man beat his wife, I swear I will exercise on that person. As for this man, I will teach him a lesson today."

I was so happy with Lakki's bravery. But I paused awhile and thought to myself: "if a stranger who's as old as my eldest brother could stop my dad from beating my mum and even to the extent of punishing him, why can't my eldest brother do so?" I was already fed up with different thoughts. Later in the day I approached my mum with the thoughts and all she could say was "Saboba, you won't understand!"

After that day, while we were eating, I anxiously asked my mum "mummy why did daddy beat you?" My mum told me to keep quiet why my eldest brother told me that it had been happening even before I was given birth to. It was then that I realised that it wasn't play after all that my mum and my dad always played. Many times I had witnessed the two of them running round the building and in most of those times I did see my dad with one weapon or another.

Although I always thought they were only playing as I always said within myself "daddy and mummy have started to play again but tomorrow they won't permit me to play with my own friends." Little did I know that those moments were not play but war.
Two weeks later, the elders of our compound summoned my mum and dad for brief meeting.

From time immemorial, it had been a taboo for a couple to fight at midnight as it was the belief that ancestors did go around at night to distribute blessings and if any family was not at peace at such hour, its lineage would be cursed.
The meeting was called for several reasons among which were to sanction the family for the curse they had brought upon the lineage of the family through the fight, to know what brought the fight in the first place etc.

During the meeting, children were not allowed to join. However, I ran to my mum to carry me so I could witness as I feared that they might beat my mum there. At the meeting, each of the parties was able to give their own side of the story. However, it was noted that the bone of contention was my mum's refusal to prepare food for my stepmother (even though my stepmother was not sick) before going to her farm which led my dad to steal the only money my mum had saved to register us in school.

I was born into a polygamous family. Ever since my stepmother was married by my dad, peace ceased to exist in the family. Although my mum was never against polygamous family as it was the custom of the land that the man decided what he wanted, whether monogamous or polygamous family. The woman was to echo as the man sang the song. The only parts that annoyed my mum were that she was informed of my stepmother's arrival a day before she was brought into the family, that my dad was unable to train us in school and yet he brought in another woman, and that my dad made it compulsory that my mum cooked all the food my stepmother would eat until she gave birth to her first child.

....to be continued

Bear this in mind that this piece of work belongs to a colleague of mine, and no authorship is accrue to me but him.
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