Tolu's Blog

Chapter 6 Exactly 2months after i gave birth, i summoned up courage to go talk to my Uncle. I was scarcely noticed in the house. My aunty took a maternity leave from work and even with that, she focuses on the baby alone, forgetting the fact that i gave birth to him. They named him after my Uncle and everyone refers to him as Junior. I noticed my aunty replies to my greetings grudgingly and i couldn't help but wonder why. It was on a Saturday evening when i finally had a chance, my Aunty wasn't at home. She had gone out with Junior to visit her friend who lives in another part of Abuja. I had waited for this opportunity for a long time. Soon i reached the front of the room and heard my Uncle making a call. I am very disciplined by nature and normally, i respect people's privacy but that afternoon, i was propelled to eavesdrop on my Uncle's conversation. I stood outside his door and placed my left ear on the door. My Uncle must have been discussing something very ...

Chapter 5 Two months later, i was already pregnant with my Aunty's baby and she prevented me from telling anyone. According to her, not everyone understands what surrogacy is and may be passing criticising words at the idea, i obeyed her and kept it all to myself. My friend Tinu didn't hear anything from me for weeks and so she came visiting. I was so happy to see her. I welcomed her into the house and entertained her. "How did you locate this place?". I asked immediately i put down the tray containing some snacks and a pack of fruit juice. "I checked your school diary and saw your house address and since my Uncle lives in Abuja too. I told my Mum i'd be spending part of the school break with him, just so i'd be able to check on you"  She responded, smiling. I was so glad she came visiting. My Aunty had isolated me from the world and i was beginning to feel socially drained. I looked at Tinu and smiled, then she continued. "I tried ...

                     Chapter 4 I locked myself up in my room and refused to go downstairs for lunch. I had a feeling nobody went to church that morning. I sat down on the floor and leaned against the wall. Few hours later, i heard a knock on my door and i only opened when I'm sure it's Funsho. He came in and sat on my bed. I went back to my initial position and buried my head in my laps. Funsho and i were silent for few minutes, then he later spoke. "I'm leaving this place........" he paused, then continued "I thought about it all through the night and realized i can't sin against God just to please my brother". I stood up aghast. "Where will you go?" Funsho got up and started pacing my room, then he stopped. "I don't know yet. My brother has taken sole responsibility of me since i was 10. He's practically my life". Funsho sulked and i could see the tears welling up in his eyes. I moved close to him and held h...

                          Chapter 3 The okada man stopped right in front of my Aunty's mini duplex after i instructed him to. I had signalled for a ride immediately i got out of the commercial bus which brought me to Abuja and he was the first to come meet me where i stood with my small luggage and handbag. I had planned using the opportunity to take some few things i needed in school so i felt taking my small sized luggage will fit into the purpose. The house was silent as usual as i stepped into the compound. At this point, i wished my aunty has kids, maybe the whole house wouldn't have been so quiet. "Welcome Gina. How was the journey?"  Funsho greeted immediately i entered into the house.  He was sitting in front of the TV just as i expected. He got up and gave me a hug. He smiled and sat back. "Thank you jare. The journey was okay" I replied with a smile, as i dropped my bag and sat down. "Let me...

   Chapter 2   On getting to the sitting room, i found my parents and brothers in a pool of their own blood. Life, they say is unpredictable. Who would have thought that my whole life would experience such a drastic turnaround just few weeks to my final exams. I screamed, shouted and shook them one by one. Tears flowed down freely down my chubby cheeks. I smashed myself on the ground. I only see these in movies, why was i a victim? For 10mins, i was weeping, crying, shaking them all. I thought i was going to run mad. I didn't know what to do or who to call. I ran into my room and ran back to where they were lying. Went into my parents' room, ran back again. I scattered my long black hair and smashed myself on the floor again. ************************************** I opened one eye after the other. "Where am i?"  I thought. I tried to raise my left hand only to realize there was a drip attached to it. I looked beside me and saw Aunty Jemima, holding...

                CHAPTER ONE My name is Regina but most people call me Gina. I grew up in a family of 6. I am the youngest child and was usually doted upon by my parents and brothers as i happen to be the only female child. I wasn't exactly born with a silver spoon but my family was quite comfortable. My Dad worked in a bank as the manager and my Mum was a textile merchant. She was quite popular in the town where we lived because most people gets to her shop before they find their most suitable aso ebi. Most times after school, i go to my mum's shop. She usually doesn't like me coming to the busy market, even though she had quite a spacious shop all to herself but i prefer going there just to see the way my Mum relates with her customers and also to feed my eyes on the various drama that only happens at the market place. I was a very beautiful girl. Fair in complexion, chubby cheeks and moderate in height. I was just 10 but i looked 15 alre...

Looking at it from the spiritual aspect, a race is a journey every Christian starts right from the moment they profess Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior, and whether we like it or not, it's expedient that we all finish that race, that journey according to what Paul wrote in the book of 1st Corinthians 9 vs 24. One of my Mummies once said that it's not possible for a Christian to be stagnant spiritually, it's either you are progressing or regressing. You just can't be in one place. Doing what exactly?  It is only in the spiritual realm that someone will face a particular direction but instead, walk or run back in the opposite direction. This is what's happening to most Christians nowadays. We know the way and the right thing to do, in fact we are on the way but instead of going forward, we are rather going back. To some, it might be a step backwards or two. To some, it could be more than that. There is only one thing that causes a Christian to regress ...

                  Wait, Did i just sneeze? I must have been so engrossed in the report I was typing that i didn't realize when Carolina, the office cleaner started vacuuming. Well, it's Monday and the world has started rotating again. I particularly can't place a finger on how the last weekend went. All i could remember last was that John and i were supposed to go out for dinner on Friday night. I had hurried out of the office so i'd get a dress picked for the outing before the clothing outlets close for the week. Even Charles, my colleague at work, couldn't understand what the hurry was all about. His countenance said it all! He's the closest to someone i'd call a friend but i started keeping my distance the day he stole a kiss on me. "What the hell" i had retorted angrily and walked away. He stopped knowing anything going on in my life right from that moment. I didn't bother telling him when i met John, the man of my dreams, my knig...

What is your definition of a mistake? When do you realize a mistake has been done? A young school girl gets pregnant and we all say it was a 'mistake'. A lover slaps his/her spouse in anger and calls it a 'mistake'. A beautiful glassware drops and we call it a 'mistake'. We step on someone's toes and apologise immediately because it was a 'mistake'. We offend God and we apologise saying it was a 'mistake'. Judging from the above scenarios, we will discover a mistake means a lot of things and can also come in different forms. Now, what will you do if one mistake costs you everything? Ponder on this question for few seconds. What is the greatest mistake you can do that will put a stop to your life? Let's go back to the first scenario i gave, about a young school girl who got pregnant by 'mistake'. From the part of the world i come from, when an unmarried school girl gets pregnant, she becomes stigmatised automatic...

                        Years ago, my family and i lived in a flat on the 3rd floor of a 7 storey building. One fateful day, we were in the sitting room, watching TV and suddenly we heard an uproar probably coming from the 5th floor. As expected, we minded our business. Then shortly after, we heard a thud downstairs. Out of curiosity, we all rushed to the window to check what was it. We found out one of the people causing an uproar had just thrown down a 25inches TV set out of anger. Well, what other way to express your annoyance than to cause an impact as serious as that. Lol. Now, Anger........ There are a lot of things that talks about it. A lot of verses in the Bible talks about it too. There are many occasions in the Bible that tells us God was angry with his people. Even Jesus Christ too got angry at a point. All these tells us that Anger is not a respecter of person. Anybody can get angry anytime. It is a feeli...

It all started with a look. The look that said it all She never thought it would last long She thought it will fade away after a while But then it lingered on Her beauty was ravishing But not enough to keep his gaze on her for that long He moved closer and her heart leaped Could this be what she's thinking it is? He moved yet closer With his gaze still fixed on her Now, her legs are shaking She couldn't take it anymore Nobody has ever stared at her for that long At least, none that she knows She was there to pay her bills He must be there for the same reason too But now the attraction is messing with her head He's just a step away from her And he won't stop looking Then he stopped It looked like her heart stopped with him All along her eyes have been on him stylishly She forgot all what she came to do 'If only he would speak' she thought And then he spoke Her heart missed a beat He moved yet closer and whispered 'Can you pleas...

Few weeks ago, i was opportuned to take a teaching session on a Christian whatsapp group about hospitality. The topic was strictly "Hospitality is not just for homes". Sitting on the couch in the living room, i was just reminiscing on the topic and so i decided to bring it to this platform. Who knows who will derive one or two new things about it. Now let's go. *HOSPITALITY IS NOT JUST FOR HOMES* The word 'hospitality' is derived from Latin word 'Hospes' which means "host", "guest" or "stranger". Hospes is formed from hostis which means stranger or enemy. Hospes is thus the root for the English word "host" (where 'p' is dropped for convenience of pronunciation). Hospitality, Hospice, Hostel and Hotel are all terms used to describe kindness in welcoming guests or strangers.  Hospitality could also be referred to as bringing an end to Hostility. Being hospitable is not only applicable to the home but...