The rain washed all over the settlement. It started with a dark sky, but the rain only drizzled. Who knew that something as light as rain would be so heavy?
"Who is that?" I asked.
"Would you wipe that sleep off your face and get ready for school?" My mother commanded in her usual strict tone. "You read so much and retired to bed, late last night as if you forgot that you'll go to school." She reminded me.
"Sorry, mum." My hands rubbed my dizzy eyes as I apologized. "Each page was just worth it."
Waking out of the heap of novels reminded me about how much pleasure, reading gave me. My dried lips cracked a smiled as I strected out of my bamboo sleeping mat and rolled it to a corner of the room. I took out a broom and swept. A little oil lamp standing brightened the room.
"Adaku!' My mother called again. "Your bathing water has boiled! So it don't burn away, wet the firewood and place them in the corridor to dry." Her voice came from the backyard this time. The back door creaked as she locked it.
The cock's crow under the drizzle made me realize that it day was already ripe. Mother had fed the animals and completed her morning duties. I hurriedly poured my boiled water and arranged the firewood into a dry corner as she asked.
"I am prepared to leave. I should have left earlier than now for the Farmer's meeting at Kedu. They will be waiting for me now. Fetch your breakfast and place the pot inside the cupboard. Don't forget to lock the house before leaving!" She warned.
"Okay, mummy!" I replied. Next, I stepped into the bathroom. "See you later, bye!" My girlish voice echoed as I bade my mother farewell.
The old wooden door cried as she left. Her footsteps faded before I took my bath. My mother, Ndidiamaka, was a farmer. She is the only female farmer in Evuma. That was why they crowned her the president of Evuma Farmer's Society. She wasn't as wealthy, but she was a woman stronger than ten men.
My father passed away right before I was born, due to a prolonged illness called lung cancer. My mum hardly had a picture or any form of memory left of him. Although I never knew or met him, I knew he might be a man with a heart of gold. Growing up with my mum had been an experience. Although many men in Evuma had wooed my mother over the years, she turned them deaf ears and we were used to living with no man figure in our lives.
After having my bath, I put on my new school uniform. It was a white and green check material sewn in a simple, knee-length gown with a pleated waist. I applied an amount of shea butter all over my body from my head to my feet. My hair was a skinned cut and my skin was cocoa beans. I rushed to have Akpu and Ofe ede for breakfast before fixing my white socks and brown sandals to leave. The pair fit me well, and I loved it. It was my first day at Afikpo Community High School. Then, I tidied the rooms before locking the door. Opening the door to go out, the cool weather sent me chills. A grin of joy spread through my lips as I walked to school. It's been my desire to attend Afikpo Community High School for ages! Though, it took an hour before I reached the school gates.
Reaching the school gates, I realized that some students with guilty faces knelt on the wet floor. Gazing forward, my eyes met the line of students in the assembly rows, dressed in green and white uniforms similar to mine, already matching.
'If you do good, kingdom!
Oh oh oh oh, kingdom,
Oh oh oh oh, kingdom waiting for you.' They sang on.
"Join the latecomers!" A very slim man directed, and I did as I was told.
He had thick round glasses, and his black leathered belt held him tight at his waist.
"The female latecomers would wash the toilets while the male would clear the grasses. After which you take ten strokes of cane before going to your various classes." He added. The frown on his face could simply scare a child.
