In the Loving Arms of Servitude

15. Miss Poppins

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"Uju!... I can't find my shirt!!!" yells Tobi from his room door, afterwhich Uju echoes back at him from the kitchen while she pours some oil into the frying pan, "Check the box properly! I folded the shirt into it after ironing!"

It is about five-fifteen in the morning. After doing the dishes and taking her bath, Uju quickly starts preparing breakfast.
Uncle Femi usually drops them off at school every morning on his way to work. And because of the terrible Lagos traffic, he always insists on them leaving home at exactly 6:00am, in order to reach their schools before eight o'clock. Uncle Femi works as a manager in one of the biggest cinema houses in Lekki. Everyday, he has to drive all the way from Ikorodu to the island and then back again in the evenings.
'It must be quite hectic.' Uju thinks. Although, she believes that working at such a fun place should also be very exciting. She really hopes that he takes them there one of these days. She has never been to a cinema before.
Aunty Amara on the other hand, is a lecturer at Lagos State University. She leaves home much later than they do. And right now, she is saying her morning prayers and daily devotions, afterwhich she will read today's Gospel and some Psalms from the Bible.

"I have already checked!!!" Tobi screams again, interrupting both Uju's cooking and her thoughts.

"Check again!!!", she rebuffs, while fervently whisking the eggs. Then after first dropping an ounce of it into the oil to test its heat, she raises the bowl properly and slowly pours the entire beat into the frying pan. Almost immediately, she stretches to remove the steaming pot of rice from the other burner and replaces it with a pot of tomato stew. Thereafter, she drains the water from Tobi's food flask and starts to put some rice into it. But then in shock, she remembers that the eggs are still on the burner. So she quickly drops the flask on the sink and scurries toward the frying pan. Thank goodness, the eggs are not charred yet! In utter relief, Uju carefully flips the omelet piece over and lowers the intensity of the flame, before heading to the fridge to get some water and a juice box for Tobi. On her way back, she grabs Tobi's lunch box and then hurries into the kitchen.

The eggs are ready.

Hence, Uju quickly puts off the cooker and brings out some plates to dish the egg into. She places her palm over the rice in the flask, to check if it is still steaming, and it is. So she picks it up, puts some meat and stew into it, drops it back on the sink and then leaves it open, so that enough steam can evaporate.
Thank the heavens uncle Femi had the generator repaired yesterday! How on earth would Uju have been able to do all this in the dark; with maybe just a lamp or flashlight at her disposal? It would have been terrible. They've been depending mostly on the generator all week, because the power supply keeps getting worse by the day.

'Naija sef!... When will this country change?' Uju wonders, as she opens two cans of sardines into a bowl, puts some butter on them and starts mixing them thoroughly with a spoon. Then she squashes everything into a paste and serves it in a small dish. Picking up two of the plates, she takes them to the dinning room and places them on the table. Afterwards, she takes the sardine dish to the table as well, and then rushes back to the kitchen to make some hot cocoa for herself, Tobi and uncle Femi. Aunty Amara won't be eating breakfast until later. Leaving hers in the kitchen, Uju takes both mugs to the dinning table. Then she rushes to the master's bedroom and knocks gently, so as not to disturb aunty Amara's prayers.
Uncle Femi answers the door, almost fully dressed, "Yes?"

"Good morning, sir... Breakfast is ready." Uju says in a humble tone.

"Alright... Good morning. I will be right down." he replies, before closing the door.
Afterwards, Uju walks to Tobi's bedroom. "I found it!" Tobi affirms while smiling coyly as she enters.

Uju sighs playfully, "See?... I told you it was there."

Tobi has already put on his school uniform; a cream short-sleeved shirt and a pair of striped green shorts. The shirt is a bit baggy, compared to the shorts. And it has an odd-looking pigeon-shaped green tie attached to its neck. The tailoring is so poor that Uju nearly bursts into laughter at the sight of him. He looks like a village headmaster with tiny hands and legs. But Tobi takes his stance with so much confidence, that Uju has no choice but to nod her head in approval. His shirt is properly tucked in and his hair neatly combed. Good boy!
However, she becomes unimpressed after gazing at his shoes, "Toobi... I thought I taught you how to polish your shoes yesterday. Look at them now... The work you did is so rough."

"The shoe polish was too dry." he says, in his defence.

"No it wasn't, Tobi. You just did not use it properly... Anyway, breakfast is ready. Come quickly! There is no time." Uju replies, afterwhich they both rush out of the bedroom and head towards the dinning room. But while Tobi sits at the table, Uju quickly scurries to her room to put on her school uniform, before heading back to the dinning room.
Upon arriving, she sees that uncle Femi and Tobi are already seated. Then she remembers that she has not even brought her own food from the kitchen. So sighing again, she heads to the kitchen to get it.

As Uju walks back into the dinning room; a hot mug and plate in hand, the flared bottom of her navy-blue pinafore gracefully glides from side to side. And while she takes her seat, the fluorescent rays of the lightbulb kiss the surface of her pristine white undershirt. It is long-sleeved, with tiny pleats around the collar and wrists, and a flattened bow-tie on the neck, giving her a near Mary Poppins appearance. And her shoes; goodness! They are almost sparkling. The thick folded fringes of her socks form a cushion-like roof above them that is white and simply spotless.

While they all eat their bread with eggs and buttered sardines, aunty Amara walks into the living room. Hence, Uju and Tobi echoe almost simultaneously,
"Good morning, ma!" "Good morning, mummy!"

"Good morning, how are you?" she asks.

"Fine, ma!", they both reply.

And then walking slowly toward the dinning table, she says while yawning slightly, "You guys should try to hurry up oo... It is almost six-ten."
Afterwards, she bends to take a little bite out of Tobi's bread. Then she walks to the refrigerator behind uncle Femi's seat and takes out a bottle of cold water from it. After taking the first sip, she asks him,
"What time will you be back today?"

But he blatantly ignores her, not even uttering a word.

Then Uju and Tobi immediately look at each other, as though they know something is not right. Nevertheless, they keep their thoughts to themselves and stuff even more food into their mouths, as though hoping that by chewing the bread with more verve, time would somehow move faster or at least, skip a few beats, for everyone's sake.

Uju does not like this kind of tension. She enthusiastically squints her eyes as she chews, in the hopes that it would all end here.
Uncle Femi drew first blood, or so it seems. And Uju knows aunty Amara all too well. She is not one to go down without a fight, or at least, some form of epic clapback. But to her greatest surprise, aunty Amara simply sighs as she takes yet another sip, saying,
"Uju.... is there still any rice in the pot?"

"Yes, there is. Although not a lot." Uju replies. Phew! That was close.
Afterwards, Amara takes a final sip before putting the bottle back into the fridge and responds, "Okay."
But then before leaving the dinning room, she gives Femi a distasteful stare. And just as Uju had feared, she lets out a very loud hiss, "Mtchewww!!!!! "

The glass of silence shatters. Then Uju and Tobi's eyes meet again. But neither of them dares utter a word.

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GLOSSARY
Naija - A shorter form of the name, Nigeria.
"Mtchewwwww!!!!!" - A sneering (or hissing) sound, used to express disgust, annoyance, frustration etc.