FATHER 🌹

PART 3 :BURIAL

TYGA LIAM SHAKI
Grandpa had been on phone almost like every time since we had arrived home from the hospital. Today, is the third day ever since and he wakes up as early as normal at around 5:30am for his personal prayers.
With him around, I got used with the habit and I also found myself next to him in prayer for the morning and day's grace. "Ameen." He whispers and I respond, "Ameen grandpa," and before I can let him stand I quickly asked, "Are we going to 'tshee' (see) mama 'thoday '(today) ?" He holds my chin with his large palms almost covering half of my face and says, "Tyga let's pray for your mom to get better my son. Mama ain't feeling good for now but I promise when things get better I'll take you to mama. Okay?"
"Okay grandpa," I smile at him and he gives me one too and I add, "Maa will geth betha...God loveths mama, isn't it?" He nods weakly.
"Okay son, now help grandpa Miles to get up by giving him his walking stick." Within a moment I rushed behind his dressing that was almost next to his bed and grabbed the stick to give him.
"Here grandpa." I say.
"Thank you my Tyga, that's my boy!" These words usually makes me feel like a peacock and so loved that I smile widely when he tells me that.
As usual, after prayers grandpa would go to his balcony with either a magazine or the novel, "Life gets better" for which I've seen him read in ages and never has he finished reading or perhaps he has but he loves it. Anyway, it never bothers me because he never concentrates when I'm there because all he does is to tell me fairy tales.
I could always insist for him to tell me my favorite fairytale for which he has been telling me since I was so little but I have never gotten tired of listening because it always ended when my favorite character got married and lived happily ever after and it never makes me cry unlike other stories that he would tell and I would end up in tears the whole day. In additional, I would refuse to eat or even go to school because my mood was all changed to a sad one.
It is about 7:15am when my grandpa's phone vibrates on the glass table that is next to him. He nearly poured the hot cup of tea on my head but fortunately he attempts to push it to the other side and it falls down on the tiled floor breaking into small pieces and the tea splitters all over the floor. I sigh and quickly get up to get a rug from the kitchen to come and clean up the mess. When I come back, I find grandpa still on the phone but looks disappointed and confused at the same time, "What time did it happen?" He manages to speak.
"OK." He responds after a while.
"I'll be there by 9am."He ends the call and forgets that I even existed and he rushes to the bathroom for a shower and leaves me on the floor with my small hands wiping the floor.

2 hours later....

" Aunt Minnie!! "I run to her as she walks in our sitting room. You see, aunt Minnie is my mom's best friend, as I was told. All my life I've been raised with my grandpa and aunt Minnie who would usually come to babysit me when things got tougher for grandpa and so that's why I found her to be a close person for me and also because she also loves mama and more importantly she would tell me mama's stories ." Ooooow babyyyy Tygaaa!!!!" she looks happy to see me but also looks like she is from crying. "How are you my sweetheart?" She asked as she tickled me. I almost died of laughter before she lets me go when she noticed my grandpa who by then dressed to leave the house. "Good morning paa," she greeted him and he nods as a response.
"I'm leaving now. Please take care of Tyga and Tyga please be a good boy for grandpa Miles." He slams the door letting out a loud thud before he could hear my reply, "Okay, lov...." He forgot to say he loves me. I hang my head and Aunt Minnie notices, "Pancake?" I nod several times.
Oh my!!! Who wouldn't love Aunt Minnie's pancakes? She is a perfectionist on this. Trust me!
She carries me in her arms to head to the kitchen and drops me off when we got there then she starts storytelling about her childhood memories with mama.
"There was a time your Maa was warned by paa Miles not to go near the dog's place because they were harsh but she pretended to be a super girl." She pauses to take a sip of water and tries not to face me but I notice her watery eyes. "So, she calls me for a plan," she continues as she takes out a pancake from heat, "Well you see, Limah has always been as curious as a cat, so, she decided to force me to hold a plate of bones for which we had collected earlier from the bins. Well, you know I had not known about the plan so I supported her because we had been doing all things together. "Before she could on, a tear drops and she fakes a laugh to pretend fine." You fine, aunt Minnie? "
She looks at me and with that she couldn't hold it anymore so let's a river flow her cheeks and couldn't go on with the story. I look at her confused but let my tiny hands rub off the tears. "Don't cry Aunt Minnie."