Goody’s Wholesome Crib

Title: The Bride

It was a beautiful afternoon, I strolled down the street happily heading home after work.

Just a few minutes ago I got off the phone with my boyfriend, and we had a good talk with him making me laugh as always 😄

As I got closer to my compound I could hear the voice of my mother and father. They sounded like they were In a celebratory mood

I hastened my steps into the compound and finally got a clear view of what was happening in the compound

“Heii the Lord don bless our family… the Lord is good indeed, my enemies will surely be put to shame” my mom was praising the lord with a wide smile on her face

“Indeed my wife” my father embraced my mother which was surprising, I have never seen him embrace like he did just now

What could be so good to make them this happy, I was being eaten up by curiosity

“Good afternoon mama papa” I greeted when I got to them

“Ahh there she is, my queen, her father’s daughter nne how are you?” My father was the first to respond

“I’m fine, what happened why do you look so happy?” I couldn’t help but ask

“My daughter welcome, come inside first come and rest we’ll tell you the good news after you eat” my mother grabbed my hands and began pulling me into the house

“Be careful with her oo, don’t let anything happen to her… I’m going to see my kinsmen” my father said as he turned to leave the compound

“Okay” my mom responded

“Mama what’s really happening, what made you guys so happy?” I asked again

“My daughter the lord has blessed our family through you” my mother said

“Me? What did I do?” I was confused, how did I make the Lord bless our family

“Don’t worry I’ll tell you everything, come inside”

The moment we stepped into the house I could help but notice the crates of drinks, provisions and brand new electronics on the floor

“Mama what is all this things, when did you and papa buy these things?”

“Freshen up and eat before I’ll tell you the good news” my mothers face was filled with excitement

I finally did as she wanted, i showered afterwards my mother served me my food

Even more strange there was more than one piece of meat in the plate of soup

I beginning to grow suspicious about all this strange actions. Papa came back before I was done with the food

When I was done they sat me down and began explaining

“My daughter i am glad God chose me to be your father” my father began

”my daughter just this morning after you left for work, some car drove into our compound….

Exotic cars oo, cars that I have not seen before, then some men came down and introduced themselves……

The leader said they came in peace and they wanted to talk with me, I was shocked how did this big big men know me…

Anyway we invited them into this our house and then they told us their reason for visiting… one of the men introduced himself as Mr Emmanuel….

He said you my daughter have caught his eyes and have been giving him sleepless nights, he said he fell in love with your beauty and wants to take you home with him as his wife….

He brought this gifts for you and us to show his sincerity… he is really nice oo and he loves you.. if you see him he is very good looking and he is rich too….

You will like him.. so after considering him and questioning him to find out how sincere he was I accepted his request.. he will come tomorrow to collect the list for your bride price” My father finished

“Wait papa what are you saying?” I inquired not fully understanding

“We have accepted a suitor for you, you’ll be getting married soon” my mother dropped the bomb shell

“What suitor, papa I already have a boyfriend why will you make such a big decision about my life without me consent… are you pulling my legs or what?”

To say I was shocked was an understatement

“My daughter forget that poor boyfriend of yours, Mr Emmanuel is rich and he will take care of you well” my father said

“Papa no oo, don’t insult my boyfriend, I don’t even know the Mr Emmanuel and you accepted marriage proposal “ I yelled

“Hey it doesn’t matter whether or not you know him, we are your parents and we know what is best for you, you will marry Mr Emmanuel…. Woman talk to your daughter put some sense into her head” papa said before storming out of the room

“Mama are you seriously supporting this, how could you do this me?”

“Janet this is for your own good, we want the best for you.. Mr Emmanuel is a good man…”

I cut her off “and so what, I don’t know him neither do I love him.. it’s Richie my boyfriend I know and love”

“Janet has that your boyfriend ever bought you or me any gift ever since you started dating him eh?…No he’s too poor.. but look at Mr Emmanuel he’s rich and look at the beautiful materials he bought for you….

See all this fine fine things he bought for you, see he even bought lace for me, expensive lace I’ve show mama Ebuka you for see how jealousy full her eyes…

My daughter, when you marry Mr Emmanuel your life will improve..you will live in big house, eat good food, wear nice clothes and people will respect you…

What can that Richie do for you, you will only suffer, he won’t be able to take care of this your beauty “ my mother ranted on

“Mama I don’t care about riches or wealth, if I want to get married then it is for love… marriage is for better for worse… I love Richie and he love me too”

“When you get to know Mr Emmanuel you will love him too as a husband, forget that Richie”

“Mama you better return all these gift because at not marrying anyone other than Richie” I said then left for my room

This is ridiculous..

How could they do this?

This wasn’t the olden days where parents made the choice of who their children will marry

There’s no way I’ll leave my Richie

Despite my refusal papa still gave the list to Mr Emmanuel the next day he came, I met up with Mr Emmanuel and told him I already had a boyfriend and wasn’t interested in anyone else

In reply he said that papa should return all the gifts and money he had given him the previous day but papa refused and instead slapped me in front of everyone for trying to ruin the marriage

Papa locked me in my room afterwards while he and his kinsmen continued marriage process

I cried to be let out, I cried to be freed, I cried to have the right to make my own life decisions but wasn’t allowed

Mr Emmanuel bought everything on the list and payed my bride price, traditionally I became his wife

All the wedding preparations was made while I was locked behind doors, the attires, food, venue, guests was made without my consent

I didn’t agree to anything, the choice was all made my mother and father

Few days before the traditional wedding was ti be held, I found an opportunity to escape.

I escaped from the house and ran to Richie house

The moment I saw him i pounced into his arms and burst into tears

“Janet what are you doing here.. aren’t you supposed to be getting married?” Richie pushed me away

“Richie how did you know that?” I asked

“Your father came here and told me you were getting married to a rich man and I shouldn’t step anywhere near his compound … “ Richie said

“That’s not true, my father is trying to marry me off to a rich man..I don’t want to get married to the man… I love you .. only you….

My father locked me up that’s why I haven’t been able to come see you.. I just escaped now.. believe me I’m being forced into this” I explained tearfully

“Is what you’re saying true “

“Yes yes it’s true believe me”

“But the man is rich I’m not.. are you sure you want to be with me” Richie asked

“Richie you’re the only one I love I don’t care about riches I want to be with you”

“I love you too.. the gods know how tortuous this days have been without you…

Let’s elope, let’s escape from your father.. we can be together in a far away place what do you say?” Richie held my hands as he asked me that

I could see the love and anticipation in his eyes

“Yes Richie let’s elope” I said between tears

“Thank you, thank you for choosing me I won’t let you regret it… we’ll leave the village at midnight.. let me go pack up a few things “

That day Richie packed up as little as possible, grabbed some money and at midnight we began making our out of the village

Oh, how I wish we got out of the village faster, then maybe my father wouldn’t have caught up with us

How I wish things turned out different, how I wish we both escaped successfully without getting caught

Then maybe Richie would have been framed for kidnapping and robbery by my father, maybe Richie my love wouldn’t have been unjustly hung to death by the village council

Maybe Richie and I could have been able to live and love each other, maybe if we had successfully escaped then I wouldn’t be about to jump off this bridge

Maybe I wouldn’t have drank rat poison and jump off this bridge

Just maybe if I had gotten my way, Richie will be alive and so would I

But things ended differently, now as the water carried me away, I pray it takes away my sorrows and pain

And if people ask why I committed sucide , tell them my parents made me do it, tell them my parents killed me the day they killed my love

Tell them my parents made me do it

#
✍🏾Goody✍🏾

Title: Pr******te
“Hey pretty lady what are you doing under this hot sun .. come on hop into my ride” he called to me
I refused making eye contact with him and just kept walking but he soon blocked my path with his car
He then came down and began walking towards me, seeing this I made to take a different turn but he still chased after me
“Hey hey I won’t bite, maybe you’re not ready to talk here’s my number call me later so we can hang out” he quickly shoved a card into my hand on seeing I didn’t want to talk to him
I left there without uttering a word the card still in hand, though I knew that hang out wasn’t going to be just a simple hangout, I never planned to call him
But when I got back home my mother began raining curses on me because I had accidentally broken a ceramic plate when I was doing the dishes earlier in the morning
“Useless thing only to Dey waste my money na you know idiot “ she shouted
I tried apologizing but I only earned more insults, it was just a mistake I made but she made it seem like I had done a horrendous thing
I turned to my father for him to defend me, but he only looked away not caring
To punish me my mother locked the food she cooked away in a cupboard to prevent me from eating that night
I slept on an empty stomach that night even though there was food in the house, the punishment continued to the next day
I wasn’t surprise, this wasn’t the first time I had been punished this way by my mother for little offenses
One day she had used a hot electric iron on my back to discipline me, sometimes I wonder if I am really her biological daughter or if she truly loved me
After a night without food my stomach was growling, I left home early thinking of a way to get money to feed myself
I slipped my hands into the pockets of my torn trousers which I had worn the previous day as I looked left and right to cross the road
I felt the card that the dude from yesterday had slipped into my hand, I brought it out and glanced over the number
‘Hang out’ I remembered his words, I could get money from him but at what cost. I weighed my options
I could keep going hungry and maybe develop stomach ulcer or I could meet up with that guy.
I shook those thoughts out of my head, I’m not going to sell my body, I’ll go back home maybe my mom would be calm by now
With this resolve I headed back home, I saw my mom talking with her friend the moment I stepped into the compound
I walked over to where they were and greeted them
“Ehn so you have come back after going out to sell your body.. so this is what you now do… you are now a pr******te abi… ehh is it not “ my mom yelled harshly without responding to my greetings
I was perplexed by her sudden accusation
Pr******te?
“Mommy I don’t understand what you’re saying…”
“Oh now you don’t understand ehh.. mama chika said she saw you yesterday in a man’s car, you were talking with a man in his car … so you now follow men around hmm….” She asked
I finally realised what mom meant, Mama Chika might have saw when that dude from yesterday stopped me with his car
“But mommy I wasn’t in the man’s car.. he was calling me but I didn’t answer…” my mom cut me off
“Ahh so you’re saying mama Chika is lying on you, for what reason does she have to lie on you… so not only are you sleeping with men you’re beginning to lie now abi
… this what you have decided to do with your useless life abi…to be a cheap local pr******te, so you want to bring shame to this family, satan will not let you…..” Mom loud voice was beginning to attract our nosy neighbours attention
“Mommy no she is not lying…” I tried to explain but she cut me off again
“Ahhh so it’s true.. ah since you want to be an ashawo I’ll help you” before i knew it, my mom pounced on me and began tearing my clothes whilst hitting me
“Mommy please stop let me explain” I pleaded
It didn’t take too long before my shirt was ripped revealing my breasts but my mom didn’t stop there she kept on tugging and pulling my clothes
I was ashamed , people had gathered and were watching the scene play out , they watched how my mom stripped me naked
Despite my pleas for her to listen to me, she didn’t listen , she didn’t stop, she stripped me off my dignity, my self respect, my pride all because of hear say
“Oya go on you can be a pr******te now.. no need to be ashamed…is this not what you want?” Those were the last words I heard from my mom before I ran away
It’s been 3years now since i left home after that incident, 3 years since my mom made me go naked in front of the community
3 years since I’ve been a pr******te. My mom called me a pr******te so I became one
3 years since I left home, 3 years since I made that call to him, 3 years since the night he took my innocence and then paid me for it
3 years of meeting with clients during the weekend, 3 years since my life was ruined at 17 years
We’ll I’m twenty now and studying in a university , with the money I make from selling my body I pay my tuition fees and other bills
On weekends i’m an expensive pr******te and on weekdays, an innocent university student
I tried to hide my dirty secret while in campus but it still got out. Ada the innocent nerd girl was a pr******te
My peers mock me, they make fun of my hustle, my fellow girls call me a public toilet, a walking disease 🦠, a shame to womanhood, innocent ashawo and other nasty names
But I look at them and laugh.. they have parents who love and care for them, they have uncles, aunts, brothers, sisters who pay their bills for them
They have people who support them, but what about me?
I have no one , I’m alone in this cruel world
They haven’t gone through what I went through, they are unaware of my struggles, my pain😫. They only see what’s on the surface
They only see Ada the shameless pr******te who wears skimpy dresses and goes out to sleep with men. They don’t see the broken 💔 Ada , they don’t see broken person on the inside, they don’t see the innocent girl that has been shattered
They don’t know the circumstances I faced to make me the way I am now, they don’t know why I chose this dirty path
They don’t see, they don’t know, they don’t understand and I doubt they ever will
✍🏾Goody✍🏾

😶‍🌫️

Title: Love Rivalry

I strolled down the street flaying my arms as I walked. I knew i was looking extra handsome today in white

I winked and whistled at the ladies as I walked pass the making them giggle 🤭 even a lady with her children winked back at me

Ah! the work of a fine bobo

I remembered the girl I was with yesterday, I had to chase her tirelessly, she was acting as if she didn’t like me but I still got her

No woman can resist me in this area, if them no gree for me then I take them the hard way

I was going home and soon had to take a bend to get to my house when Charles suddenly jumped out of nowhere stopping me from taking any step forward

“Ah ah Charles what’s wrong with you, why will you startle me like that?” I yelled at him

“Your papa there, wetin I see you dey do with my babe “ he interrogated loudly

“Which babe? I no know your babe I” I quickly replied

“Who you dey lie for, you think say I no see you when you dey pursue my babe abi, how many times I don warn you say make you no touch any woman for this area… all of them na for me “ he yelled crazily

“Hey oga calm down, how can all the women in this area be for you.. I am handsome too and I’ll take any woman I want don’t be so greedy “ I said

“Ogbeni you wan die .. I go kill you oh” he threatened

“Tah!! come on get out who you be, you no fit do anything “ I challenged

“Ehh if I no kill you today my name no be Charles “ with those words he rushed at me

This wasn’t the first time we had this sort of confrontation and it definitely won’t be the last, we were love rivals

I readied myself to counter his attack, he jumped up and landed on me punching me, I retaliated by kicking him

We rolled around on the dusty ground hitting ourselves, if I kicked he punched, I punched he kicked

I increased the force of every hit, I wasn’t about to let him win. We were fighting in the middle of the street and people watched us unable to separate us from each other

I vowed to teach Charles a lesson today, he had to learn that the women must be shared in this community, we take whoever we fancy

If he can’t accept that, then one of us has to die. Yes that’s how serious this rivalry was

The women were shouting at us to stop fighting but we didn’t listen, their children also screamed at us

The fight was getting really violent and something white was falling off our body

Oh right I forgot we were roosters 🐓 , white broilers to be precise

Our white feathers were falling off our body

I was just about to win the fight when Charles owner came out from their compound with a cane and began chasing us

We immediately separated and ran for our lives but Charles owner kept chasing me

“Every-time you will come here and be fighting my fowl come on go to your compound ”

“Charles this is not over I’ll deal with you another day “ I yelled running back home

✍🏾Goody✍🏾

🤐

“Please uncle I’m begging you please help me I’m in dire in need of money I promise to pay you back”

I remembered how I begged on my knees with tears streaming down my face.

On that particular day I hadn’t eaten a single ounce of food not even garri

I was dead broke then, things were so bad, I couldn’t eat, afford transport and was on the verge of being thrown out of where I lived

I had trekked to the house of my uncle, asking him to lend me some money promising to pay back

His words in reply was “You jobless thing••how do you plan to pay back come get out of this place” his voice was laced with mockery

“Uncle remember we are family please help me” I remember pleading 🥺 but all my pleas fell on deaf ears

My so called uncle pushed me out and had his dogs chase me out of his compound

Looking back I shook my head with pity for myself, after getting chased out of his compound I remember going to different people asking for help

They all told me they couldn’t give out money to a jobless person so that their money won’t enter ‘voicemail’ , as a graduate I tried applying for jobs at different organisations and companies but was never chosen

I was a jobless graduate, the degree I had couldn’t feed me

I had no one to help or support me, people I called my family didn’t help me, friends abandoned me

I dejectedly walked back to my house and fell onto my worn out bed falling asleep

Five days later my neighbours reported about a bad smell coming from the direction of my room

My room door was broken down and there on my bed was my decaying body, the cause of the smell

I had died in my sleep

The cause of my death? Starvation and Stress

I died alone and hungry

The people shook their heads with pity murmuring

‘Chai small boy just die like that’

‘Eehya i hear say him be graduate’

A week later I was buried and people ate at my funeral

How? The people in my area, friends and even my uncle who refused to help me when I was alive contributed money for my funeral to be held

Canopies were set up, a casket was bought and food was cooked and shared among the attendants

I watched as people ate to their fills licking their fingers at my funeral, food I didn’t see to eat when I was alive

Money that wasn’t contributed to help me when I was alive was given to give me a grand funeral

I smiled, a ridiculing smile, a sad smile

So the saying is true, ‘People only love you when you’re dead’

✍🏾Goody✍🏾

📌

💯