The long awaited Wednesday came and I headed for the church premises; it was 4.00pm. As usual my parents were not in town again, I had stopped worrying myself about them since I have found both a mother and a father in aunty Shade. Immediately after lunch, I quickly dressed up in a red flowery dress and told aunty shade I was headed for the church for rehearsals, she suspected nothing and so I ran out of the house before she would call me back. I got to church quite on time, my church boyfriend was not yet there and so I sat my church boyfriend. you think”? on the seat of the pianist and was trying my fingers on the keys. I didn’t know if I played right or wrong but after a while, I heard claps behind me I turned and it was “Never knew you could play the piano this much” “Really, I didn’t know I played right, maybe it’s a gift of the holy-spirit or what do “Hahahahahahahaha, don’t be a naughty girl, playing piano is not a gift of the holyspirit per-se but it can be a talent given to you by God for the advancement of his kingdom here on earth” Uncle Seun convinced me that I had the musical talent and he promised to help me cultivate it. By the time we had finished our discussion, a quite number of choristers were present already and so we kicked off rehearsals. A voice test was conducted for all those who were just joining the choir for the first time. Of the five of us, it was Ajoke and I that were soprano singers. Ajoke is very beautiful and she’s my mate too though she’s still in Jss1 while I was already in Jss2, and unlike other kids in church she was as fluent in English as she was in Yoruba. And this made us bond the more. Throughout the rehearsals I tried stealing glances at uncle Seun but he wouldn’t even look at me one bit. “Maybe he doesn’t want the other choristers to see us together” or so I thought. I stopped trying to get noticed and sang as my strength could carry me, in no distant time he dismissed us and we prepared for midweek service. I sat with Ajoke during the midweek service and I just observed her with utmost seriousness. Her parents are not members of our church but there was this zeal I noticed in Ajoke that I wished to possess, the way she prays and even listens to the sermon with rapt attention made me love her the more. I was lost in observing my new friend that I didn’t even know when the service came to an end, I was distracted by Casimir and Sarah who came looking for me. I bid Ajoke goodnight and took my siblings in search of aunty Shade but before we could move three steps away from our seat, I felt a hand drag Casimir behind me, I turned and it was uncle Seun. I gave him a stern look for pretending not to ever know me especially when we are in public. He carried Casimir and off we went home together with Aunty Shade. We bade him goodnight as soon as we got home and he told me to bring Casimir when next I would be coming for choir rehearsals, I agreed. Our parents didn’t return till we slept off. We continued our routines as usual with aunty Shade who has been everything beginning from a nanny, a father, a mother, a preacher and a prayer partner to us. “Aunty Shade when will you get married” “Urghmmmmmm, very soon my dear Sarah, at the lord’s appointed time” “Please don’t be like my mum and dad who never stays at home, I would like to be spending my holidays in your home” “Don’t worry Sarah, you will be fine. I will be here for you always” I looked at aunty shade and she noticed I was crying, she drew me close and asked what the problem was, I told her my parents are SILENT, ABSENT and MISSING in our lives and its really telling on us……… “Aunty Shade isn’t it better that we are orphans other than having parents and not getting to see them at all? I don’t know when last I had a heart-to-heart discussion with my father then not to talk of my mother. I don’t even know the last time we got to eat on the dining table together as one blessed family. Throughout my Jss1, they never visited me for once, neither do they know the name of my form teacher. Since I came back home, I’ve only seen them for 5 minutes. My mum do not even know that I’ve started menstruating. Aunty shade I will never get married. I will live my life as a single lady and serve the lord with my strength instead of getting married and becoming an absentee mother. I am a victim of neglect, I can’t afford to raise other victims of neglect….
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