The Storytela

Jul 1, 2016Jul 1, 2016

Take A Trip To NCF Lagos

The weekend is here once again but most interestingly, the holidays are very much around the corner. Thinking of where to go with your friends, spouse or the kids? Well, if you would be in Lagos this period, the National Conservation Foundation should be on your list of places to go. It is located just after Chevron roundabout on Lekki-Epe Expressway.

For ten years, I wished to go to this place, yeah right, 10 solid years! I heard about NCF Lekki in 2005 from my sister and I kept saying I would go, I would go and before I finally got around to going, 10 years had passed and by this time, I had a small son tagging along with me.

The NCF is a fun place to be, I particularly loved the Forest Reserve (or Jungle according to my son) with the many many Monkeys swinging from tree to tree and even crossing the walkways.

The new Canopy Walkway was a big hit too. It’s the longest in Africa at about 22.5 metres at the highest point above the ground and 401 metres long. Only ages 14 upwards are allowed on it so my son couldn’t go but since we had other people with us, he stayed with his aunt while I enjoyed the climb with a friend.

After the Canopy Walkway, we got to a place that looked like a park and games arena but apparently it hasn’t been so well maintained so we really couldn’t play much apart from lounging on wooden chairs and my son did try to do some climbing.

Happens to be that refreshments weren’t sold there, oh yeah! We were quite thirsty and a bit hungry but praise be to God, a good Samaritan who had more than enough to drink with his family gave us two cans of Ginger Beer which we shared. LOL.

We watched a few fishes swimming in a pond, then traced our way back and took some pictures of the giant tortoise of over 100 years old, Then the Peacocks that refused to spread their lovely tails for us.

All in all, it was a great outing which cost just 200 naira per head and an extra 1000 naira per head for the Canopy Walk-Way Climb. I had looked forward to climbing the Tree House but it was boarded up at this time, I do hope it’s fixed and re-opened soon or another one built.

So have you been to NCF? What was your experience like? Planning to go there soon? You may visit http://www.ncfnigeria.org/ for more information.

Cheers

Apr 24, 2016

Life With My Boy: When Your Baby is A Daddy..

So we were dressed up in our Sunday clothes, heading down the staircase for the morning drive to Church. My husband travelled at this time so I held Ikem’s hand as we walked. A few steps later, the following conversation started between us;

Ikem: You are a Mummy and I’m a Daddy

Me: No, you are not yet a Daddy, a Daddy is someone that has a child.

Ikem: I’m a Daddy

Me: Do you have a child?

Ikem: Yes I have a child.

“Who is your child?” I asked, feeling cool with myself as I was very sure he would not have an answer.

“Muna!” He responded mentioning his cousin’s name.

“No, Muna is your cousin.” I corrected him

“No Mummy, Muna is my child, he is my child of God”. He responded coolly and calmly as he pulled open the Car door.

Ye! I really underestimated this boy…

The End.

Mar 10, 2016Jun 13, 2020

There Are 7 Rivers in Africa???

As a child, I remember very well singing that song while clasping my hands rhythmically with that of a playmate. Up, down, Up down…

“There are seven Rivers in Africa,

Seven Rivers in Africa

Nile, Niger, Senegal, Congo, Orange, Limpopo, Zambezi…

Then we also added and I don’t know why

Azikiwe, Wolowo, Tafawa Balewa,

Onye ocha wepu aka n’okpu eze (white man remove your hand from the King’s crown)

I was humming this song recently when it hit me; Seven rivers in Africa? How? Only 7 in the entire continent?

I mean even in the akuko ifo that we were told growing up, the hero usually crossed 7 rivers and 7 forests to kill the villain and rescue the captives. Do you mean, he had to go round the whole of Africa just to cross seven rivers? I think not.

It’s either the author of this song was a school teacher back in the days who was trying to help his students memorize the names of the largest rivers in the entire African continent or the beginning of this song was written by an Oyibo man who just ‘dashed‘ Africa seven rivers.

It really does seem like we’ve been innately programmed through this song to believe that Africa has only 7 rivers, because if you ask around, the default response to how many rivers do you have in Africa might just be ‘7’! At least I know about River Benue, Aba River, Anambra River and several other rivers in Naija.

Having looked up the definition of rivers, it refers to a large body of water flowing into another body of water. And the difference between a River and a Stream is that a River is wider, deeper and longer. So it’s a thing of size.

Talking about body of water, there’s this particular one in my village known as Mmili Obiaja. I’ve never been to Mmili Obiaja before but there are some very interesting stories surrounding that body of water. Like the one about a tree falling and blocking the road to the river when a deity is passing. The stories are so plenty shaa, I wish I can remember more but let me consult with my elders first and I’ll come back with authentic gist. I might even visit and take a few pictures myself.

I hope you get the gist though, there are MORE than 7 rivers in Africa, actually there are over 67 major rivers in the African continent…

So do we re-write the song? Or allow it fade it into oblivion???

Feb 15, 2016Feb 16, 2016

Life With My Boy: The Voice Of God

My son dreads cutting his nails, he calls the nail cutter ‘Cutting Wound’ and declares that it’s a dangerous object.

Or maybe I should say that he acts like he dreads cutting his nails when he is at home. This is because when I have to get an Assistant teacher in his school to help (after loosing several fights at home) he would sit properly, stretch out his hands without any tantrums, allow the teacher cut his nails and then say ‘Thank you Miss Alice‘ or ‘Thank you Miss Taiwo‘ depending on who is helping out.

One day, I insisted that he would cut his nails at home while he was awake and we struggled to no avail, so I decided to turn to the jungle for help one last time.

I told him he would go to the Jungle and live with animals, since he wants to grow claws in the place of nails. He kept laughing and didn’t budge. I took him out of the house to the staircase and locked the connecting gate. He kept laughing thinking it was a game. I then told him to walk down the staircase and out into the compound/jungle. As he began his descent, I made everyone go inside and then I made a very loud noise ‘moooooooooo’ (I sincerely didn’t expect this to work).

Next thing I heard was Ikem screaming and running up the staircase, ‘Mummy open the door, the Gorrilla is coming’, please open the door’.

I tried so hard to stifle the laughter, the gate had openings so we could see ourselves. I said I would let him in if he was ready to cut his nails. Anyways, it worked and we had a peaceful nail cutting session. Afterwards, I stuck to cutting his nails when he was asleep.

Fast forward to this weekend, we are his room working on his school project, and I noticed his nails were due for a cut.

‘Ikem, you need to cut your nails.’ I said

‘No Mummy, God said I should not cut my nails’. He replied.

‘Eh’?! I wasn’t sure I heard him well. ‘God cannot tell you not to cut your nails’. I replied.

‘I heard the voice of God, he told me not to cut my nails. Jesus said I should not cut my nails’. He replied smiling back at me.

‘Heyyyyy!’ I was short of words. ‘God can’t say that, it’s not in the Bible.’ I insisted.

‘The Bible of God says so, Pastor Chris said I should not cut my nails.’

Sincerely, I just left the matter at this point. To be revisited when he falls asleep.

THE END.

Jan 14, 2016Jan 14, 2016

And Soon She’ll be Eleven

“Shine Shine Bobo!” The TV Presenter shouted.

“Star!” Ifeabiago answered back with joy.

She was sitting on her mother’s lap, having just had her night bath. Her Mum, my sister wiped her body dry with her little towel and began applying some baby oil to her low cropped hair.

“Shine Shine Bobo o!” The Presenter shouted again

“Star o!” She replied. Then she added for emphasis, “Mimmaa, see shine shine Bobo!”

We all burst into laughter, her Mum, my sister Uju and myself. Ifeabia loved the Star Quest Programme.

Just like her name- Ifeabiago (Light has come). The birth of my niece brought so much joy to all of us. She is an Ada like her Mum. The first born grand daughter to both grand parents and their extended families.

I remember the day she was born, I was on my way back from lectures heading towards my room in Manuwa Hall, University of Nigeria Enugu Campus when my phone rang. I checked it and it was my sister. She called to let me know that she put to bed a few hours earlier.

Ifeabia grew pretty fast. I remember her favourite song as toddler ‘P-Square’. She would say “Mummy, I want P-Square” and she would sing and dance “busy body eeeh!” LOL.

Then one day, shortly after she turned two, she looked at me and said “Ommaka, I yike your hair”, ye! I nearly freaked out! How did a two year old manage to even make that kind of statement. Well, that was just the beginning, like the ‘Shine- Shine Bobo’ in the TV Show, Ife would shine even brighter.

Just like yesterday, I remember her running around in diapers, chasing a fowl in my Dad’s country home, defying the igbo adage that says ‘Ochu nwa okuko nwe ada‘ literally translated as ‘he that chases the fowl has the fall’.

Soon Ife will be 11! I really do thank God for her life. She’s gone on to win many star awards, she’s worked so hard at being the Goal Keeper in her football club for many years, stopping many balls short of the net and just recently her basketball club won a 4 year defending champion.

Ifeabiago, your light will shine brighter as the years go by. You will always be an example of godliness and righteousness in your generation. The Lord will keep you and preserve you and make you a praise unto his name. Amen.

Happy birthday in advance.