Independence Day

Oh, to be a child again. One of my early memories of our great country's independence day was the cloak of great anticipation that surrounded it. As primary schoolers, we'd have practiced marching and dancing to compete on that day for prizes. I think the anticipation was overrated but we weren't particularly concerned about that. We just wanted to make the team. It was also a day of eating 'ice-cream' buying puff-puff, ground-nuts and other what nots that our mum would otherwise not let us. We spent too long in the field with all the ceremonies that I guess all the eating helped pass the time.

And then the mad chaos of finding our siblings and getting home.

Fast forward to adulthood and the knowing that things aren't as they should be, cloud one's emotions. But in spite of it all, home (Nigeria) is where my memories were birthed and there are a lot of good ones. More good than bad and in that I am one of the blessed ones.

My List of the good that's Naija

1. Village life. Maybe because we spent only a few days at a time when visiting, I felt surrounded by kindness especially in my mum's village where she comes from a family of 'comedians'. No, not literally, but they had this way of finding humour in life. There was good natured yabis and a lot of laughter. Was there plenty in terms of material things? Certainly not, but someone somewhere in their heritage most have bequeathed this gift to them and I'm glad I'm a part of it.

2. Rags to Riches. Yeah right, I wish the riches part could fill my pocket, but seriously, my parents are like millions of Nigerians who a couple of generations ago were not educated and were agrarian of the very simple kind. Fortune smiled on my family in the person of a kindly catholic priest (this seems to be the story of many in Africa; of 'angelic' missionaries). He rode on his bicycle, miles, we were told to speak to my grandfather, to allow his firstborn to continue on after primary school because he believed he was gifted. Somehow with sheer perseverence, tons of will power and hard work ( of course baptised with school fees from the odd aunty here and a long forgotten cousin there) my father studied in England and enjoyed a lucrative legal career until his death.

Once the wand of education touched my family, there was no looking back and who knows that class in Nigeria can be tied to 'whether you go school or you be person wey no go school'.

3. Food to die for. From the North to the South, we have dishes which we prepare from ingredients mostly fresh and free from additives. The trouble our mothers go through can only be appreciated when one comes to live abroad.

4. Rites of passage. Marriages, the effizie, births, naming ceremonies, birthdays some funerals; There's always an excuse to party.

5. Unique clothing. Our decking, no get pair. In fact, as they say in Port Harcourt, e no get part two.

6. Communal living. There is still some sense of community with most of us knowing and interacting with some cousins, aunties, uncles and grand parents. It's not always good but where in the world is it a cup of tea? There's always a listening ear - careful, make dem no carry your tory waka.

There's a lot more I appreciate about naija but I'll stop here. As for Naija: e go better. May we all, strong in our various ways, gird our loins. Tara