FARIDA
Oge’s Story
Episode 36
Sam came to see Iya Farida to ask for her daughter’s hand in marriage. He was quite impressed with the way their house looked. The sitting room was decently furnished. The walls were painted cream colour and they were still very neat. They had a six seater couch, a centre table with four side stools all having glass tops. There was a modern television set of about 42” and also an impressive home theatre. The floor had a beautiful brown rug on it to cover the original floor. It was simple but exhumed a feel of simple elegance and warmth.
Iya Farida understood immediately why Farida fell for this guy. He was quite handsome and had an air around him. He looked sophisticated and also distinguished. Why would someone like this become a local government chairman? He looked far above it. He looked like he should be a Governor or Minister or even President. He was too clean. He was also rich. Wasn’t he richer than the entire local government?
Sam talked with maami about Farida. He claimed to have loved her from the moment he set his eyes on her and now he was willing to make it official. He hadn’t told Farida he was coming to see maami. He chose a day he was sure she wouldn’t be home until much later.
Maami shared her fears with him. Will his family accept a girl with her background? He said they had accepted.
“Has Monica accepted too?” Iya Farida asked.
“I haven’t told her yet”
“I think she should know. It should come from you. To salvage the situation, you should ask your sister to convince her friend to marry you. This should precede your asking Farida to marry you”
“She doesn’t have a say in our relationship”
“But she does. I knew you through her and I would start my investigation from her. We both know she wouldn’t give a good report about you”
Sam was silent. He hadn’t spoken to Monica since she left the country. He was not interested in talking to her about the marriage proposal but what Farida’s mom was saying, she needed her buy in to give her consent. This was getting more annoying than usual.
“Ma, I didn’t tell Farida I will be coming here. I have not proposed to her yet. Let me talk to my sister and get back to you. Can this remain between us?”
“Sure. Also know there are other suitors you have to contend with”
“I will be back soon”
Sam did not like the reception he received from Iya Farida. She behaved as though she didn’t trust him. How can he come to see her and she was carrying on as though she was lord and master? He could see where Farida got her beauty from but he didn’t appreciate the superior air that emitted from her when she spoke to him. Even though Farida had a good job, she could never measure up to him. Her family could never measure up to his. Why would the woman act like she was at par with them? If not that he loved Farida and she was very smart, he wouldn’t have considered her at all.
He had to travel to Germany to talk to Monica about Farida. Monica was trying to give him attitude but he was prepared for it. She couldn’t stop the inevitable but he didn’t want any stumbling blocks on his quest for greatness.
“She’s dating someone. She told me herself. Why then do you want to disrupt a good relationship?”
“Did she tell you who it was? Did she ever mention his name?”
“So it was you she was talking about? I turn my back and both of you decide to do as you like. I don’t think you are a good fit for Farida. You are very controlling and love women just like father; it will stifle her and her capabilities. But, for you to be ready to marry her then I believe you must be into her”.
“I am into her as much as she is into me. She is smart and will take me to greater heights. She was the one who suggested I start from the grassroots. This LG Chairman I attained was her idea. I have gained so much popularity in this position that the Governor asks my opinion on state matters. He said he would like to make me a commissioner in his second term. This is all because of Farida”
“Now I understand why you want to be with her. You claim to love her because she’s smart and can help you get to places and not because you genuinely can’t live without her. I hope she knows what she’s getting into”.
“She is with a man that will make her a woman to be envied. Our partnership will take to us to enviable heights. I know what I am doing. I just need you to convince her mother of my genuine intentions”.
“Have you guys had s*x yet?”
“No! Why do you ask?”
“Farida is naïve o. She is not as experienced as most of the girls you carry. She has never had sex before. Are you willing to continue with someone who you have to teach how to pleasure you?”
“That’s one of the reasons I am not playing with her. I want to be with a woman with no experience so I will be the first and the last she would have”
“The control thing I was talking about. Farida doesn’t know what she is getting herself into. I will watch from a distance and see the outcome. Farida is in love with the superficial which is unlike her but then, when her p@nties get wet her sense flies away”.
“Meaning what?”
“Don’t worry; you will find out. Since both of you desire to get married, I give my consent. Many hearts will be broken but hey, who am I in this tangle?”
“Please do not mention this to Farida as I have not proposed yet”.
“She didn’t tell me, why should I tell her?”
Sam persuaded Monica to talk to Iya Farida on his behalf. Monica talked to her and expressed her genuine thoughts but still gave her consent.
Iya Farida had another hurdle to cross. Farida had a father. Iya Farida had not been in contact with him or her family since the incident many years ago. Her sister whom she used to communicate with got married and she never heard from her again. She as a woman could not give Farida away in marriage. Since the talk about marriage, she had been trying to contact family members to mend the bridge but it was proving very difficult. The only other option was to travel down to Ilorin to see her ex-husband.
Travelling to Ilorin made her reminisce on her journey out of bondage to freedom. She wondered what her life would have been if she had stayed back. Looking back, she knew she made the best decision. Progress had come her way. She had learnt that hard work pays. She had also learnt that if you put in your best in whatever you do, you will be noticed and rewarded for it. She had been appreciated by students, parents and school management for her exceptional performance in the hostels. She made sure her team was well supervised and also played a very active role in ensuring peace and order in the hostels. For two consecutive years; her pupils in primary six had passed their entrance exams into secondary school in flying colours.
When she got to Ilorin, she went to her father’s house first. It had been so long and development had taken place. She eventually found it. When she stepped into the house, she saw a frail looking woman sitting on a mat placed on the floor. When she looked properly, she realized it was her mother. The woman recognized her instantly and started eulogizing her with her oriki(praise names). She was so happy to see her long lost daughter and gave thanks to Allah for her safe return. Iya Farida knelt down to greet her while the woman stretched forth her hands and pulled her to herself.
“Where is Baba?” Iya Farida asked her mother.
“My daughter, your father passed away four years ago” her mother responded in their local language. Iya Farida wept over the loss of her father. Her mother had a boy and two girls. Her brother died when he was twelve years old. It was just left with Iya Farida and her sister. She asked after her sister and that was when the mother began to weep. Iya Farida wanted to know what happened but her mother wept the more. Every attempt to get her to talk was futile. She had to leave the house in search of a response.
Her father married three wives but lived with just her mother as the other two either died or divorced him. Only her mother lived with him while the children from the other women had their accommodation in the same compound. They all regarded her mother as their mother. She scouted the compound in search of anyone who could tell her what happened. She saw her stepbrother’s wife with her children. Iya Farida introduced herself and asked her if she knew where her sister was. The lady asked her to wait, went home to drop her children and then followed her to her mother’s house.
“Iya Farida, your sister was married off after your father came back from Lagos in search of you because of her rebellious attitude. The man and his family she was married into treated her badly. She ran away from him back home but Baba insisted she went back. This continued until she became very sick. The family dumped her with us. Baba and maami took care of her until she fully recovered. She vowed not to go back to them. Instead, she went back to school sponsored by Baba. She graduated from the university and got a job. Her husband and his family believed she had died so they were shocked to discover she was well and even working. They came back for her. Baba refused. He said he had lost one child to an abusive marriage and disowned her; he wasn’t willing to do same with her. They promised to take care of her. They used alfas and imams to convince him. He was forced to accept since they were not divorced. She begged not to go back but their hands were tied. After some months they didn’t hear from her anymore. They went to the family house to check on her and they were told they had relocated to Abuja. Their daughter didn’t call tell them. They suspected something was fishy. Maami was worried and she expressed it. Baba started investigating to find out where they were in Abuja. They were not in Abuja. She was in their house. Baba used Police to search their house very early one morning. They found her. She was unconscious lying in her faeces and urine. It was a sight that Baba could not live with. When they got to the hospital, they told them she was brain dead. It was caused by constant beating she experienced and a blow to her head. Baba Farida suffered a heart attack which led to a stroke. Your sister was in that state for years. Maami was taking care of both of them for many years. The day your sister died was the day Baba died too. Maami has not gotten over the loss. I am happy you have come back; she talks about you every day. She said you would have been dead like your sister if you didn’t run away and refuse to return. She regrets a lot of her actions”
Iya Farida was beside herself when she heard this terrible news. How could she have lost her only sibling so brutally? Why didn’t they contact her? She would have brought her sister with her to Lagos. They didn’t do well.
‘What happened to the man and his family?”
“He is in jail. He is serving a life sentence. Nobody will accept that being done to his child”
Why didn’t they seek her out? Why didn’t they contact her? Why didn’t her sister reach out to her for help? There so many questions with no answers. She stayed longer than she intended to care for her mother. Even though she was still young, she looked much older because of all she went through. She knew she had to take her mother with her to Lagos but she had to reconcile with her father’s siblings and family. They have to accept her back as their child before she can take her mother away to be better taken care of.
Her next visit was to her ex-husband’s house. She went there in a chartered vehicle so she could leave in case they become hostile. What she met was different. Most of the other three wives didn’t recognize her immediately but when they did, they welcomed her very well. She was taken to Alhaji’s house. Nothing much had changed since she left. The compound and even the living room was still the same. She sat on the mat of the floor while they went to get him.
An old man was supported to come out. She looked at him. Was she married to this elderly man? Is this man the father of her three children? He didn’t look all powerful in her eyes anymore. She watched him being guided to sit down. He asked in Yoruba who came to see him and he was told. He asked who she saw. That was when Iya Farida knew he must be sick. The first wife told him whom she was but he still couldn’t remember.
It was later she was told that he was pushed down from the balcony of his bedroom on the first floor when he tried to molest a new bride the same way he molested her. The girl overpowered him and pushed him down. He was never the same again. The new bride ran away since then. I looked at this old man and his three wives that have been loyal to him even with the way he treated them. Now he knew no one. His brother had to be invited to the meeting. He agreed they would have the engagement ceremony in Ilorin with the Nikkai. She explained to him that the man her daughter was marrying was a Christian so they would have a court wedding. He agreed and promised to stand in for his brother.
Iya Farida that dreaded this visit went back humbled. The wicked had really been punished. Who could have believed that Alhaji would be brought to his knees by a sixteen year old girl? His continuous quest for young blood led him to his current state. She didn’t pity him at all. She looked at his drooling mouth with irritation.
She couldn’t believe this being fathered her children. Her heart ached at the loss of her loved one. Tradition and religion had deprived her sister of a quality life. She died in misery. Iya Farida was glad she escaped.
It was Farida’s birthday. Sam had sent her the clothes she would wear even to her jewelry, shoes and hand bag. She was drop dead gorgeous when she stepped out. When she got to the office, she met a cake waiting for her. She thought it was from Sam but it was from Wale. He called to wish her a happy birthday which she appreciated. Towards break time, a saxophonist was heard playing towards her office. Everyone wondered where it was coming from until he entered her office. As he played, a cake was dropped for her on her table. She knew this was Sam. There were trays of food being placed on a table nearby. Then, a bouquet of flowers was placed in her hands while she smiled. A tray of chocolate was placed on her table too. Farida was consumed by joy. She smiled so much but her misty eyes gave her away. Sam did all this for her? She picked up her phone and called him. He said to her, “I am right behind you”. When she turned around, she saw him on his knees with a ring in his hand.
“Farida, I love you. I can’t imagine living the rest of my life without. I want to go to bed with you every night and wake up to you every morning. I want you to be the mother of my children. I want to be your partner for life. Will you make this desire come true by being my wife?”
The office erupted in cheers and applause. Farida had a lot of ‘buts’ in her mind but at the moment all she wanted to do was be with Sam. She said yes. Sam inserted the ring on her finger, held her in his arms before k!ssing her on the lips. She was shy and pulled away. This was the best birthday/proposal display the office had ever witnessed. It was the talk of the office for a very long time.
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