Surviving the African Parent

  I'm not the best at goodbyes really. In movies, in books, in reality. There's just something about them that makes me so emotional- since I was a kid. I always feel sad when my dad is travelling alone. I have no idea why because he travels often. The most recent time had me really tearing up. So much so that my younger brother though it was okay to begin teasing me. He found out it wasn't. The hard way. I prefer welcomes much more- and I can't wait to welcome him home. What makes you unreasonably emotional?

  I came back from a school trip and felt like I missed what would have been the highlight of my holiday. The bus that was meant to take us back to school had a few problems along the way so our return to school was delayed for an hour or two. I had no idea what was going on and spent my trip sleeping. We arrived at school to a bunch of excited but disgruntled parents. It turned out that the latest of parents had been waiting for our arrival for almost an hour and a half. As my mom picked me up, she explained that my dad had been here and waited for more than an hour before the had to leave for his trip.  I was devastated. He planned on taking me with him on his trip! It would have been so much fun. Alas! He couldn't wait any longer and had to leave. I had fun driving back home with my mom, but I couldn't help but wish I could have gone with my dad.

  To most of my friends in and out of school, my dad was and still remains an enigma. My mom, they know. However, to catch a glimpse of my dad was like to see a rare sight- like hail in Nigeria or something along those lines. Hence, anytime they heard my dad would be coming- to pick me up, drop me off, or would be in our general vicinity, they lay in wait. They would hide themselves in a corner and watch as I approached him. Afterwards, they would comment along the lines of how tall he was and how much I looked like him. Some would gather courage to greet him face to face after a long while (and plenty prodding from me). Others never gathered the courage. No matter which they chose eventually, they treated his appearances almost like he was a superstar.

  Going to church is a semi huge event. You dress up, do your hair and all that. However, its a whole different ball game when the person driving to church is dad. For starters, you get the memo a day ahead. "Tomorrow, dad is driving us to church" That prompts a whole new approach... You set out everything the night before, You set five alarms to wake up, instead of your usual one alarm, AND You pack your handbag the night before. You have until he gets into the bathroom, then the timer starts running. It becomes like a spy network- running from room to room whispering things like "Hurry up, daddy has entered the bathroom" "He's out of the shower" "He's dressing up!" "HE'S EATING!" "HE'S WEARING HIS SHOES!!!" The information builds in urgency, telling you how much time you have left. Finally, you hear the 'CLACK' of shoes down the hallway and know your time is up. The bomb explodes as he blows the car h...

It was a regular day. I was just hanging around the house. Suddenly, my brothers came up to me with smirks on their faces and made a deal. They had a picture with them and told me whoever could spot dad in the picture would get to choose the movie for our next movie night. I was elated. Left to a certain someone , we could probably end up watching 'The Secret Life of Pets' or something more horrendous the coming Friday. I glanced at the photo they had with them.  It was a picture of a bunch of kids. They had each picked a kid and were confident that their pick was the winner. I glanced at the picture and saw a kid who was a dead ringer for my brothers when they were little. I won the bet and had a great movie night. In hindsight, it wasn't the fairest of competitions but hey!, I wasn't the one that came up with the idea.