Mother!

I decided not to wait till Monday to give thanks for someone whose presence in my life has made all the difference in the world- My Mother. Today is her birthday and I thought it would be fitting to celebrate her.

Her name when translated means 'Peace' and I remember my dad saying during my sisters engagement ceremony that ever since she came into his life, she has brought him nothing but Peace! I can testify to that.

My mum is soft spoken but that doesn't mean she doesn't have a spark in her. That spark comes to life when she speaks about injustice in the land.

She is also an extremely determined woman, pushing ahead to reach the heights of her career. She doesn't let anything weigh her down and she has a faith that is as solid as a rock. Many times when I have doubted, her faith shone through and served as an anchor.

She loves a good joke and tells stories she finds hilarious over and over again. We all have probably heard the tales before but each time she tells them everyone can't help but burst into laughter again! She is a good story teller. Tales like 'God will ponis you, ponis you, you will shine' make me laugh each time I remember my mum telling it.

She is extremely generous and can give you everything she has so that you will be comfortable. She looks and plans ahead and is the quintessential Proverbs 31 woman!

My earliest memories of her are of her coming back from work and announcing out loud that she had chocolates for us. We would pretend to be asleep but like every smart mother knows, the announcement of a treat can reveal all the deception that abounds in the heart of a child. We would jump up only to find out that we were not smarter than our mum:)

I remember the stories she told us, stories of the tortoise and other animals. I loved the songs she sang and the way she sang them, she would modulate her voice to give the tortoise an especially high pitched voice!

I remember her packing lunches for us, spaghetti, colored puff-puff, sandwiches, beans - which we would promptly bring back home uneaten:) I remember a holiday after we had come back home from boarding school when my mum made sure that every meal we ate was some form of beans- Moi moi, akara, gbegiri, beans cooked with and without its skin, if it was beans we ate it. Unfortunately it made me dislike beans intensely and I did not add those extra inches to my height my mum desperately prayed for.

I remember eating with relish the food she cooked on visiting days, I can never forget the tins of stew that made their way down to my room while I was in university.

She drove us to birthday parties, took us to see films at the Goethe Institute, she drove us to fairs, Xmas parties. She always had time to take us around.

I love my mum, and I want her to know that she is one extremely special person and we(T,T,K) all love her very much!

Dear Mum I wish you many more years filled with all things beautiful, may God grant you grace, peace, and joy and may all your dreams come true!