Growing up with my siblings has been one of the greatest joys of my life. We were four girls and a boy, our last sister was not born yet and we were all best of friends and partners in crime 😁.
There were a lot of things we did together in our childhood that I still remember very well, some memories are still very vivid and here are just a few of them!
Running Away from Injection
Getting sick at home was a nightmare. My dad was a Doctor so he is the one who treats us whenever we got sick and his treatments involved injections. We all hated injections so much so we would run and hide whenever it was time to get an injection. When one of us got sick my father would want to treat all of us, and he always gives us injections and successfully doing it meant war because we all hated to be injected.
My mom was responsible for holding us still, anyone of us who is caught will be held in the tight grip of my mom and given the injection without his will. So whenever one of my siblings got sick, we would all make a plan to run away to a neighbors house so they won't know where we went to and come and take us to inject us.
The sight of the needle was enough to send us into a frenzy. I remember the chase around the house, with our parents trying to calm us down while we screamed and ran in every direction. It always ended with a lot of tears and afterwards we realize that it's not even painful, we were just being silly 😀.
Visiting Aunt's House
We get super excited when we are given the permission to go visit our aunt's house, she loved some miles away and we would ride the bus to her house, only I and my two older siblings were allowed to go, my two younger siblings were too young to follow us so they'd always cry to follow us, not wanting to stay behind. We enjoyed going to visit this aunt because sh gives us special treats, and even some pocket money. And we loved playing with her children, our cousins.
Taking a Walk with My Older Siblings
Taking walks with my older siblings was a cherished routine. We would often buy Akara (fried bean cakes) and Suya (spicy grilled meat) from the street vendors. Most times we bring them home to share with out younger siblings and other times we eat them in the street and bring home stories for them lol. While sharing the snacks we bought we like to make sure that everything is equal and no one is cheated, and we pick our share according to age, the older one picks first. This is also how we do it when food is shared at home.
Asking Me to Get Money from Dad
Whenever our older siblings needed money for something or they need permission and Dad refused, they would turn to me. They believed I had the magic touch, the way to soften Dad's heart and get him to say yes. It became a game of strategy and charm, and most of the time, it worked. It felt like a special superpower, and I was proud to be the one they relied on. And most times when they offend me I would threaten not to get money from daddy for them and that often gave me an automatic apology lol.
I enjoyed every moment I lived growing up with my siblings, though most times we fight with each other, but the next minute we're good. Growing up with my siblings has been an irreplaceable part of my life, now a lot have changed as Dad is no more and mom is married to someone else, but these stories are treasures that I will carry with me forever.
This is my response to #memoirmonday prompt by @ericvancewalton
Images belong to me
