WHEN WAHALA JAM GBESE!

Today is May Day! Dem say na worker’s day! Let’s get some rest! I wish I would have taken this day off from Everyday People! But my dear, Everyday people no dey get one day off ooo! The hustle is real menh!

They say he that does not work should not eat. Today’s story is one that will make you begin to believe (if you don’t believe before) that no cheap thing is cheap. But before I go on, let me ask; why is it that those people that have no wealth are the same people that live the life of a wealthy man? Today’s story is short and straight to the point!

See this man ooo! He works in one of the Government Ministries in Warri. At least person wey dey work Government work go dey see food chop naaa. I am not going to waste your time with the story of how he got married. The gist today is on his home. This man got married and had five children. Beautiful children. He loved his children so much that you could see the love whenever he is around. The nature of his work takes him away from his family and whenever he comes back he ensures that he spends a lot of time with his children. You know what it is when you are living in a face-me-I-Face-You Yard. Everyone tends to know almost everything about everyone.

This our man was living in a one room apartment with his wife and five children. I do not mean one bedroom flat oo or self-contain. I mean just one room in a public yard. The wife was a hair dresser. A typical woman who was married from the village and brought to Warri. She was very good at what she does. God have a way of settling people when the resources are not there for them to take care of their needs. As God will have it, the elder brother of this man had a private school in Warri and so the children of this man were attending the school FOC (free of charge). He had a very good Landlord who was peaceful and soft. Anytime the rent is due and payment is not coming soon, there is no need to panic because the Landlord will always understand.

With all these waivers and low cost of living, what was the man doing with his salary from the Ministry?

1. Was he building a house in his village?      Asco!

2. Was he saving for the rainy day?        Stooory!

3. Was he spending the money on his relative?         Akukor!

4. Was he planning a business venture?      I wish!

Sometimes I get surprised when I see people living almost a low-cost life and yet nothing to show for the money they are not spending. Oh! I forgot! It is not easy to feed five children and one woman. Right? I even heard that when the last child was two years old, he still sucks his mother’s breast. The mother will be outside the house with other siblings and he will just appear and say “Mummy Come” and straight to the room to suck is mother depreciated and daggling breast. I think the man’s money was going to the feeding of his children. Thank God for the FREE EDUCATION! Thank God for the CHEAP ONE ROOM RENT! Thank God for the SKILL of his wife. The burden was not much on this man.

One day, aunty R came to the house to stay. Oh! I didn’t mention Aunty R before now. Aunty R was the Man’s younger sister who lived somewhere within the same area in Warri. She comes to the house always and stay with her nephews and nieces. The other tenants know her as aunty R. she was a school teacher and unmarried at that time. It was as good as she was living with her brother because she was always visiting. Somehow, aunty R couldn’t pay her house rent and was evicted from the apartment she was staying. She had no option than to stay with her brother. 

So, one day, aunty R came to the house to stay! She moved in her stuffs to the one room where the brother, his wife and five children were managing to stay. This was the beginning of the beginning. Living in a one room apartment with wife and five children is “WAHALA” but living in the same one room with wife, children and sister is “GBESE”! So, when Wahala Jam Gbese na wetin go be the result?

I have always wondered how a man and his wife will play with each other in the adult way when their five children are sleeping on the floor in the same room.

1. Do they play by midnight when they are all asleep?

2. Or when they are all at school? That means the man will be coming home for lunch!

At what time? And to think of it, the man and his wife had all those children in that room and in that Yard. No leave! No Transfer!

If this is giving me WAHALA to understand then imagine having his sister in that same room! WILL SHE BE ASLEEP WHEN THEY ARE PLAYING? 

NO!!!!!!! She was awake ooo! I heard that whenever the man and his wife are playing with each other, aunty R will start to cough or better put START TO CLEAR HER THROAT. Oya, you try and clear your throat now and hear the sound you will make! Try it! That sound you made is what aunty R will be doing anytime her elder brother and his wife are making love. Which kind husband sister be this one ehhh? The man’s wife couldn’t understand why her sister-in-law will be behaving like this anytime she is in bed with her husband. Abi na she say make aunty R never marry?

Of course, Gbese come enter the family. The gbese between wife and sister-in-law come reach gear 7. Serious katakata for the one room. My Love just reminded me of Fela’s song “when cat dey sleep, rat come wake am up, na wetin e dey find oooo, Palava e dey find, Palava e go get ooo!” And I am saying WHEN WAHALA JAM GBESE NA PALAVA E GO GET! The problem became so much that even the neighbors became so uncomfortable with the whole arrangements. This trouble is worst anytime the Man and his wife made love in the night. Our aunty R will always pick quarrel with the wife of the house. The most painful part is that this man will just disappear leaving the two women to dig it out with themselves.

If you were in the shoes of this wife what would you do?

Will you allow aunty R to squat with your family in the first instance?

Will you ask your husband to drive his sister away?

Will you fight your sister-in-law out of the house?

Will you start a prayer program for aunty R?

Will you just allow everything to pass and hope for #BetterDaysAhead?

Abeg, my fingers need a "May Day" off. I will complete the typing of this story later.

Join us next week Monday on EVERYDAY PEOPLE for WHEN WAHALA JAM GBESE Final Episode. Please, if you have any advice or thoughts for this woman kindly locate the the comment box below and drop your comments. 

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