{"id":9760,"date":"2025-09-01T18:49:17","date_gmt":"2025-09-01T17:49:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.heirsholdings.com\/hhpeople\/?p=9760"},"modified":"2025-09-01T19:00:51","modified_gmt":"2025-09-01T18:00:51","slug":"9760","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.heirsholdings.com\/hhpeople\/2025\/09\/9760","title":{"rendered":"Sanitation Department (Part 2)"},"content":{"rendered":"

My phone blares with CAIN\u2019s I\u2019m So Blessed (Remix)<\/em>, and I turn on my bed to check if it\u2019s Tade calling to tell me that he\u2019s changed his mind and he thinks we\u2019re compatible. Sniffling, I answer the call, despite the fact it is a strange number. It could be Tade using another line.<\/p>\n

\u201cHello?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHello, Sister Mo. This is Brother Titus. Good afternoon. I hope you\u2019re good. We haven\u2019t seen you today. Are you not coming for sanitation?\u201d<\/p>\n

I cut the call and kiss my teeth.<\/p>\n

\u201cSanitation ko, sanitation ni. <\/em>All the sanitation that I\u2019ve been doing, what do I have to show for it?\u201d<\/p>\n

Tears slip out of my eyes as my mind darts back to Tade. How can we not be compatible?<\/p>\n

He\u2019s Yoruba, I\u2019m Yoruba. He\u2019s a Christian, I\u2019m a Christian. He\u2019s with the welfare department at his church, and I\u2019m with the sanitation department. Does that not look like a match made by God Himself?<\/p>\n

I reach for my phone and read his text again.<\/p>\n

Hi, Mo. I\u2019m sorry to do this in a text, but I know you have a teleconference that\u2019ll run through the whole of today, and I don\u2019t want to distract you. Um, I\u2019ve been praying and reflecting on a lot of things and our conversations in the past. Like I said, I don\u2019t want to waste your time or mine. I\u2019ve realised that we aren\u2019t compatible. We want different things. <\/em><\/p>\n

\u201c<\/em>What different things?” I ask out loud.<\/p>\n

We are both career oriented. We both love God. And we both have the same values. What different things is he talking about?<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve been trying to reach Tade, but he\u2019s been declining my calls and texting me to respect his decision, regardless of how hard it is.<\/p>\n

I type a message in the chat box after scrolling past the green river of my unreplied messages.<\/p>\n

Tade, please, let\u2019s talk this out. <\/em><\/p>\n

I read the words over and over before deleting them. They sound desperate.<\/p>\n

As if the thirty-something messages you left him already are not screaming desperation<\/em>, the voice in my head says.<\/p>\n

Shuddering, I select all the messages and hit delete for everyone.<\/p>\n

But what if you could have changed his mind<\/em>, another voice says.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s with the opposing views? Can\u2019t you make up your mind?\u201d I yell at myself.<\/p>\n

My phone vibrates, and I gasp<\/p>\n

Tade?<\/p>\n

Nope. It\u2019s a text from Brother Titus.<\/p>\n

I think my network is bad. The call got disconnected. Sister Mo, are you not coming for sanitation today? <\/em><\/p>\n

No<\/em>, I type.<\/p>\n

What if God is testing you to see your commitment? Maybe if you go, God will see how devoted you are and make Tade come back, <\/em>the voice in my head advises.<\/p>\n

Tough choice. I delete the word and type instead that I have a personal emergency and I will be running late.<\/p>\n

Ignoring his message asking if I\u2019m okay, I get dressed in a pair of knee-length joggers and an old black t-shirt. I wrap a silk scarf over my cornrows and slip my feet into a pair of Crocs before heading to church.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

At church, sanitation is well underway. The rug in the main auditorium is being vacuumed, the altar is being mopped, and\u2014my least favourite part\u2014the restrooms are already being cleaned. I\u2019m happy and angry at the same time. Why did Brother Titus call me if I\u2019m not needed?<\/p>\n

Sister Happiness walks up to me, and it takes everything in me not to retch in disgust. She\u2019s eating puff puff <\/em>this time\u2014Father in heaven, have mercy on me\u2014and she\u2019s chewing and speaking at the same time again.<\/p>\n

\u201cChister Mo. How are you? she greets before swallowing audibly and taking a swig of the Coca-Cola tucked in her armpit.<\/p>\n

For the love of all things good, does this lady have no etiquette? <\/em><\/p>\n

She gasps with her mouth wide, staring at the bottle of Coke as though the refreshment is something novel. She belches and apologises with a simply smile.<\/p>\n

\u201cBrother Titus told me you had a personal emergency. Hope no problem.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo. We thank God,\u201d I say, ignoring the curiosity in her eyes. \u201cIs there any work left for me to do?\u201d<\/p>\n

Sister Happiness looks around before shaking her head. \u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCan I go then?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo o. We have a prayer meeting after sanitation. Didn\u2019t you see it on the group chat?\u201d<\/p>\n

Prayer for what? I want to ask. For the toilets not to clog? Or what?<\/p>\n

But I don\u2019t say any of these. I simply nod and try to make myself useful.<\/p>\n

After cleaning is done and we catch a few moments of rest, the prayer meeting begins in earnest.<\/p>\n

Brother Titus explains that the prayer meeting is something God laid on his heart. He wants us to pray for ourselves and for the service, but before the prayer begins, he gives a short charge from Galatians 5.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll the law is fulfilled in one commandment. Love your neighbour as yourself,\u201d Brother Titus says. \u201cI\u2019ve noticed we do not love each other in this Sanitation Department. We aren\u2019t patient with one another. We do not forbear one another. And if we can\u2019t learn to be patient with one another, how can we learn to be patient with the rest of the church as we clean up after them.\u201d<\/p>\n

He pauses and stares at the faces of everyone in the circle, and I can\u2019t help but wonder where he\u2019s going with this sermon.<\/p>\n

\u201cLast week, something happened, and when I got wind of it, I was really ashamed.\u201d<\/p>\n

Last week? My mind flashes back to the incident between me and Sister Alero. The annoying lady spilt water on my Hermes Birkin and Gianvito Rossi pumps. When I confronted her, she had the effrontery and temerity to tell me I should not have kept my shoes and bag there.<\/p>\n

You can trust that I changed it for her.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe need to be patient with each other. Some of us are temperamental and take to insulting our brethren and\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAbeg, abeg, abeg. <\/em>If you want to talk to me, talk to me directly, don\u2019t go through the corners,\u201d I snap.<\/p>\n

All eyes turn to me, but I\u2019m not going to pretend to be a saint in front of these people. I\u2019m too mad to care about their opinions of me.<\/p>\n

\u201cSister Mo?\u201d Brother Titus calls, but I pretend not to hear him.<\/p>\n

\u201cBrother Chipped Tooth, abeg! Let me hear word<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

Scandalised gasps fill the air, and wide eyes stare at me.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe spilt dirty toilet water on my Gianvito Rossi shoes. Gianvito Rossi! Do you know how much those satin pumps cost? Ehn? Now, you decided to waste my precious time in this lousy excuse for gossiping you call a prayer meeting.\u201d I kiss my teeth and pick up my car keys and phone from the vacant chair beside me.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t blame you. I blame myself.\u201d<\/p>\n

I stand to leave, and Sister Happiness calls my name. \u201cSister Mo, don\u2019t behave like this. Don\u2019t act like you\u2019re not regenerated.\u201d<\/p>\n

I scoff and stare at her. Her lips are still oily from the puff-puff, and for the first time since I arrived, I take in her outfit\u2014a Fendu <\/em>(not Fendi) t-shirt and a pair of jeans that look like they\u2019ve been dyed too many times to hide their fading.<\/p>\n

If not for God, would this ill-mannered, ugly fatso have the effrontery to talk to me?<\/p>\n

I kiss my teeth again and storm out of the church premises.<\/p>\n

\u201cNonsense set of human beings,\u201d I yell in my car, referring to Brother Titus, Sister Happiness, Tade, and Sister Alero.<\/p>\n

In fact, I don\u2019t blame them. God, it\u2019s You I blame. If You had given me a husband, would I have joined the Sanitation Department? <\/em><\/p>\n

My blazing anger is now directed at God, and I fume all the way home. Still angry, I exit the Sanitation Department group chat and block Brother Titus, Sister Happiness, and Tade on WhatsApp. I\u2019m about to order some food when my phone chimes with a reminder to pick out what to wear to church tomorrow.<\/p>\n

Kissing my teeth, I turn off the reminder. I\u2019m not going to church. God doesn\u2019t deserve it.<\/p>\n

After I finish placing my food order, I laze on my bed, trying to busy my mind with something to distract me from the guilt I feel for deciding to shenk <\/em>church. I\u2019ve never been absent from church my entire life. And that\u2019s another reason I\u2019m so angry. Why can\u2019t God give me a husband?<\/p>\n

The thought is on my mind till my food arrives. I catch up on a series while I eat, and the flimsy Nollywood comedy helps me forget my pain.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

The next morning, my conscience doesn\u2019t let me rest. I\u2019m blaming it on the home training my mother instilled in me. I\u2019m not comfortable sitting at home on a Sunday morning, so I get dressed and head out to church. And the first person I bump into while parking is Brother Titus.<\/p>\n

\u201cGood morning, Sister Mo,\u201d he greets with a smile.<\/p>\n

Why is he greeting me? To guilt-trip me? All these holier-than-thou people! <\/em><\/p>\n

I ignore his greeting and the nudge in my chest telling me to apologise. Why do I have to apologise? I WON\u2019T apologise!<\/p>\n

The nudge persists, especially when I see Sister Happiness. I ignore it and try to focus on the sermon centred on humility.<\/p>\n

As Pastor Joshua preaches, I wonder if I am proud or haughty. I don\u2019t think I am, but something in my chest says I am.<\/p>\n

I ignore it and tune out the rest of the service. I was better off staying at home.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

I leave church as soon as the grace is over and head straight to my car. As I\u2019m driving, my phone rings, and guess who is calling\u2026<\/p>\n

Brother Titus.<\/p>\n

Kissing my teeth, I cut the calls over and over, but he still doesn\u2019t get the memo.<\/p>\n

Fuming and raging mad, I run a stop sign, and I\u2019m about to hit a little girl crossing the road. Swerving to avoid hitting her, I run straight into the road divider.<\/p>\n

The next thing I see is black.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

Beeping is all I hear when I open my eyes. My chest hurts, I can\u2019t move my neck, and my body feels so stiff.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat happened?\u201d I want to say, but I end up coughing instead.<\/p>\n

\u201cPraise the Lord!\u201d a voice that sounds an awful lot like Sister Happiness\u2019 says, and a nurse stands over me, asking me my name and what year it is.<\/p>\n

I answer all her questions before a doctor walks into the room. He explains to me that I suffered whiplash, a mild concussion and broke a rib and an arm during my accident.<\/p>\n

He tells me to thank my stars the bystanders at the scene were kind enough to bring me to a hospital and call the last person on my call log, who settled my bills.<\/p>\n

Brother Titus settled my bills? Why?<\/p>\n

The nurse sedates me shortly after the doctor\u2019s visit before I can bring myself to say a word to Sister Happiness.<\/p>\n

Every day, Sister Happiness comes to check on me. Brother Titus too. I offer to repay him, but he refuses, saying that we are brothers and sisters in Christ. This makes me feel even more guilty for the way I treated them. My guilt is worse when the nurses tell me that Brother Titus and Sister Happiness never left my side while I was unconscious.<\/p>\n

Unable to bear my guilt any longer, I apologise to them one Friday evening.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m sorry for the way I spoke to you,\u201d I tell them.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s all forgiven, sis,\u201d Sister Happiness says with a wide grin.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

Sister Happiness nurses me back to health. She moves in with me after I am discharged from the hospital, and she is so patient with me that I feel even more guilty. I would never be patient with her if our situations were reversed.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy are you so kind to me?\u201d I ask one evening when my umpteenth attempt to wear a gown without Happiness\u2019 help fails.<\/p>\n

\u201cBecause the One I follow says I am to love all.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI haven\u2019t given you a reason to love me,\u201d I point out.<\/p>\n

\u201cJesus said, \u2018They shall know you are mine by your love\u2019. If I can\u2019t love your warts and all, how can I claim to love God or even love those who are without? I love you, Sister Mo. I love your singing voice and your fashion sense. I love your energy and how you manage to dance during sanitation. Mostly, I love you because you are my sister.\u201d<\/p>\n

Her words bring me to tears. I can\u2019t believe she managed to notice these little things about me.<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t cry,\u201d she says before pulling me into a hug.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

Over the next few weeks, I learn what unconditional love is while living with Happiness or Happy, as I call her now. This does not mean she does not vex me, but I\u2019ve learned to correct her with love and teach her a little etiquette. I found out she grew up around boys and lost her mom when she was ten. And her tailor, the one I thought was a swegbe <\/em>is actually her younger brother, who was born with only one arm, and he had only been learning to sew for three weeks at the time.<\/p>\n

Happy is sweet, kind, a good cook, and an avid fan of Call of Duty, just like I am. We spend many late nights talking\u2014girl talk, something I haven\u2019t been able to do since my bestie of seven years stole my boyfriend when I was in 200 level. She tells me about the brother from church who broke her heart when he told her in really uncouth words that she was too fat to attract any man.<\/p>\n

Her weight is due to her PCOS and Happy doesn\u2019t try acting like a lady because she\u2019s convinced no guy will ever want her. It takes everything in me not to press for the guy\u2019s identity, so I can give him a serious dressing down. I\u2019m turning a new leaf, so rather than focus on hurting the guy with my words, I choose to build Happy up with them instead.<\/p>\n

\u201cHappy, you\u2019re beautiful and wonderfully made. And there are tons of guys who will be attracted to you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNa so,\u201d Happy scoffs. \u201cLook, Mo, I\u2019m not bothered about it. I don\u2019t even care about marriage anymore. All I want to focus on is my business.\u201d<\/p>\n

I tell her all about my older brother, Jimi, who has only ever been attracted to plus-size women and show her a picture of him and my SIL, Emem, who is a lot bigger than Happy.<\/p>\n

The picture of Emem and Jimi from their recent vacation to the Bahamas fills Happy with hope that there might be a guy for her, or at least, that\u2019s what I see in her eyes.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

I\u2019m officially back at work when I get a text from Happy.<\/p>\n

Babes, I have gist!!! <\/em><\/p>\n

Three exclamation points from Happy means the gist is hot like amala <\/em>fresh from the pot and juicy like ponmo <\/em>that has soaked omi-obe<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Smiling, I shoot her a text back.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m still at work. I\u2019ll call you when I\u2019m leaving. <\/em><\/p>\n

Happy sends a KK, and I can barely focus on anything other than the hot gist Happy has for me. A few hours later, as I\u2019m driving out of my office parking lot, I dial Happy\u2019s number, so the gist rundown can commence.<\/p>\n

\u201cOya, let me have it,\u201d I say once Happy answers.<\/p>\n

Happy giggles. \u201cYou too like gist.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd I\u2019m not apologising for it,\u201d I tease.<\/p>\n

Happy giggles again before telling me how her dispatch service failed her and she had to take an Uber to deliver the scrunchies and other hair accessories a customer ordered. She was tired but went anyway. At the address, she met her customer and dropped off the purchase.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo what now happened nau<\/em>?\u201d I chime in.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m getting there nau<\/em>! Anyway, my phone died as I was trying to book an Uber back home. That\u2019s how I went back to my customer\u2019s house, begging her to let me use her charger to boost my phone. Luckily, she let me in. And that\u2019s when I met this guy.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, now the story is getting interesting.\u201d<\/p>\n

Happy laughs. \u201cHe\u2019s so fine. Anyway, the lady, my customer, is his sister. He was like, \u2018So you\u2019re the one taking all my money?\u2019 I didn\u2019t know what to say, so I just laughed. We sha <\/em>got talking. He\u2019s a doctor, and do you know he attends our church?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cEhen<\/em>?\u201d I scan my database of eligible men from church for a fine doctor, but I come up empty.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah. He sha <\/em>collected my number and he paid for my cab. I don\u2019t know if I\u2019m overthinking and reading meaning into a simple, friendly conversation, but I feel like there was something there.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAwwn. That\u2019s totally fine. We\u2019ll just pray about it and leave it all to God. If it\u2019s His will, He\u2019ll make it happen seamlessly.\u201d<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

Like play, like play, Happy and Ebube started dating, and six months later, he proposed. I was ecstatic when Ebube called me to help him put together a surprise proposal. If there\u2019s anyone I\u2019d like Happy to end up with, it\u2019s Ebube. He\u2019s patient, kind, GOD-FEARING and he\u2019s head over heels in love with Happy. That\u2019s all I could have ever prayed for Happy.<\/p>\n

Happy and I planned the wedding with help from Ebube\u2019s baby sister, Chidera. When Happy asks me to be her maid of honour, I\u2019m beyond honoured.<\/p>\n

Everything is going well till the wedding rehearsal when I meet Ebube\u2019s best man for the first time.<\/p>\n

Guess who it is.<\/p>\n

Tade.<\/p>\n

The sight of him sends my composure flying out the window. All I can recall is the text he sent me and how he brutally cut me off. I don\u2019t want to make the rehearsal dinner about me, but I can barely function and remember all the cues the wedding planner gave me for the ceremony.<\/p>\n

While we\u2019re having dinner, Happy walks up to me and asks why I\u2019m looking pale.<\/p>\n

\u201cOlutade is Tade,\u201d I wheeze, trying to avoid his eyes, which have been trained on me since Ebube introduced us.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh my god. Mo, are you okay? Do you want to go home?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo. You only get married once, and I don\u2019t even care anymore. I shouldn\u2019t let him ruin my mood or your rehearsal dinner.\u201d<\/p>\n

Shoving all my emotions aside, I try hard to enjoy the delicious meal and try harder to avoid Tade\u2019s gaze. Soon, it\u2019s time for the best man\u2019s speech, and Tade steps up to the makeshift dance floor and talks about love and how he wishes Ebube and Happy a marriage built on God and a love that endures all.<\/p>\n

The rehearsal dinner comes to an end an hour later, and I rush to the event hall restroom before heading up to my room.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

When I make it up to my room, Tade is standing outside my door. He offers me a small smile that looks penitent. I want to run into his arms, and I also want to wash him.<\/p>\n

Taking a deep breath, I ask myself WWJD, like Happiness taught me and decide to offer Tade grace.<\/p>\n

\u201cHi, Tade. Good evening,\u201d I greet and fiddle with my clutch, trying to find my key card and avoid his soulful eyes.<\/p>\n

\u201cHi, Mo. How are you?\u201d he asks with his voice full of a timbre that makes my insides flutter.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m good. Does Ebube need something?\u201d I ask because I don\u2019t want to believe he\u2019s here to make small talk or apologise for his rude behaviour.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo. I actually wanted to see you. To apologise.\u201d<\/p>\n

The word \u2018apologise\u2019 peels back the plaster I laid over my broken heart and angst, pain and anger leak out of it like pus.<\/p>\n

\u201cWo, <\/em>Tade. I have to wake up super early tomorrow, so just consider your apology accepted and leave me alone.\u201d<\/p>\n

My words come out weaker than I intended. Tears rush to my eyes, and I blink them back furiously, so I don\u2019t show how much his ghosting me hurt me.<\/p>\n

\u201cMo, I\u2019m really sorry.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sniffling, I dab the corners of my eyes. \u201cTade, it\u2019s fine actually. We want different things, and it\u2019s okay. You don\u2019t have to apologise for ending things because you thought we wouldn\u2019t work out. You might have been right and\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo. I didn\u2019t break up with you because we wouldn\u2019t have worked out.\u201d<\/p>\n

My brows furrow. I hope this guy does not want to twist the story because I\u2019m not sure my hot blood will be able to think WWJD if he does.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTade, you said\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI lied.\u201d<\/p>\n

I\u2019m really confused, and a part of me is beginning to get irritated.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, what happened?\u201d<\/p>\n

Tade takes a deep breath before telling me how his best friend\u2019s sister attends my church and told him just how proud, rude and insulting she had seen me be to Sister Alero and how I must have been hiding my real colours around him.<\/p>\n

\u201cSeeing you here today and your relationship with Happiness, the way you respect the servers and staff show me there was no truth in her accusation.\u201d<\/p>\n

Understanding dawns on me, and my anger fizzles out.<\/p>\n

I want to hide under the new me and make out everything his friend\u2019s sister said to be a lie, but that would be another lie.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere was actually truth in her words. I did all she said I did and worse. All I can tell you is that I\u2019ve changed. God and the love from my brethren has changed me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tade begs me to give him another chance. I want to, but something in me resists. If he could break up with me based on an accusation, without giving me the benefit of the doubt or letting me tell my side of the story, then he doesn\u2019t deserve me.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m sorry I can\u2019t,\u201d I say.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re not seeing anyone, right? Ebube told me you aren\u2019t,\u201d Tade says.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m not sure whether to be angry or happy he had to ask Ebube about me.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy decision isn\u2019t based on my dating status. It\u2019s just\u2026I don\u2019t feel like you\u2019re the kind of guy I need.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMoromoOluwa, jo nau<\/em>. Give me another chance,\u201d he says. \u201cI promise you won\u2019t regret it.\u201d<\/p>\n

The way he calls my name weakens my insides and I want to do small shakara before taking him back, but something within me resists it, telling me not to take him back.<\/p>\n

\u201cTade, please, you asked me to respect your decision then. I\u2019m not saying this to do my own back, but I need you to respect my decision. Good night, Tade.\u201d<\/p>\n

I unlock my door and walk in, leaving Tade out in the hallway, calling my name.<\/p>\n

I lean against the door, wondering if it\u2019s my village people controlling me or if I\u2019m doing the right thing.<\/p>\n

When I eventually remember I\u2019m leaning against the door like some heroine from a cheap attempt at copying a classic romcom, I walk to the bathroom to get ready for bed.<\/p>\n

I toss and turn on the bed.<\/p>\n

Am I making the biggest mistake of my life? What if Tade is \u201cthe one\u201d? What if I lose him and I end up as that single old woman people use as a case study on why girls shouldn\u2019t be too picky? <\/em><\/p>\n

I think about the restraint I felt in me. It felt like the inward witness Pastor Charles preached about while teaching about how God leads His children. Or am I just being spooky?<\/p>\n

\u201cGod, I don\u2019t know if this is You leading me or I\u2019m just making up voices in my head. Please help me make the right decision,\u201d I whisper into the air before forcing myself to count sheep.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

I didn\u2019t get any sleep till around 3 AM. Thankfully, Ebube and Happy\u2019s ceremony is an evening wedding. I sleep in till about 9 before getting ready to start my maid of honour duties. When I make it up to the room Happy is sharing with her cousin, Letitia, Happy is pacing and her forehead is crumpled up in her signature worry face. She runs to me and hugs her as soon as she turns around to see me.<\/p>\n

\u201cMo, tell me I\u2019m not making a mistake,\u201d Happy wheezes.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m lost. \u201cMistake about?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGetting married. What if Ebube realises that I\u2019m not worth it? What if he falls out of love with me? What if he realises I\u2019m not who he wants?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhere is this coming from?\u201d I ask.<\/p>\n

Happy sobs. \u201cI don\u2019t know. I\u2019ve just been thinking! And I\u2019m scared.\u201d<\/p>\n

The makeup artist and hairstylist in the room stare at us.<\/p>\n

I pull her into a hug and reassure her just how much Ebube loves her. I spy the videographer recording, but I decide to focus on Happy. A couple of moments later, she is confident and calm enough to continue her hair and makeup. The makeup artist is already baking Happy\u2019s face when someone knocks on the door. I go to answer it, and it\u2019s a team carrying in flowers and gifts from Ebube to Happy. The room is awwwning and this-is-so-cuteing. Happy fawns over the necklace and earring set he got her. As she unboxes all the gifts, she becomes teary eyed. As if that is not enough, Ebube includes a letter that reduces Happy to tears.<\/p>\n

At this point, if the makeup artist decides to pack up and leave, I won\u2019t blame her. After drying the tears, we get Happy back in her chair and finish her makeup.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

The ceremony is hitch free and beautiful. The vow exchange made me tear up and the sermon the minister preaches on love and marriage makes me re-evaluate and wonder if I am indeed ready for marriage. I mean, I am physically, financially. But am I spiritually ready for what it means to be one with someone? Do I know how to love someone else the way 1 Corinthians 13 admonishes? As I find myself unable to answer these questions, I only pray under my breath for God to help me.<\/p>\n

The reception is fun galore with a compere that had many games lined up. Ebube\u2019s family handled the food and their caterer is on point because there is more than enough delicious food. I keep telling myself I\u2019ll stop after this, but the waiters bring in more finger foods and courses and I find myself trying and tasting everything that passes me.<\/p>\n

I spy Tade talking with some other lady and while a part of me is disappointed, another is grateful we didn\u2019t work out. Drawing my attention away from them, I focus on the matchmaking game the compere is leading.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

Six Months Later <\/em><\/p>\n

The last six months since Happy\u2019s wedding have been filled with a lot of growth for me. For one, I\u2019ve rediscovered myself in Christ. I\u2019m more confident of my identity in Christ, something I didn\u2019t even realise was a problem. I enjoy serving my brothers and sisters in Christ by cleaning up after them. I won\u2019t lie, sometimes, people can be absolutely disgusting and frustrating, but I\u2019ve learned to control myself and take my grievances to God in prayer.<\/p>\n

Another important thing that\u2019s happened is that I\u2019ve become friends with my department members. Not all of them, but I have more friends now\u2014actual friends\u2014then I did before the sanitation department happened to me. Funny thing, I\u2019m not the only one who joined the sanitation department because of a life partner. I was shocked when I found out at a love feast, but somehow God has used our selfish ulterior motives to bring us closer to Him, an uncanny ability that I\u2019m always in awe of.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re expecting that I met someone, unfortunately, I haven\u2019t. Honestly, I\u2019m bothered about it sometimes, but I\u2019ve learned to relax and trust in God\u2019s timing and goodness. He makes all things beautiful in His time and He is a good father.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

My phone blares with CAIN\u2019s I\u2019m So Blessed (Remix), and I turn on my bed to check if it\u2019s Tade calling to tell me that he\u2019s changed his mind and he thinks we\u2019re compatible. Sniffling, I answer the call, despite the fact it is a strange number. It could be Tade using another line. \u201cHello?\u201d […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9761,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9760","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-features"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.heirsholdings.com\/hhpeople\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9760","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.heirsholdings.com\/hhpeople\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.heirsholdings.com\/hhpeople\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.heirsholdings.com\/hhpeople\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.heirsholdings.com\/hhpeople\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9760"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.heirsholdings.com\/hhpeople\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9760\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9763,"href":"https:\/\/www.heirsholdings.com\/hhpeople\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9760\/revisions\/9763"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.heirsholdings.com\/hhpeople\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9761"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.heirsholdings.com\/hhpeople\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9760"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.heirsholdings.com\/hhpeople\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9760"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.heirsholdings.com\/hhpeople\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9760"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}