By Jill Okeke
When will this pain stop. When will this ache go. Will the sun ever shine again. Will the birds sing again. Will my appetite ever return. My beautiful Mother, beautiful inside and outside.
I went to Enugu on September 18th and spent 17 glorious days with you. With my daughter’s junior WAEC over, I said lets go and spend time with Mama while I work from there. We had fun. We went to Achara Layout together, driving through Enugu as you observed the many changes in the City.
You no longer go out as you used to because of Arthritis. I showed you videos and photos of weddings and other family events you could not attend. We discussed trending events and you kept saying I should always cling tightly to God. While I kept saying in my usual fashion “Mummy give me gist”. You were my friend, confident, critic, adviser.
Though your health was gradually slipping away, but you were still strong. You had much life and vitality. Your will power to be in full health and live was amazing. Even in your age, your sonorous voice was still as compelling and arresting as ever as you continued to sing church hymns. Nothing gladdens your heart like singing church hymns. No wonder even in your 70s, you were still a member of Saint Cyprians Cathedral Anglican Church Enugu Choir, only retiring from active Choir to become their life Patron.
At last I had to reluctantly leave for Lagos on the 5th of October. You led the prayer and I hugged you promising to be back for Christmas. We your seven children usually converge in your Enugu house for Christmas, Easter and Mother’s Day celebrations and sometimes on your birthday. The convergence was not so intense before but when we realized how short life is, even when one lives to be 100. when we realized that life goes fast and each day, a precious gift from God, when we saw your advancing age, seeing you, no longer able to move with vigour. when we realized that we should actually cherish and celebrate each other as one day like now we may not have you, our trips to Enugu became much more regular. My siblings were coming from different parts of the world regularly so we could spend quality time with you. But now, what appeal has Enugu for me?. What appeal has Enugu for them?.
In your hey days Mama, you were a very active Politician. You were the Women Leader of Nigerian People Party[NPP] in Enugu state. You were also very active and committed in the Christian life. In the Anglican church you were so committed that the titles of ‘Ezinne’, ‘Mother of Faith’ were conferred on you by the Saint Cyprian Cathedral Anglican church Enugu. The last one, ‘Nne Chuku Goziri’ was bestowed on you during this year’s Mothers Day, march 22nd by Saint John’s Anglican church, Achi Enugu State.
Half-heartedly I had to leave Enugu. Maybe I should have stayed more. I travelled by road and you called severally to find how the journey was progressing. I got home safe and sound. By the next day I called you that I was making ‘Oha’ soup, which ingredients you supplied to me in Enugu. Throughout the week you called just to find out how we were doing. It was not just me you were calling, you were also calling others as you had always done.
Early Sunday morning just six days after I left you, they called from Enugu that you vomited severally at night and woke tired and sick. What did you have for dinner, I wondered. Immediately I called you. Sounding very weak, you explained that you had garri with the bitter leaf soup you made the previous day. You were actually strong to have made the soup by yourself despite the fact you had three girls living with you. A Doctor and Nurse came to attend to you. Blood samples were taken and you were placed on drip as you were weak.
Much later in the evening I heard your blood level was low and I advised my sister to wash pumpkin leaf and squeeze out the juice for you to drink. I was surprised to hear that you were anemic as I know that you are quite knowledgeable about healthy eating. The next morning you still sounded weak. Your childhood friend who is a medical doctor and whose hospital was not far from your house came to check on you having heard you were down, saw you and decided to drive you to his hospital for blood transfusion. By that time it was about 6pm. As they were taking you to the hospital I spoke with you again but you were so weak. I spoke words of encouragement to you.
At about 8pm I called and my Sister and Brother who were in the hospital with you said you were sleeping. Is it a good sleep?, I inquired. My Brother, to assuage my fears did a video call and I saw you supposedly sleeping peacefully on the hospital bed. I told him to zero the camera to your face which he did. I did not know I was seeing you alive for the last time. You never woke up from that sleep. As the blood transfusion was going on, they said you became restless and a Doctor was called who removed the offending blood to put another blood. At about 5am Tuesday morning, the 13th of October, they said you breathed heavily once, then twice and that was it.
Knowing you were in the hospital I and my Siblings through Zoom stood in the gap from 12midnight to 1am praying for God to give you more years. You would have been 84years, November 13th. Yes 84, but very alert 84years beautiful woman. We prayed for few more years but it was not to be as a phone call by 5.30am got me out of bed, shattering my life. Another chapter has opened for me. Will the sun ever shine again. Today a Service of Song will be held for you at Saint Cyprain’s Cathedral Anglican church Abakpa Nike Enugu while a Wake Keep will also be held today at your Enugu residence. Your remains are supposed to be committed to mother earth December 11th, in Achi, Oji River Local Government Area, Enugu State.
My very beautiful mother, Cecelia, Osisioma Obiakalusi Agbilibeazu,
the many lives you imparted have kept my phones ringing to confirm the news. A new chapter, one that I cannot really comprehend has opened in my Life. Can somebody please tell me is an ugly dream.
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