Celebrating My Little Wins: Sweet Mother.
-A journal piece.
All of my mother's birthdays, I have always wanted to treat her to something special and most times, it was just a wish. However, this year, it was a great experience for me and her.
You know that satisfaction from achieving a goal that makes you super proud of yourself? That is how I how I feel. I am so excited about 12th September, 2024 and here is why.
The journey to:-
In 2022, I really wanted to do something nice for my mom but I was working as a secretary in a Law firm somewhere in Nigeria and the salary was twenty-five thousand naira. The money could not save me neither could I save from it after my expenses and desire to spoil myself (which always fell short by the way).
That year, my boyfriend's mom’s birthday was around the corner (August) so I showed him a watch and bracelet set he could gift her. However, the truth was I also wanted to gift it to my mom but I could not afford it. He bought the watch and told me to present it to his mother (he vanished when I was presenting the watch to her though).
When my mother's birthday came, I desperately wanted to make her happy but I had no money and I did not spend the day with her, I spent it with my boyfriend (dumb decision). I actually thought he would get me the watch but he couldn't and since I had no money, there was no use disturbing someone.
On to 2023, the same thing happened but this one was worse because I was very broke, dependent on someone and had no gainful employment. All I had was the wish to make her birthday a joyful one but I did not have the funds.
Notice how I was always basing my excuses on money? That is how dumb I was because I kept forgetting that money did not equate happiness, there were other ways to make her smile.
From ideation to fruition:-
This year, my writing was finally acknowledged by people in ways I never would have imagined and this actually made me happy along with the income I was making.
The weekend before her birthday, I asked her to go and make her hair but she was always avoiding it as she was always doing one thing or the other. So on Wednesday (11th September, 2024), I asked her to go and make her hair (which I paid for and I was very I did) while I sat in her shop from morning through evening (that was my first gift). My sister (@rareglams on IG) did her face beat when she returned from the hairdresser's shop.
My mom looked so beautiful and the pictures were lovely. I already paid for a gift on Monday so all was set in my opinion.
However, it rained heavily that morning of her birthday and I could not get her the gift. My siblings and I prayed for her that morning and she was smiling shyly. It eventually stopped raining around 12 noon that afternoon so I went to pick up the gift. After I presented my gift to her, my younger sister brought her cupcakes and she was like “you people should video me o” and her smile was so beautiful. Even if it was not a big celebration, my lady was genuinely happy.
The thing is, she has probably forgotten what it means to be cherished and I want her to always be happy because sometime in February 2023, she was hospitalized for a week and was diagnosed of high blood pressure, high sugar levels, painful wrists and thumb and swollen feet. I was by her side but I do not want her to experience that kind of pain anymore and I want to ensure that going forward, her memories are happy ones.
There you have it, my goal was achieved and I will keep striving for more. She has gone through a lot and has done a lot for me so this is my time to help my babe relax.
If I don't set big goals that will kill me, poverty and depression will swallow me.
