FOREVER ALIVE IN OUR HEARTS

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Death is one thing that is completely inevitable, and equal among all kinds of people in the world. It is not a respecter of gender, status, fame, wealth, or any other thing. At a point, due to a reason or another, we'll all die and go find out what lies in the afterlife. I have always been curious about it, I do wonder if dead people are actually still alive in their spirits and watching on their loved one. I wonder if my dear grandmother does that too, I really hope so.

My maternal grandmother died so many years ago, 2013 to be precise and I was still in junior secondary school at the time. I recently wrote a post about how she died due to heart attack and how I wished a miracle could happen to bring her back to life. She is one of the strongest women I know in this life, she went through so much and I still respect her till date. Her first son (one of my uncles) died in 2003. He was a very popular presenter and comedian and his death was so tragic.

Because he was a popular and respected person, there is always this remembrance done in his memory where his records and songs will be played over the radio and television till date. Back then, we usually stop her from accessing the radio at periods like this so she wouldn't start thinking again. We lived in different states so we really couldn't do this everytime, we might just call to distract her from her thoughts.

After my uncle died in 2003, my grandfather (her husband) died the following year. He was ill and I just realized that I have a memory of that. We would visit and go to his room upstairs to greet him. He'll then give my brother and I new naira notes to use to buy something from our grandmother who had a grocery store then. In the following year again, another uncle of mine died. He was following the footsteps of my first late uncle and somehow, he got ill and died as well.

^{My late grandparents}
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I really cannot start to imagine what she went through at those periods. Loosing two children and the father of your children in just three years must have been so sad and depressing. How she had to be strong for her remaining children for about 9 to 10 more years was quite commendable. Above all, she still loved God and served him relentlessly.

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Apart from all these, she was a really kind woman and I genuinely love that part of her. She was disciplined and still so soft, caring and accommodating. Whenever we visited, she would wait for us by the road to receive us and dance at the sight of us. She wouldn't allow us cook meals because she always had special delicacies to serve us. And oh my God, never underestimate the cooking skills of older people! She would make us fresh chicken out of the ones she reared every single time we visited. My favorite meal from her was the special soft Amala, with okro soup, stew, and chicken. Believe me when I say that I can still remember the taste.

^{My late grandmother✨️❤️}
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If there is one thing I remember learning from her, it will be kindness. She was very kind and ready to help people around. She even allowed people live in some of the rooms in her house without collecting a single penny, for so many years.

Moving on from the loss took a while despite the fact that I was still sort of young. My memories of her were so good and I loved her (still do). Her dissapearing suddenly definitely took a toll on my emotions, I cried so much. It was a really painful loss but somehow, we all just kept on living and I am sure she is in heaven smiling at us and looking after us. Her face is still so fresh in my head and I still miss her so much. I do wish this myth were true--that we'll reunite with our loved ones when we all die. I would be so glad to see her again much later. For now, she lives on forever in our hearts.

Thanks for reading ❤️