lives dramatically. Following a funeral in her hometown, my mother had an accident while returning. Sadly, she never fully recovered from it, causing her to lose her job. This left my father responsible for the entire family’s support and her medical expenses. Financially burdened, my father struggled, resulting in a drastic downgrade in our living standards. My mother was almost perpetually absent for long periods, visiting spiritual centres in her attempt to find a cure for her many ailments. She did come home a few times, but she never really felt the environment conducive for her. My mother’s absence caused me many anxious nights – the joy I felt whenever she returned home, and then the loneliness that settled in when she had to leave again to seek treatment elsewhere. Dad lessened this burden by taking us to her whenever we had school breaks, something we eagerly anticipated. Not only was it an escape fromour aunties and cousins who piled us with chores, but it was also a chance to impress the village children; after all, we were city children. I was quite an independent child, having grown up away frommy mother at such a tender age. I learned to do many things by myself. Not only was I independent, but I was also very 9 The Birthday Journal
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