Juhanah

CHAPTER ONE Years ago, life was as beautiful as Roses. Peter was a hardworking Engineer just enough to feed his family. To sum it all, they were never wealthy, but he was stable enough to take care of his family. Laughter surrounded their rented apartment with an unlimited hope of a brighter future. He assured himself of one thing, giving Juhanah the education he never had. Juhanah was a beautiful girl whose beauty was as bright as the sun in the sky, she had a smooth sparkling skin that shone beneath the sun. To sum it all, she was beautiful beyond description. As little as she was, she left a sparkle wherever she went, not just beauty, intelligence as well, indeed she was an egghead. Although her clothes were simple,and faded from years of wear. Despite growing in poverty, she never allowed her situation to define her, she was humble, obedient, respectful, and intelligent. Moreover, Juhanah portrayed an aura no one could ignore, she knew what it means to be loved, cared for ,valued and sacrificed for. Silently,she watched her dad sacrifice for the family, going the extra mile to make sure his family fed well. Not just her Father, her mother supported him as well, with her fruit business, though it wasn't enough, but it was a backup to support her husband. Her fruit business wasn't lucrative, but this saying, an idle man is the devil workshop, she had to be busy and stop being a house wife. Sometimes, she does come back home sadly with spoiled fruits, fruits like paw paw, bananas, and oranges get spoiled fast, due to bad sales, she had to bring it home for her family for consumption. To her,she felt like she was cursed, cursed?? Of what exactly?? Of the unknown. All they did was to ask for prices, frowned and left without buying, seeing that, she broke down in tears, Day after day her fruits were left untouched What made her unique, she never gave up, she believed in a future unknown to her, she had hope of a bright future she can't express nor describe. Later that day, when she got home, little Juhanah saw the sad look on her mother's face. “Mum?Is everything okay??” she asked with a faded smile on her face. She took a deep breath, “I'm fine my darling” she replied calmly. “How was the sales mum?” The question struck her so hard, she gave her a wry smile. “Have you eaten?” She changed the topic. “Not yet mum, dad prepared plantain, I don't want to eat plantain, I want noodles”. She replied with a sadful look on her face.. On hearing that, she checked her purse, it was empty, on seeing that, tears of disappointment pricked in her eyes. Lately, her husband's business wasn't going well anymore, and now, the family depended on her. “ Juhanah, I got you some oranges, do you mind having some?” Little Juhanah gazed at her mother without uttering a word. “Juhanah……..” She called warmly. “I don't want to eat oranges,” she mumbled. On seeing the sadful look on her daughter's face, she walked towards her, then planted a kiss on her cheeks. “Everything will be fine, okay?Tomorrow, I'll prepare noodles for you.” On hearing that, a smile lit up her face. “Thank you mum…….” As she sat there, different thoughts gushed into her mind, firstly, where will she get money from to prepare noodles for her daughter ************* It was another Normal day for the family, which portrayed burdens they couldn't speak about. Little Juhanah rolled the faded wrapper off her body, as she rolled her sleepy eyes uncontrollably, then stretched her hands for a while. “Mummy….. she called excitedly. On hearing that, her mum walked in with a smile on her face, “Good Morning Angel” “Mum, the noodles you promised me…..” she recalled happily. She forced a smile. “Ohh my beloved, just take your bath…” Sadly, she looked away, there was no single money to get her even the cheapest packets of noodles. “Mummy, I don't wanna eat plantain porridge, I want to eat noodles, just noodles mummy…..” Seems her world crumbled before her, at that point, tears of disappointment pricked in her eyes. At some point, she couldn't hold back her tears, she knelt down heartbroken, hugged her daughter tightly as tears rolled down her cheeks. After a successful pleadings, little Juhanah, decided to listen to her mum and eat plantain porridge. Again, her mum assures her of eating noodles when she's back. As little Juhanah dished the food into her mouth, she gave her mum an irritating face. “Eat up, you're late…….” “I don't enjoy it mum……seems I'll throw up soon” “ No, please don't throw up, just finish it, you'll eat noodles when you're back…” Sadly, Juhanah stood up, slung her bag over her shoulder. “Bye mum…” “Just eat something, don't leave hungry please….” Her mother's pleading fell on deaf ears, Little Juhanah walked away without a backward glance. As little Juhanah walked down the road, her face soaked with tears. Deeply, she felt disappointed that her parents couldn't provide for her needs. Suddenly, she remembered her friend, Rita, whose friend never lacked anything. Her parents made sure they provided everything she needed. Juhanah wondered why hers was different, why hers seems to be a burden to her parents. As she stepped into the luxurious sitting room, decorated with beautiful flowers, Rita, on seeing her friend, paddled down the stairs hurriedly, then hugged her friend tightly. “How are you doing?” Rita asked joyfully. Juhanah gave her a wry smile.” I'm fine” she would mutter. “Come join me, as I eat my breakfast…..”. “No thanks….” Juhanah was disciplined in a way that she was always content, she never let her situation define her,no matter how difficult it might seem. Sadly, Rita walked away to eat her breakfast leaving little Juhanah lost with her thoughts. Juhanah sat on the sofa with her legs crossed and her eyes fixed on the television before her. It was morning cartoons, not too long. Rita's father walked in wearing a tight caftan over his bulging tummy. On seeing Juhanah, he welcomed her, and told her to join her friend to eat breakfast, which she insisted politely. After a while, they were ready for school. Rita's driver drove smoothly, heading to one of the most popular schools in the State. As they went to school, their friends surrounded them, telling them how their weekend went, and what they ate for breakfast. The conversation was engaging and interactive, which created room for laughter and jokes. *********** Rita's parents were wealthy, they were known as one of the influential families in the State, which were known as kind hearted people, who helped the poor and needy. Rita's parents took it upon themselves to take Juhanah to school everyday, not just for pleasure, but they knew their parents weren't financially stable enough to take Juhanah to school everyday. She didn't just take Juhanah to school everyday, she released some burdens off Juhanah's parents, it seems as if they were relieved of the unknown. To Peter's family, it was like a daily routine, when she's back from school, she freshens up then joins her mum in the Market. Sometimes, if she gets home, and there's food, she eats, if she doesn't, she would smile then take a deep breath. She did that more often. Then by 6pm, Mr Peter would be home, he would freshen up, sit under a mango tree in his compound with a newspaper, with his legs crossed. On the other hand, His wife and his daughter do return by 9pm, then if there's no food, she would give her daughter the leftover fruits, or sometimes, she would break palm kernels for her daughter to eat with plenty of water, that was their daily routine. But on this fateful day, As Mrs Peter returned from the market with little Juhanah asleep on her back, As she walked into the compound, her husband sat on a wooden chair under the mango tree as usual, but something was different about that night, which it was unknown to them. Mr. Peter on seeing his wife, looked at her, then shook his head shamefully. “Is everything okay?” She asked. He didn't utter a word, he shook his head shamefully again. She walked towards him, then she prostrated humbly. “Are you not ashamed of yourself?” He asked Suddenly, her throat went dry, she stood up fearfully. “What d…..o you me..an?” she stammered. “Oh really? Why is there no food?” On hearing the question, she burst into laughter. “The last time I checked, you didn't drop a penny before leaving this morning, how do you expect me to cook?” she replied with her hands akimbo. “Really?” He asked, his voice conveying surprise. “Yes, I wasn't able to make sales today, so don't expect anything tonight”. Angrily, he stood up, then walked towards her, “How dare you? How dare you talk back?” She didn't utter a word. He continued,” How dare you??” “I'm tired, I need some rest…” she replied, then walked away without a backward glance. Angrily, he watched her walk away.