The Mother Who Refused To Give Up

Episode 10 The 1 Reader

I did not know about Pahina. I did not know about Dreame. I only knew w******p Status.

One day in the shop, a young girl came to buy baby oil. She was scrolling t****k while waiting. I saw a video that said "Make money writing your story on Dreame."

I asked her, "What is Dreame?"

She said, "It's an app where you write story and they pay you if people read."

Pay me for writing? For my 12 cedis story? I thought it was lie. Plenty lies on t****k.

But that night, I could not sleep. I downloaded Dreame. And Pahina. My Tecno was hanging because storage was full, but I deleted my church videos to make space.

I opened Pahina Writer. It asked, "Create new novel."

My hand was shaking. What title will I give?

I typed: "12 Cedis and Two Children: My True Life Story."

Description: "I am a Ghanaian mother. This is not fiction. This is what happened when my husband left, my rent finished, and I had only 12 cedis and two children. If you have ever slept outside, this is for you."

Then Chapter 1. I copied from my notes. The one I wrote at 1am with cracked screen.

I pressed Publish.

My heart was beating like I had done something big. I was waiting for angels to sing. Nothing happened.

1 hour. 0 readers.

2 hours. 0 readers.

I went to sleep with my phone under my pillow, checking every 30 minutes. Still 0.

Next morning, I went to work. I was arranging baby clothes but my mind was on my phone. I kept checking in the bathroom.

At 11am, I checked again.

And I saw it.

1 Reader.

One.

I froze inside the shop. I shouted, small, "Eiii!"

Adjoa asked, "What happened?"

I said, "Someone read my story! One person!"

Adjoa laughed, "Only one?"

But she did not understand. For someone who had been invisible for 8 months, for someone who stood in Achimota traffic and nobody looked, ONE was not small. ONE was everything.

I went to the back and I cried. I covered my mouth so customers won't hear.

I told Mrs. Adwoa during break. I showed her my phone.

"Madam, look! One reader!"

She took my phone, she looked, she smiled. She said, "You see? I told you. Jesus started ministry with 12 disciples. You started with 1 reader. That one will become 100. That 100 will become 1000."

That night in our single room, I told my children.

I said, "Someone is reading mummy's story."

My first born, my son, 4 years old, said, "Are we famous now, mummy? Will they see us on TV?"

I laughed. I said, "Small small, we will be famous."

My second born just clapped his hands, he did not understand.

I opened my Pahina app and I looked at that 1. I screenshot it. I still have that screenshot till today. 1 Reader, 0 comments, 0 votes.

I whispered to my phone, "Thank you, whoever you are. You don't know me, but you gave me reason to write Episode 2."

That night, I wrote till 2am. Not because Dreame told me to. But because that one reader was waiting.

The next morning, that 1 became 3.

Three days later, it became 7.

People started commenting: "More please." "This is my story too." "Ghana mothers are strong."

Every comment was fuel.

I realized something that night. When I had 12 cedis, I thought I needed big money to breathe. But what I really needed was to be seen. To be heard. To know that my pain was not useless.

That 1 reader saw me when I was invisible.

So I made a promise, inside that single room with blue walls.

I said, "I will write up to Episode 30. Even if it stays 1 reader. I will finish this story. Because the woman who had 12 cedis and two children now has a room, a job, a shop mother, and 1 reader."

"And that is enough to keep me breathing till tomorrow. And tomorrow again."

I opened a new page on my cracked Tecno.

I typed:

Episode 11...

To be continued... [Season 2 Coming]