Some incidents always stay fresh and memorable in the mind because of their intensity. Some children spoke with Saturday Tribune on such days.
Toluwanimi George, 9yrs old
SATURDAY, December 30, 2023 was a day I will never forget. I was then just six-years old. It happened in the morning when my mum was preparing breakfast. I woke up excited. It was yuletide season and we were getting ready for the watch-night service, which was the following day. I was playing around the kitchen while my dad kept warning me to stop running in and out of the kitchen. My mum was carrying a bowl of hot water which she was about to pour in a bucket. I ran into her and the water poured on my head. I had just barbed my hair; I had a skin cut a day before. I ran out of the kitchen screaming in pain, “my head, my head.” When my dad got to me, he thought, I had hit my head on the wall and he started rubbing it in order to prevent it from getting swollen. He later got to know it was hot water that mistakenly poured on me. He applied Vaseline jelly on my head to prevent blisters and later sought for medical advice at a pharmacy nearby. It was a painful experience that I will never forget. I learnt to be always obedient and never to play in or around the kitchen, especially when my mum is cooking.
Mayokun Akinlade, 13yrs old
It happened on 21st October, 2024. There was a problem with the door of my mum’s car. I tried to fix it and was successful but my younger sister later touched something which made the door not to close again. We had to use a rope to hold the door till we got to a panel beater who fixed the problem. My mum was very angry with me. I felt very sad because my mum blamed me for an offense I didn’t commit. That incident taught me to let sleeping dogs lie! If I hadn’t touched the door at all, I wouldn’t have been blamed. I have put the incident behind me and moved on with life.
Oluwadarasimi Adeboyejo, 9yrs Old
On 11th of November, 2024, at around 8:00 pm, my mother, brother and I were returning home from my mother’s shop, and as we were entering our compound, we heard our dogs barking and wagging their tails. They couldn’t move because they were chained. I walked towards our veranda and then I heard a strange noise coming from the corner. As I moved nearer and looked towards the direction the noise was coming from, I saw a black snake. I ran out of the veranda shouting snake, snake. It was a black cobra. My mother and brother stood at a distance, afraid. The snake after a while crawled out of our veranda, went to the back of the house and hid in a hole in the gutter. I was scared. I have learnt to be watchful and sensitive to my environment, especially when it is dark.
Anjolaoluwa Oladokun, 12yrs old
The day I will never forget was October 22, 2022. It was my 10th year birthday and a surprise party was organized for me by my parents. My parents, siblings, extended family members and friends all attended my party. We had a nice time dancing while my parents treated all invitees to delicious food like jollof rice, fried rice, moim moin, chicken and beef. Small chops were also served. We all drank chilled soft drinks and juice. I received good and valuable gifts which made my day. I felt happy and honoured by people I love so much. I also learnt to cherish every moment I spend with my family members and friends.
Oluwamayomikun Adekunle, 12yrs old
The incident happened on December 22, 2023 at my grandparents’ home. It was two days before my grandpa’s 75th birthday. My sister and I were at my grandparents place for the yuletide holiday. Also with us were our two other cousins. Our grandparents went out and left the four of us at home. We were playing in our room and jumping on the bed. I raised up my hand and mistakenly hit the glass on the window. It broke and I was scared because if any of my uncles got to know he would beat me. I drew the curtain on the window to cover the broken glass. I became quiet and pretended that I was sick. I helped in carrying a bottle of fruit wine but it slipped from my hand and broke because I was afraid and shaking because of what I did. My grandpa was looking for his slippers after we had celebrated his birthday and searched for it in our room. He drew the curtains apart and saw the broken glass. He asked us to kneel down and I confessed my sin. He punished me by making me miss my breakfast.
I learnt to always own up whenever I make mistakes because everyone does. The worst is, I will be punished but won’t be killed.
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