The Things I Thought Was Punishment But Now I Understand

Good day my people thanks for stopping by and reading my blog,when i saw this prompt it really take me back to past you see growing up wasn’t funny at all. Sometimes when I think about some of the things I went through as a child, I just smile. Back then, I used to feel like I was suffering for nothing, but now as an adult, I understand that those things shaped who I am today

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I grew up living with my mum and my aunty. We were not rich, but we had each other, and we tried to survive with the little we had. My mum is the strict type, and my aunty too was no different. There was always one thing or the other to do in the house. No resting. I used to envy my friends who lived with both parents and didn't do much house chores like me.

One thing I will never forget is grinding pepper with grinding stone. Oh God! That thing was like punishment to me. My fingers will be red, my back will pain me from bending, and sometimes the pepper will enter my eyes, and I will cry like somebody that lost something. I always ask myself why we can’t just use blender like others. But my aunty will say, “Blender will not bring out the taste like grinding stone.” I didn’t understand what she meant that time. I just felt she wanted to punish me.

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Another thing is waking up very early. I remember how I used to hate hearing her voice shouting my name by 5AM. She will wake me to sweep compound, fetch water from the tap far from our house, and prepare for school. Sometimes, I feel so tired and just want to sleep like other children, but no way. She will say, “You must learn how to be responsible.”

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I also remember how they never allowed me to visit friends. I thought they were just being wicked. All my friends will go out to parties or go play around, but once I ask, they will say no. Sometimes I will even lie that we are doing group work in school, but once they catch me, wahala don enter. I will cry and say they don’t love me. But now that I am grown, I see it differently.

All these things that looked like punishment before, now I see they were teaching me discipline, responsibility, and how to manage life. The grinding stone pepper taught me patience. Waking up early helped me be time conscious. Not visiting anyhow taught me how to be content and stay safe.

Even though some days were really sad, and I cried a lot because I felt I was missing out, I can now say I’m proud of the training I got. It made me strong, focused, and respectful. And funny enough, I still use grinding stone sometimes when I want that special taste in my food 😂.

I just want to say thank you to my mum and aunty for all the things they did. It may have been hard, but it made me who I am today.