It was a sunny day, I was already on my way home by 6:00pm from work, normally I ought to take the usual route home but I decided to take another path I don't really know why but something pushed me to take that way, it's kinda funny though because am not familiar with that path!
I took my chances and went through that path, I kept tabs and mark sign posts so as to return back to my initial point where I started when am confused lol .
But I just decided to take the path, on getting to the junction I saw Mariam the daughter of my neighbor “Mrs Bola” selling sachet water popularly known as “pure water”, I was so shocked, I beckoned on her to come and she came happily, she was very fond of me because of how we play and gist, she felt comfortable with me whenever she talks about her mom “Mrs Bola” who always maltreat her.
I have repeatedly asked Mariam if that woman is her biological mother...she replies yes she is..... but I have always have my doubts because she wasn't good to her and she is not treating like her own child. I even mistook her as her servant!
Everyone in the neighborhood have known Mrs Bola to be a cruel and a heartless woman who has been maltreating mariam for a long time, they have heard series of hitting and insultive words use to curse her.
Time to time people have always come for the plead and rescue of mariam from the hands of her wicked mother.
One Mr Sam who was a retired sergeant, living close to my apartment although his wife was late, he lost her in the cold hands of death during the birth of his last child.
He had a babysitter taking proper care of his kids. He will always come back from work every evening to rest, he is known to be a quiet and a respectful man.
*****Back to when I met her selling sachet water......mariam, what are you doing here?
I asked.
She replied saying “I'm Hawking Sachet Water” my mom stopped me from going to school and still want me to act like am in school by leaving the neighborhood with my school uniform, I have been selling this water for the past 2 years in this vicinity......I screamed oh my goodness!!
I have always seen her every morning going to school with her bagpack, i asked her “Did you go to school today” she replied “no”........I was confused at the moment which resulted to hair scratching so I took a seat and sat down.
I asked her to sit with me but she refused saying that she needs to sell them off, so that it doesn't get hot because no one will buy it!
I concluded that I will buy all from her so that we could go home together.... infact I needed some drinking water so I bought it.
I continued with my question...
ME ★ So you meant that you haven't been going to school for the past two years?
MARIAM★ I was but she stopped me from going to school saying that am a girl child that I wouldn't amount to anything after schooling.
ME ★ (my mouth opened in shock ) still meditating on what she just said, my facial expression changed into a frown.
MARIAM★ She said aunty e shock you?
ME ★ I bursted into laughter, I couldn't hold it she made me laughed so hard that I forgot what I was thinking about.
Then we were going home so many thoughts in my head, so does it mean that am a girl child, she's a girl child so no education for her?
What's the meaning of that?
Why starving her all the time?
What plan did she lay for her daughter?
Why is she doing this to her, she's just 11 .
She's just a child.
Has she ever thought of the molestation and abuse that girl child receive these days when most men are just wolves?
Come to think of it, I have seen her with a man promising him that he would give mariam out for marriage when she turns 12.
Who does that!!
Compiled with the maltreatment Mrs Bola had been giving her daughter Mariam, I sighed and waved it off my head!
When we got home she started yelling at Mariam where have you been, this and that!
What took you so long! Did you make sales today? Did you meet your boyfriend today? Were you playing?
She was just looking for an excuse to start hitting her.
So because she loves noise I ignored her ranting and went inside my apartment to bath and make supper!
Not too long after we came back she started beating up mariam I could hear her screaming and crying bitterly the torture was intense it seem to me that she has gotten an excuse to hit her, I wanted to go out and talk to her mom but I withdrew my speech because she is known for trouble and I don't want to create one,
every other neighbors closed their doors because of the noise and no one wants trouble too, normally few of the neighbors would come outside and engage Mrs Bola in a conversation about what resulted her in beating up mariam, few would come out to rescue miriam from her cruel mother but at the end all would regret doing such.
I came out of the room walking towards the main exit of the building, I saw Mr Sam coming back his face was not cool it seems he was not happy or probably he had a bad day at work, I greeted him and he just waved his hand.
He came inside and he saw mariam lifeless on the floor due to the wickedness and cruelty inflicted by her mom, at this point she fainted, she was bleeding from her teeth because of the maltreatment this got Mr Sam very angry compiled with his unhappiness he yelled at her to stop hitting her,
everyone came outside because of the noise, they were shocked to see Mr Sam trying to loosen his belt to hit Mrs Bola as he was also ranting and complaining that this has to stop and he wants to rest!
She was dealt with so well, she had bruises all over her body, her eyes swollen, her lips torn due to the hard punches she received, her ass whipped she was in a bad state even the neighbors added some pain she was handled by Mr Sam.
After that, she was taken into custody to sign an undertaking at the station incase any harm befall mariam again, ever since then there was peace in the neighborhood.
Mariam was rushed to the hospital because she was unconscious and after regaining her health, a good samaritan took her away and she studied psychology and today she has a center where she advices and counsel people, after two years she was made Human Right Officer.
Because everyone was silent about this incident and more harm were befalling mariam, Mr Sam broke the silence and ended it and I remember a quote by malala.
"When the whole world is silent, even one voice becomes powerful." _Malala Yousafzai
Summary
Mariam was maltreated, torture, beaten because her mother didn't give birth to a male child and her husband left her for another woman. Was it her fault that she was born a girl child?
Every Child Is A Blessing From God!! It made me remember this quote
“Women are leaders everywhere you look—from the CEO who runs a Fortune 500 company to the housewife who raises her children and heads her household. Our country was built by strong women, and we will continue to break down walls and defy stereotypes.” —Nancy Pelosi.
Stop denying them education, Stop the abuse of children, stop the maltreatment, stop the molestation, stop making them suffer they're the future of tomorrow and you are creating a monster by inflicting bitterness in them.