Pre-teens: love it or not?

Reminiscing about my pre-teenage years, it's just like dreaming in realtime. I don't remember too much, except for some notable events. Do you remember anything about your pre-teenage years?

I used to think of hazy motion pictures of my mother carrying me, whilst holding my sister's hand and shunning my playful elder brother. Maybe my imagination was just showing me a personalized version of something that happens in everyone else's childhood.

The most emotional motion picture I can remember in my childhood is about my father, taking me and my siblings to school; three of us on his bicycle. Maybe that's where we bonded so much, because whenever i see him, i just remember that moment while he rides with us, you can hear the mild whistlings from 'God-knows-where' past of the bicycle, as we ride down a slope, with me on the long frame in front of the bicycle, clutching the mirror handle of his Hamilton bicycle. Things i can never forget.

I was born during a time of intense hardship in my state. I was born at a time where government paychecks bounced, where salaries are owed by the government for several months, forcing civil servants into farming, against their wish. That was how i was born into a "teaching-et-farming" family. It was not a very good time for my family, in so many aspects.

First of all, the standards of living in our town then was poor, no electricity, robberies were so constant that policemen had to come check our locality each night, but after they are through with their routine patrol, the robbers come, the exit of the policemen and entry of robbers in the neighborhood is just like an automatic change-over. There was never an interference from any of the parties, when the other is in sight.

It was a sad time for us. I can recall vividly the following events on a cold night: robbers with military-esque boots marched into our two-room apartment, removing the doors from it's hinges as a result of the force from matching the door with their boots.

My father was robbed of the money he had at that moment, and my mother was in shock; she was pregnant at the time. After they leave, the whole family will be in silence. I can't remember how we end up sleeping again on nights like that, after such experiences.

We stayed for a few years, before we relocated to the neighbouring town, which is a rapidly developing town and the hometown of the state governor.

In the new town, robberies ceased, we upgraded from no electricity at all to epileptic electricity, better schools and better housing.

This was the beginning of a new phase in my life, this new town is basically the town where i made most of my friends, and probably some enemies as well.

The new town's name is Agbani, and my name is Dominic.

I'd tell you more about my pre-teenage years, next time.

Thank you.