Thriving While Waiting

  Three months after Temi asked me every day, “Have you considered coming with me to our monthly hangouts?”I conceded to her idea one Sunday evening over dinner.  The kitchen steamed in hot air from a boiling pot of chicken I got from Pa Chizo's Cold room along with Jani. Temi sat at the dining table reading from her tab. Whenever one of us cooked, the other sat nearby to show support.  “I'll go with you for this month's hangout, Yemi” She sat up, wide-eyed, a smirk on her face. I smiled. A wry smile and then turned to watch the boiling of the chicken lumps on the gas cooker for stew. The usual stew that makes Temi happy every week because she could easily boil white rice or tubers for work with the hope of stew in the freezer. The monthly hangout is held on a Saturday. The venue was at Soteria Gardens in Marina on Lagos Island, South West Nigeria.  Our house was a two-bedroom flat that sat on the hillside of Magodo on the Mainland and I suddenly had cold feet about ...

  The sound of a blaring horn in the front yard woke me up. It was 7:45 am, and I still lay cuddled up in my purple blanket; I slept for longer hours on days I wrapped myself in it so I always used it on Friday nights. I didn't work on Saturdays to cover up for the sleep I missed on workdays. I wondered whose horn was blaring that loud.   Funmi was already cleaning the house. She wore her beige baggy shorts and a loose grey polo shirt, her black air pod in her left ear. She danced to the song she was listening to as she cleaned. On days like this, it felt therapeutic just watching her; she had this firm strength that was so easy to see. I smiled lazily. Funmi was such a special gift of God to me.   I just lay there beaming in smiles until she went outside our apartment and shouted Jide. I jolted out of my thoughts, Jidenna was here as he told me yesterday. I had totally forgotten. It wasn't even 8 am yet and I wondered why he didn't wait till midday. I would hav...