some water into the kettle and placed it on
the stove.
“Hope you’ve put the water?” My madam
shouted from the sitting room.
“Yes ma,” I replied twisting my fingers in
fear.
“Come and wash off these napkins
immediately,” she ordered sending me
running into the sitting room.
She handed me the soiled napkins and I
zoomed off with it into the bathroom to
wash it.
I had barely soaked the napkin into the
water when I heard madam’s voice dishing
out another instruction.
“I will skin you alive if you continue wasting
my kerosene in this house!” She bawled. “Or
do you want to tell me that you don’t know
that this hot water is boiling?”
“Sorry ma,” I replied.
“Sorry for your stupid self!” she fired back.
I instantly rinsed my hands and rushed to
the kitchen to bring down the hot water.
I didn’t know where the pap I was to
prepare was, so I went to the sitting room to
ask madam.
“Ma please where is the pap?” I asked
trembling with fear.
“Idiot the pap is there!” She fumed pointing
at the fridge.
I went to the fridge, brought out the pap,
prepared it and took it to her in the sitting
room.
Then I went to the bathroom to continue
with the napkin.
The baby’s cry filled the entire house and I
soon heard my madam’s voice calling me.
“Adaeze!” She called.
“Yes ma,” I replied rinsing my hands once
again and running into the sitting room.
“Sing for her, sing for her,” she urged.
“Fine baby don’t cry, fine baby don’t cry,” I
broke into an unrehearsed song.
Fortunately for me, the baby stopped crying
and listened to my song as she gulped down
the warm pap.
When she was done, I carried the plate into
the kitchen and washed it off and then went
to the bathroom to finish up with the soaked
napkin.
Soon, baby went to sleep and madam went
to sleep too and I had little time to myself…