Our world is moving too fast. Things are improving every day, technology keeps getting better and science won’t stop discovering new things. Knowledge is easily accessible; on the internet, TV, radio, magazine, newspapers, social media, books etc.
Kids are getting wise… wiser than the older ones. It’s a good thing though but there are side effects or after effects.
My name is Chidera, my friends loves to call me Derra…it’s the short form of Chidera. And this is the story of how my world is today especially in the area of children and youths.
Who I am exactly? I am just a 20 years old kid who has the privilege of staying alone in my own rented apartment…thanks to my friends; Segun, Wisdom and my bestie Regina.
Yeah! Who doesn’t have a bestie? In this part of my world, as a guy, you must have a girl you call bestie and she must be different from the one you call girlfriend and definitely, your girlfriend mustn’t be the one you call wife.
Most times, our girlfriends are just sex satisfier or someone will use to pass time…and if our besties should behave well, they could become our future wives…that’s just how my world is!... main reason is because, just as Jesus said, “before Abraham, I was” ….so also, before girlfriend, there is bestie.
And besties are like our second mum….they tell us who to date and who not to. So complicated, most importantly, they know a lot of our secret.
Regina and I became friends in our junior school. She was the teachers’ favorite, she was always used as example in the class.
She wasn’t the class captain but whatever she says, the whole class must obey!
I remember my first day in school….she was standing in front of the whole class teaching them how to read while they repeat after her.
I walked in and went to sit on her seat…
Her seat meat, Peace, told me I was occupying someone else’s seat…
Me: sorry, I didn’t see anybody’s name on it
Peace: look, her bag is in the locker
I was only 12 then….if there was one thing I was known for, it would be “stubbornness”. I took her bag out of the locker and dropped it on another student’s desk.
Peace: why would you do that?
Regina was just looking at me as I displayed my drama….
Me: if you talk too much, I’ll chase you out of your seat…
She finally walked towards me and said “Mr.Man, that’s my seat”
I pretended like I didn’t hear her…
Regina: Mr.Man, that’s my seat.
The other students began warning me and they were shouting “stand up o!”
I brought out one of my books from my bag and I kept the bag inside the locker….
Regina: Mr. Man, are you deaf?
Me: oh are you talking to me?
The next thing I heard was a hot slap sound coming from a skinny hand of Regina, on my left eye…
Me: Jesus…..my eye
I raised my hand to hit her back…. My hand got stuck in the air; her friends held my hand.
I was still in pain but I couldn’t move cos the whole class had lay hold on me.
Me: ahh leave me, leave me o…. I’ll beat the hell out of you.
While I still making mouth… slaps from different angles landed on me; my head, my shoulder, my face, my jaw…
The noise from our class attracted the teacher’s attention…. When they walked in, Regina started forming cries…
Regina: *crying*
Teacher: what happened?
Regina: sir, it’s this boy!
Teacher: what did he do to you?
Regina: he just walked in and he threw my bag away…. I asked him why and he started beating me…
I was so shocked…. I tried explaining but the whole class won’t allow me…they were raising their voices each time I want to say something….
Teacher: who are you?
Me: *angry* Chidera
Teacher: see your head like that of a broken egg
The whole class began laughing at me to scorn…
Teacher: today is your first day here and you are causing trouble… see-see-see your legs, like Chinese chop stick
I thought I was brave….the amount of tears that came out from my eyes that day could be compared to a 10 minutes nonstop rainfall.
Teacher: come out… go there and knee down, raise those mosquito hands up.
Damn…. I was wrongly accused for what I didn’t do really! I may have started the trouble but she went too far…
Who taught a bunch of kids how to lie and to defend a liar? That’s part of the things my world is going through.
After kneeing for 20 minutes, the teacher asked me to go to the back seat and sit. And of course, no one dared to sit close to me. I was all alone. I didn’t say a word to anybody the whole day. I was just sleeping even when teachers were teaching.
Some of the teachers concluded I was another coconut head in the class. Until the next day…we were having mathematics as our first subject of the day. Our mathematics teacher was Miss Ifeoma. As of then, she was just an Olevel student teacher.
Truth be told, I had serious crush on my mathematics teacher.
Each time she was teaching, my corrupt mind won’t stop imagine her naked…. I could see her undies with my vision eyes.
Sometimes, I would imagine the two of us getting married one day or even having good time on bed. Who does that?
Our topic that morning was “Number Notations”. The topic was easy at the beginning…she started with hundred, tens and unit. We all knew that one.
It started getting confusing when we got to Trillion. The students couldn’t say numbers up to billion and trillion in words and figure….except Regina.
Sometimes, she would say “you all should better meet Regina to teach you”.
I got offended and decided to break my silence.
Teacher: *wrote 3,452,908,124 on the board” who can call that number?
Regina raised her hand
Teacher: is she the only one here….someone else please
Me: hey
Teacher: *shocked* did you just say “hey”?
Me: yeah!
Teacher: are you talking to me?
Regina: Miss Ifeoma, don’t mind him! He does not even know it
Teacher: now tell me
Me: three trillion, four hundred and fifty two million, nine hundred and eight thousand, one hundred and twenty four. Dhurr
Teacher: wow…. Clap for him
The whole class applauded me…. I began to feel fly.
Teacher: hey, come outside
Me: me?
Teacher: yes you!
Me: what did I do?
Teacher: I said, come out…
I went out.
Teacher: the next time you address me as hey again, I’ll flog you until you pee on your pants.
The whole class burst into laughter.
All that wasn’t my problem…. I was only concerned with the beauty I was beholding right in front of me. I could see those dark eyes of her and her colored lips. She really smelled good…
Me: Miss Ify, you smell sweet
The whole class: ahhhhh
Teacher: what? The principal must hear of this…
At the mention of the name “principal”, every students tremble… I didn’t know anything about him, so I wasn’t moved.
Miss Ifeoma left to call the principal….
The whole class became as quiet as a graveyard.
Me: why is everybody quiet?
Nobody replied me. Regina knew I was in trouble, so she gave me a sign to return to my seat...
Me: what do you care?
To cut it short, the principal came into the class with 4 long-tiny cane on his both hands. There I knew I was dead. The pain from that cane made me hated Miss Ifeoma with passion. I was flogged on my bums; I couldn’t endure it…I mean, I was just 12. I cried like a new baby.
Since then, Regina began being nice to me. We became close friends… sometimes, she will share her lunch with me but I never did... I was very stingy! Instead of sharing it with her… I will eat my lunch on my way to school and lie to her, I didn’t come with anything.
When I was 19, I was staying with Segun, he was another good friend of mine. We met in my senior school.
I am the type of guy who admire girls a lot but too scared to approach them. If I was to count the number of girls I’d crushed on, it would be at least 30.
Seriously, every girl is beautiful. Most times, my reason for crushing could be silly; voice, smile, hair, stature, walking style, eating manner, the way she talks, name them.. But I never for once approached any of those 30 girls.
Segun is the fresh guy; he knows how to talk to girls and they would obey immediately. He never agreed he had a girlfriend… how would he even have a girlfriend? Every girl he says hello to, is mentally dating him.
“Wisdom” is the gentle one… he sees all the girls things as a sin.
Sometimes we would mock him by saying “the fear of woman is the begotten of wisdom”.
One problem I had was, girls do not believe I was single… some would tell Segun that I snub a lot and that I form a lot.
Not knowing, I was always scared of starting conversation with them. Plus the way Regina and I are closed…one would say, I was dating her.
Regina, on the other hand….each time I told her I love her and would love us to date, she will just turn the table around. After several attempt, I gave up; I stopped asking her. But we continued as bestie for life. And you know what besties do…
One sweet night, she came to visit us; Segun and me, in our apartment…due to the heavy rain that evening, she couldn’t return home.
Me: thank God for this rain
Regina: see this one…. Why are you thanking God?
Me: I’m thanking God for giving us “weather for two”
Regina: *laughed* you are high! With who?
Me: my bestie
Regina: if I knock your head eh. Go and meet Segun
Segun: homo?? God forbid! Girls don finish?
Me: shey you hear am…
Regina: hold yourself o. I’ve told you to go and look for a girlfriend, you will not hear
Me: give me your sister nah
Regina: you are high... 9 years old girl.
Me: ehhe Na… is it bad?
Later that night, I started forming cold…
Regina: what is it?
Me: I’m cold...
Regina: ehya… cover yourself nah
Me: which kind bestie are you? Bestie that cannot cuddle me, is that one bestie?
Regina: I know, that’s what you want! Come joor
I started smiling like Mumu…Segun knew what my plans were, so he just covered himself with the blanket.
Regina fold her arms round me…
Me: bestie like no other
Regina: do and sleep joor
Me: bestie, can I s**k?
Regina: *slapped my cheek* if I slap you eh
Me: you already did
Regina: agbaya, are you a baby?
Me: bestie that cannot allow me to ….
Regina: shuu shuu
She did not allow me to and I forced myself to the forbidden apples. (You know what I mean).
It’s all part of the side effect of my generation;
One good thing about us is that, we are Christians. In fact, our church pastor loves inviting us to his house every Sunday. So I can boldly say, I’m a child of God… I wasn’t that bad. I love Jesus and he loves me too.
One faithful Sunday, our pastor invited us over as usual…the four of us; myself, Regina, Segun and Wisdom. The pastor had 3 kids; a boy and two girls with two other girls he adopted. They were all below 8…. Peter, Jane, Mercy, Faithful and Hannah.
Faithful and Hannah were the adopted ones…
So as usual, whenever we come by, they were always happy to see us and play with us. That afternoon, the sun was something else; so hot…so their daddy asked them to take a shower while their mum prepare something for us.
Jane, Mercy and Faithful were the first to get to the bathroom to shower…after that, Peter and Hannah went to take their shower…
As expected, kids do not take much time when taking their shower plus the TV was on and they were so in a hurry to come watch cartoon. But Little Peter and Hannah wasted time in the bathroom…
Pastor: Brother Derra, can you please help me check on the kids in the bathroom
Me: yes sir...
So I went to check on them…when I got to the bathroom door, I was hearing the sound of running water or buckets….so I peeped through the door hole…
Little Hannah wasn’t little after all…. She was pointing at Peter’s pee pee
Hannah: look at that
Peter: my pee pee!
Hannah: can I touch it?
Peter: yes…
She touched it….
Hannah: I don’t have it
Peter: because you are a girl…your own is like hole
Hannah: touch it.
He touched it…
Peter: uhmm… it’s somehow
Hannah: do you know, you can put your pee pee inside it
Peter: I know… but I can’t.
Hannah: why?
Peter: Dad will flog us...
I was so shocked at what I was staring out….
Hannah went close to peter and put her lips on his, like she was kissing him actually.
For some stupid and weird reasons, I was enjoying it… I was patiently waiting for the next move...
Pastor: Brother Derra, are they there?
Me: yes sir…
I knocked at the door…
Peter: almost done
Me: hurry up…Dad is waiting
Peter: okay!
I watched as they both pour water on their body and left the bathroom…
Oh doomed generation…who will save us from this? One may ask, how on earth kids of such age knew how to do that…
Later I found out, their mum was movie freak… she may be the pastor’s wife but she also loves Philippian films and Telemundo and all that.
I’m sure, their mum won’t be comfortable watching such movies with the kids…so most definitely, she will always tell them to watch the TV in their room whenever she wants to watch those.
One may then ask, “how come?”
Kids of my generations are not like the kids of the previous generation; their IQ is improved. They are smarter!
After eating, I called them aside and questioned them…
Me: Hannah, what were you two doing in the bathroom?
Peter: we were bathing?
Me: uhm… and she was touching your pee pee?
They became afraid…
Me: I will tell your mum!
Peter: brother please… brother please…
Hannah: *feeling remorse* sorry…please don’t tell mummy
Me: who taught you that?
Hannah: it’s from mum’s films
Me: mum’s films? Why are you watching mum’s film?
They became quiet…
Me: you two need to be flogged so you won’t do it again...
Peter: *crying* uncle, please!
Hannah: we will not do it again!
Me: promise?
Peter: yes.
Me: pinky swear!
They agreed not to ever repeat such again…but the fact is, they already know it. And there is no amount of talks or flogging that can remove such knowledge from a child.
Everywhere I went, they were always following me to make sure I won’t tell their parents…
Me: I promised I won’t tell them… okay? You don’t need to follow me.
Peter: thank you.
Well I was a man of my words; I kept their deed a secret. I wonder how many kids out there also do the same thing and their parents are never aware.