Tribute

Yesterday evening I went for Bible Study which turned out to be a wake keeping service for a 61 year old woman. I’ve never been to one so I decided to stay through the three hours it took. She died when she was serving in church (a sanctuary keeper). When it was time for the tribute, everyone had something great to say about her. She was so much loved and most people went on to celebrate how sure they were that she’s in heaven which is every believer’s goal. It made me realize death doesn’t give warning and everyone will have something to say about you, whether negative or positive. It also made me think of my parents. I don’t want to wait until I’m writing their tribute on the biography pages to show how much I love them.

My dad Aniefiok Johnson, is a very gentle man. We don’t talk much but he has served as my mathematics, English, (and every other subject I didn’t understand) teacher. Growing up I watched him work tirelessly to send me and my siblings to the best and elite schools. He doesn’t talk much but he’s mouth is always filled with wisdom when he speaks. I’ve never seen my dad have any argument with anybody. He’s the type of person that will just let it go so he won’t have to exchange words. He rarely gets angry but when he does, it goes off quickly. He has been very supportive in every stage of my life. I learn from him everyday. His relation to people and handling matters, his advice when things don’t go well as planned. He’s a cool dad although he would never understand why we keep spending money going to see a movie when it can be done at home. My dad is a helper, he gives freely without bad blood. He has never touched my mum. Most importantly, God handcrafted my dad to serve him. A man that wakes up every night to pray for hours no matter what is going through. He will sit me and my siblings down for hours giving us advice that will last for a lifetime but on academics and career. He’s a savvy businessman. I love you so much.

My mother Abigail Johnson is exceptional. She’s very beautiful and you’d never guess she’s up to 40 and 27 years in marriage with 5 grownup children. She’s as creative as I am. She has done several forms of businesses and excelled in them. Most people that don’t know she’s my mum always call her my elder sister because of how young she looks. My mum is like every other Nigerian mom you can relate to. Very strict, she won’t hesitate to shout at you for doing something wrong. She is very funny and can exaggerate for Africa. I prefer my mum flogging me than shouting at me because you’ll cry. She has her moments. She’s soft spoken at times even though she won’t want to see reasons with you why things don’t work out. She would rather jump into conclusions and apologize later. She’s always worried about what people will think, hence she strives for the best in everything.

Apart from her Whatsapp bc’s which are horror and annoying, my mum is a goal getter and very accommodative. She would rather let you go through the fire and let you come out unscathed than being lukewarm. She is a woman after God’s own heart. She’s always drunk in God’s word and prayers. She’s a no-nonsense woman. It’s so fun being around her.

My mum always gives her story of how she didn’t get it easy but her efforts made her scale through in life to encourage us. She’s a giver like my dad. She very tough, sometimes I get scared of her.

I’m very grateful to God for putting them as my guardians, the upbringing they gave me and my siblings is out of this world. They made us put God at the center of our universe. Our morals, lifestyle and character was imbibed in us through them. As God has started a good thing in them, He will perfect it until the day of Jesus Christ and He will satisfy them with long life.

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