I am a 55 year old typist. I work at the Obafemi Awolowo University teaching Hospitals Complex. I chose not to have an elaborate education since I already have a customary duty. I come from a royal family, one of the four houses that produce the King. I have two wives as the local custom allows me to take as many wives as I can cater for. I have four daughters by my first wife. When she could not give birth any more due to obstetric complications, I took another wife with the hope that she would give me a male child. In out custom, it is desirable for a man to have a male child.
My case is even more peculiar due to the fact that I might not become a King during my lifetime as the present one is still young and healthy. I need to have a male child that would take my place as the crown prince when I eventually join my ancestors. I made it a point of duty to fulfill this tradition since I was the only child that my father, the former king gave birth to in his own time. My second wife eventually gave me a male child after giving birth to three girls. So in total, I have seven girls and my last born, with my last born, the heir of the family.
I reside in Ile-Ife, a town that prides itself with the fact that it is the origin of the Yoruba race. It is about 50 km from Lagos, the former capital of Nigeria which has now become the commercial capital of Nigeria. It can be described as an urban centre compared with other adjourning towns. It is quite a big town as it proudly hosts the most popular university in Nigeria, Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU). It also boasts of a tertiary hospital, OAU teaching Hospital. Going by standards, I can proudly say that my family is in good condition.
This is because both of my wives have a stable paid job which they use to support the family. All my schooling children are doing well in their various fields of study while my first daughter is already married and has given me two grandsons already, so I am a grandfather. A typical day in my life consists of waking up early in the morning and saying my prayers. After this, I make sure that everyone else is up and preparing for the day’s job. I prepare myself for work while making sure that every other member of my family is doing the same thing.
Concurrently, I listen to the news on radio. I drop off my some of my children in school since the school is located far away in the outskirts of the town. I resume for work at 8:00 am and usually close for work by 3: 30 pm. I come back home to freshen up, take a nap before setting out for my farm. I grow vegetables and yam augment my income so as to be able to cater for my relatively large family. Right now, the political environment is stable, not like 5 years ago when the town was at war with another town, in a brutal war of supremacy (the infamous Ife-Modakeke crisis).
Because of this, I make sure that my children do not make too many friends for fear of being betrayed if another war breaks out. My diet consists of local foods, mostly carbohydrates made from corn, yam and cassava. They include eba (from cassava), amala (from yam), fufu (also from cassava), beans and occasionally, rice. My wives go to the central market to buy food stuffs since they are cheaper but I must say that there is a market in every nook and cranny of the town.
Groceries are bought from our next door neighbor who has a big supermarket that serves the whole neighborhood. Entertainment varies a lot. On weekends, I watch the English Premier league on Television while at other times, I just chill out with friends to play local games like drought, ayo olopon or just discuss over a cup of palm wine which is the local drink. My greatest worry is that I would not live to inherit the throne of my father and I hope that my son would be bold enough to take up his rightful inheritance when he is eventually called upon one day to become the King.