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Raimond (m)
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We live in a society where women are easily vilified, abused, misunderstood; you name it. A lot of times people don`t take a second to want to find out why we do the things we do sometimes, yet they don`t waste the next second in casting aspersions.
I did not go out on the streets because I was a sex-maniac, in fact before now; I never had an ignoble opinion about sex. Don`t get me wrong I’m not trying to justify anything, just that I was more or less was a victim of circumstance, even though the choice was mine to make ultimately.
My name is Uloma (Not real name), I was born into a comfortable family of five, I’m the last born and the second girl, my parents were, and are still trading in Aba. Things took a turn for the worse when my father lost virtually all his money is a transaction that went wrong, and has not recovered since, we lived more like from hand to mouth. My elder sister got married off, as a survival strategy, while my brothers had to go work for some masters, where they hope to be `settled` at the end. I struggled to finish my secondary education, after I stayed off for some years, and by the time I was finishing I was already 23 years, only that I have a youthful look. This I did by having to sell my body sometimes (As I was introduced into the act by my friends in school, some much younger than I was: which I reluctantly obliged) When I wasn`t doing that, I was helping my now parents in the shop.
After my secondary school, I got a job as a shop attendant in the same market, and was paid peanuts, but I had to do it because I needed the money.
During the Christmas period in December of 2005,Amara (Not real names) a friend form secondary school came into town, looking quite good, and when I inquired, she told me she was in Uyo, Akwa Ibom state,` doing business`. She told me about the town and the potentials of making some good money there. I wasn`t interested initially since I had a little job, but as fate would have it, my oga fired me at the end of January 2006 for reasons best known to him.
To cut the story short, I joined Amara in Uyo to do `business`. I have to say Uyo was good, there was so much money in the place, and I never knew that town was that rich. Barely two months after I got back in the trade in Uyo, I was standing close to the location where 2nd Base a popular hangout in the ever busy `Maitama` district of the town is now located, when this clean black Toyota Camry pulled up beside me, the driver wound down and a couple of us approached the car, when we got to the guy, he made it clear that it was I, he wanted. He opened the door and said, ``hop in let`s talk``. We drove off slowly (I noticed he was handsome, had a very good scent, coupled with the good smell of his car freshener, in fact the guy was really clean, but then he appeared quite uneasy) and I thought he was going to start the normal bargaining, but rather he said, ``Hey, I’m not up for fun tonight, just let me have your name and number, so I could call you by the weekend`` I got somewhat upset, and told him he was wasting my business time and had to pay for that, he apologized and offered to make up for it. I gave him my name and number, (after telling me his name was Eno-Not real name), and gave me N500 for Suya, as he put it, and zoomed off.
He finally called by the Friday of that week, and told me where to meet him. I got there and waited for him, when he got there, I took time to assess him again as he approached where I was seated; he was dark, of average height, trim/athletic build, and a serious baby face, he could easily be mistaken for a teenager, but he was already 28 at that time. We got together in a room he got, had a few drinks (He was not into alcohol, except socially) ate and did a lot of talking: He pushed me into telling him my story, he told me about himself too. At the end, he told me he wanted us to be friends, but I quickly retorted ``you want to be friends with a prostitute,you know i sleep with other men, what are you thinking about, and what would your friends or family think? He gave me that disarming babyish smile when I said that. In the course of the conversation, he told me I was the kind of woman he wanted, shape-wise. (I`m not fat, but I have some generous amount of flesh on me and God really blessed me with the right shape). By the time we parted ways that evening; I had already developed some feelings for him, and feelings I have never had. (He was extremely nice to me).
Eno works with one of the Telecom companies and also has a shop where he sells phones and gizmos by the side, he`s from a very comfortable home (They had not always been comfortable, it came over time) He`s the only male, and the first born in a family of 3 siblings. He is very cool, so caring and I don`t doubt his love for me at all, but has his short-comings, one of which is his bad temper, which he trying to work on.
The long and short of it is that, Eno and I became friends, he immediately took me off the streets and got me a small job in his aunt’s furniture shop as an sales assistant, he made me clear my phonebook of all `clients` contact, some I even had to call and tell that I was no more in that business, but it took him a while to go public with me, he allowed things happen naturally, but gradually things fell into shape. I agreed to leave the streets because I was already in love with him, so his wish was my command. He was finally ready to face the world on my account, so we started going out together, to the club, eateries, tinapa, even went to Abuja to watch one of the 2010 world cup qualifiers, I had to get into the premier league frenzy, because he was a die-hard Arsenal fan. I met his friends and family and he met mine eventually. We have also had some moments of embarrassment but he stood his ground and by me. I am now in my third year in the School of Continuing Education, at the University of Uyo, studying psychology. We plan to move from Akwa Ibom when I’m done with my education.
I have seen men of all sorts, but not even one compares to Eno. God brought him as a light to my life, when I had given up on life, and was drifting wherever the turbulent waves of life took me. God used him to give me life again, and he took a step that 99.99% of men would not dare for the love he has for me. As I watch him sleep away beside me, I stare into his baby face and it seems like a dream, on the other side of the bedroom, Ediomo (Ibibio for Covenant), our three-month-old daughter is carefully tucked away in her crib. Each time I see my husband of 15 months, I see nothing else but RARE and PURE love in those eyes. God loves me so much. I still can`t seem to get a grip of this unusual occurrence in my life.
Eno and I are already working together with some like-minded friends and the wife of the state deputy governor, on an NGO that is set to take `Maitama` girls off the street and give their lives a meaning. I was blessed that things turned out for good for me, but my husband and I have a burden for the hundreds of street girls out there, who might not be so lucky.
GOD BLESS ALL THE GOOD MEN THAT ARE STILL WALKING THE FACE OF THE EARTH!!!
This piece was written with my husband`s full consent. He actually proof-read, edited and did the correction, with some parts of the script removed for reasons he termed too sensitive.
Culled form the Community shield,an Uyo based local daily.
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