The Rebel

Last night i stayed in bed all through. Waiting for him to come. Waiting to hear his footsteps on the wooden floor of my room. I wascrawled into a bun like a wounded millepede. I have to protect myself. I am like the endangered specie Ms. Grace talked about in her Biology class.

"If you tell anyone, i'll kill you"

His eyes burnt through his skull like fire and tears flowed freely down my face. Papa was a fierce looking man. He had thick, dark brows that were barely divided at the center of his forehead. His dark skin made it difficult to tell where the brows began and where they ended. I remember playing with his bushy beard when i was five. Now i'm ten.

"Things are different now, you're a woman now and i have to protect you. Its my duty as a father and i will not fail God. We must obey Him." he told me during one of his late night visits to my tiny room.

"Your bear-bear can plait shuku now" Mama often teased him. I thought he looked like Santa Claus, my very own Father Christmas. The big belly, the huge features and his wonderful black beard. But Mama was gone and i did'nt play Santa and daughter with Papa. I'm all grown up now.


"No one will know what happened to you if you die. I'll say you killed yourself, you hear" He pushed me against the wall last night. My back still hurts with pain. I started to recite Psalm 23 queitly like Mama taught me. How i miss her smell.

He leads me through the path of righteousness for his name sake
even though i walk through the valley of the......

I heard footsteps...he was coming for me....