Birthday Series

It is my birth month… Yay. Have said that like a million times right? Those who know me know how much I look forward to November….

I did promise to do a series on my past birthdays and here it is. For the next 3 weeks, would be giving different stories on my birthdays.

It would be in 3 installments *bbm smiley*, hopefully would put them up on Saturdays (my birthday is a Saturday this year) so the posts would come on Saturdays.

*Drums roll* First story; First decade

I have a just one birthday mate. Or well, for a long time I thought we were the only two people born on that day. He was a neighbour and a family friend (two years younger though). His mum’s birthday was the day after ours and I remember we formed a clique of November Children. There was this NTA program every month to celebrate birthdays and she always dropped us off at NTA Ibadan then. Yes, the program was Ribena Children’s something something (need to ask my immediate younger sister; she tends to remember such; think that’s one of the reasons I love Ribena so much). So for most parts of our childhood, we alternated. This year, the party is @ our place, the next year, it is @ his parents. And on and on we went… till we became too big for such.

I pretty much can’t remember my birthday till I was 7 or thereabout. All I remember is checking my birthday pictures and in every picture I was always in mufti. My elder sister and I actually. My birthday was her birthday. Her birthday was mine. We both went to school in mufti. Everybody else wore school uniforms.

I guess it must have been fun… one day asides End of term or End of year party, am allowed to come to school dressed differently. I think the thrill really was the fact that I got 3 new dresses to wear in a month. My birthday is a month to Christmas. So I get a new cloth for my birthday, another for Christmas and another for New Year. Ok, enough digression.

My 7th birthday musta been fun, can’t remember much except the cakes, taking drinks to school and party packs and the party after.

Then came my 8th birthday. As usual, new dress with all the packaging, and shoes. Then mumsie makes the mistake of giving me the dress 2 days before my birthday. I sharply collected it and hung it in my wardrobe. Brought it out later that night (24th) and hung it where I could see it. Truth be told, I doubt I slept that night. Somehow in my mind, my birthday was the next day (mumsie won’t give you your dress till the night before); did I forget what date it was? I think so.

I remember waking up that morning (25th) without anybody waking me, had my bath and was about to remove the dress when I remembered it wasn’t yet my birthday. I think that made me sick because before the day ended, I was admitted.

That was palava number 2. First time I was gonna be admitted and drips came with the admission package and it had to be the day before my birthday. I begged and did all I can to make them give me injections and go home, the doctor refused. So first drip came, I saw the nurse set it and she left. Mehn, it was so slow…. Took hours to finish. Then she came later and brought another drip. I checked again and freed. Slow once again. The third time she came, I waited about 10 minutes after she left and adjusted the drip. Apparently, she is able to gauge how long it takes so the drip had finished way before she came in; somehow though, she came in before the time she guessed it would have finished. Looks at me and is wondering how the drip finished that quickly. I had formed sleep by then.

So she puts the 4th drip. I wait till she is done, gave her some time and adjusted it again. She comes in about 45 minutes after and again, the drip had finished. Once again I had formed sleep. So she frees me and there I was praying mumsie came on time before a 5th drip surfaced. My prayers were answered. Mumsie comes about 15 minutes after and I declare that am well; and I did feel better anyway so I was discharged. Got home and instead of me to sit down in peace, started playing again.

Finally, it is 26th. Awake early again, all dressed up before the others and off to school. I felt fine in school o. Played well sef. Then get home for the after party. All I can remember after that is it was time to cut the cake and I started throwing up (the party that year was at my family friend’s place and his dad is a Doctor) and blanked out. What happened between about 2pm and 8.30 that night, I don’t know. The party went on without me… *bbm crying smiley*. I wasn’t even allowed to eat anything from the party; cake, ice-cream, drinks, nofin.

27th, I was back at Bethel (the hospital). This time though, the doctor gave me injections and allowed me to go home. By then it had clicked in the nurse’s head what happened to the drips 2 days before and she asked me. She never told my mum fortunately.

I learnt my lesson though. My 9th? I was too too gentle. No stress at all. School party and house party after. Same for my 10th.

Then came Secondary School……