Mum Breathes Her Last

The Swahili people say, "Hayawi hayawi huwa. (What has not happened will eventually happen.)" Well, my wonderful Mum, who has been suffering from stroke, diabetes and heart disease, passed away yesterday morning as I watched.

Dad had awakened me from slumber and asked me to go see what was happening to her. I found her lying flat on their bed, sleepily breathing in spurts before becoming motionless. Though I tried giving her the kiss of life, it was like she was gone.

When Dad called my brothers Joe, Bob and Paddy to inform them about Mum's condition, they asked an ambulance to come home. And Pascaline, a neighbor who likes flashing a beatific smile at people, came driving with her husband in no time. She told us it was Bob who had informed her about what was happening.

Although Pascasline did the right thing to come, her car couldn't help because Mum was neither talking nor moving. It was the ambulance, which arrived moments later with two or three health-care professionals, that drove her to hospital.

No sooner was Mum in the ambulance than I went back to my room and collapsed on the bed. I skipped my morning routine and chose to stay in bed while thinking about Mum who I was sure was dead.

I remembered how she had gone to our farm the previous day to relax as usual. Perhaps what made the day unusual was the phone call I received from her during which she asked me to close the door of our mansion to keep the women who stole our plates a few weeks ago from doing so again.

That phone call of hers touched me so much that I resolved to love whoever she loved and hate whoever she hated. Little did I know that would be her last day on Earth.

When Bob came home at around noon, he confirmed my fears that Mum had died. I felt like sobbing but tried to appear strong. Later on, Joe and Paddy joined us. They looked calm and cool as they talked about Mum's last moments. And Paddy told me he could take me to the mortuary to view her body.

The news of Mum's death spread in our home area like wildfire given the way a number of neighbors came to condole with us. Their kindness and concern for us impressed me.

One of the neighbors, Mrs. Josephine Masibo, spoke of how she heard that Mum had gone to our farm the previous day. I agreed with what she said and then added that less than 24 hours before, Mum had phoned Dad to ask him where he was. I was sad as I said so but expressed my hopes of reuniting with her again.

All the same, I'm still sad to lose the woman who gave me life. Now motherless, I will no longer have someone to wish me journey mercies and Christ's blessings when leaving home for leisure walks.

Somehow, these words from the book of Job are my solace: "Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I shall depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised."

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RECOMMENDATION: If you've enjoyed this story, you might also enjoy "A Mother's Strength".