It's actually four years since I lost my dad Mr. Hezekiah Ibekala, who was very sick. He was a professional plumber who was very good with the work. He worked for several firms and we lived a comfortable live. We are Igbo people from Southeastern, Nigeria.
Before His Death
What a home to behold, we had all it takes to have a comfortable live. We had the essentials of life, house, cars and at least 3 square meals. Having a loving father was also important in my upbringing as a child. My father showered his unending love for I and my siblings. Mom was so comfortable that she didn't expect the inevitable of life. Being a lover of fashion, mom bought the best clothes, shoes and took us out for lunch at several eateries.
The Inevitable Occurred
The sickness was so severe that we started auctioning our properties just to raise money for my father's survival. On the 17th of August 2017, after all our efforts, he finally gave up the ghost. It was a time I saw agoni or weeping, my family cried and on the 23rd of September 2017 we buried him. Africans and their process of burying their dead. We spent almost all that we had trying to meet up with the cultural demand for his burial. We bought goats and some other items that were required for his burial.
After the Burial Sets the Reality of Life
I, mom and my three siblings came back to Port Harcourt, Nigeria, where we reside. Mom couldn't sustain dad's business so she sold the plumbing materials that was in dad's shop. After this period, mind you I was only 17 years old and the first child of my parents. 2017 was the year I wrote my Senior School Certificate Examination (S.S.C.E) with the prospects of entering the university that year, but with the death of my dad, it was not possible. This was because we had exhausted dad's savings and dad had no life insurance that would have helped us recover from his illness and death.
It wasn't easy for us to feed regularly took less of eating three square meals. My younger ones were looking up to me. It was hell because wasn't doing anything to provide for our daily needs.
God Intervened
In 2018, a family took me and decided to take care of my academics. I later wrote and passed my school certificate. In 2019, I proceeded to the Uma Ukpai Polytechnic, Ohafia, Nigeria. Today I have finished my National Diploma waiting to complete my Bachelor of Science (B.SC) in Accounting.
Finally, life without insurance and shares for children is very difficult after the death of ones parents. It's not easy to survive without the bread winner of the family.