Doris was the only girl in a house full of boys. She had four brothers, and though many would think that being the only girl would make her more loved and protected, it didn’t turn out that way for her. Instead of learning from her brothers or helping out at home, Doris grew up stubborn, rude and unwilling to listen to anyone not even her parents.
Every morning, Doris woke up with a frown face. While her brothers helped sweep the compound and washes the dishes before going to school, Doris would roll over on her bed, cover herself with a rapper, and grumble loudly. If her mother asked her to sweep the floor or wash the plates, she would shout, “Leave me alone! I’m tired!” She had no respect for anyone. Even her father noticed her attitude but felt she would change with time. Sadly, she did not change be get worse day by day.
After school, her brothers would come home, eat, and helps with the house chores. Doris, on the other hand, would dump her schoolbag on the floor, go to the kitchen to take her lunch after eating, she will disappear. No one knew where she went to.She would run off to play with her friends in the street,Her mother would call and call her, but Doris would never answer. Sometimes, she wouldn’t return until nightfall. Time to cook? Doris will be missing. Time to wash clothes? Doris would pretend to be sick or too tired. She never stayed in the kitchen to learn anything instead playing with her friends.
Her mother kept warning her, Doris, one day you will regret this behavior. A woman must know how to cook, clean, and keep her home inorder. But Doris would wave her hand and walk away. That’s old fashioned mum, she would say. “I’ll marry a man who will do everything for me.
Years passed, and Doris grew into a beautiful young woman. She was admired for her looks, but deep inside, she was still the same stubborn, untrained girl. Soon, she met a man who fell in love with her. He was kind, hardworking, and ready to settle down. Doris didn’t hesitate she got married and moved into her new home, excited to live like as a queen in her beautyfull house.
But marriage was not what she expected. Her husband came back from work expecting a clean house and a nice meal, only to meet dirty dishes in the sink and an empty pot on the stove. Clothes piled up in the bedroom, and the house always smelled. Doris didn’t know how to sweep properly, cook properly . The type of food that she can cook properly is mostly for breakfast, which is noodles,fried yam and potatoes, make pap and tea.and often stayed out visiting friends without telling her husband where she was going to
Every day became a new argument. Her husband tried to correcting her. He spoke gently at first, but later he became frustrated. “Why can’t you act like a wife? Why can’t you clean the house? Why don’t you know how to cook?” .
Doris would snap back, “Why can’t you do it yourself? Am I your servant?”
The man was tired. He felt like he had married a child, not a woman. There was no mother or brother around to talk to her or guide her anymore. She started realizing, slowly, that everything her parents used to say was true. She remembered her mother’s voice saying, “A good home begins with a good woman.”
But it was too late. Her husband couldn’t bear it anymore. One day, after another argument, A few days later, he sent divorce papers. Doris was shocked, heartbroken, and ashamed. She returned to her father’s house in tears ,a big disappointment to herself
The whole neighborhood whispered behind her back. “That’s Doris, the girl who got divorced because she couldn’t keep her home,”Her brothers were now grown up and now living on their own . Her mother was disappointed in her.
Doris was full of regret. “If only I had listened… If only I had washed those dishes… If only I had stayed in the kitchen with Mama… If only I respected the warnings.”
But regret could not change the past. She had to start over again alone,She finally understood that beauty fades, but character remains. And it was her character that had cost her everything she have lost.