Shelter over our heads

photo by @wakeupkitty

I am a victim
Of what? you may ask
The troubles of single parenthood
Is what I've been suffering from right from childhood.

I've watched my Mom go through emotional trauma
Feeling the pains as she raised 6 kids on her own
I watched her struggle to make ends meet
To feed her little creatures, she battled

I watched her go through verbal abuse
One from an irresponsible landlord
Who nagged for his rent almost every day

Yes, paying for a one room apartment wasn't easy
A room whose roof leaked unceasingly
A narrow rickety room we managed to live in
Shelter over our heads was the most important thing

I watched us squeeze our little bodies in this room
Feeling mum's protection and care
As a mother hen to her chicks

I was determined to succeed
To acquire not rooms but houses
I had promised mum a spacious room to herself
If she lingered on

But I watched her struggle to breathe few years later
She had told me:
"Enough of the struggles"
I hand over your siblings to you
Do take care of them

Despite my pleas
The middle-aged lady left us
Alone in the cold world
Tattered and shattered we became

The Landlord........
We couldn't keep up to his nags any more
Besides the breadwinner is long gone
Migration is necessary I thought

We found ourselves under the bridge
Olaregun highway bridge, where our likes found solace
We joined them, a newfound home we've got

Well, that's all in the past
Don't wanna recall such awful memories
I'm too emotional you know

Today I'm a successful real estate agent
With fleets of houses in my beck and call
My siblings are entitled to beautiful rooms each in my mansion

Mom isn't left out
I had promised to put a roof over her head someday
Today, I dedicate this beautiful room to my Mom
Hey Mom:
You never had it while you were alive but here's a room
One that'll always remind us
Of the odds you went through
To put shelter over our heads