I have a young friend. She clocked 21 about one month ago.
8th October, 2019 she sent me a message on WhatsApp.
Hi…good morning Ma’am. I am a newbie in writing… like a real novice who wants to make it in life through writing. I need a teacher. Please, if you don’t mind, can you be my teacher? Please?
I replied, I’m Booky. What’s yours?
She said, Ejiro
Dear Ejiro,
I am quite busy these days and I don’t think I can actually coach a young writer. I can only give you a few tips and direct you to resource materials you can learn from.
Ejiro : No problem… I’ll be grateful with anything you can offer.
That was how Ejiro and I began to chat back and forth. At first, it was purely writing. She wanted to write stories and of course, I know a thing or two about storytelling, so yes, she was in the right place.
I kept sending her tips and links to read. She was responding until late last year when I heard nothing from her.
I had to put a call through and she told me her Android phone was faulty.
This year, she got another phone and our relationship took a dive in a new direction.
We began to ask after each other’s health and in one of those chats, she mentioned that she was working as a house help. I wasn’t shocked but I was surprised that in spite of her circumstances, she still wanted to develop herself. She wants to make something out of her life regardless. Ejiro finds it easy to tell me about her challenges. Recently, she complained of headaches and fever. I called her and after cheering her up, I told her to send her account number. “I may not be very rich at the moment but I can do a little.”
Do you know that Ejiro refused to send her account details? Till now, I don’t have it. She doesn’t want to zap from me or she probably estimates our relationship higher than any amount I could send to her at the moment.
She got me since I read her first message. Was it the respectful tone? Was it the fact that I don’t get these requests so often? Was it out of the goodness of my heart? I can’t tell but I know, we have a relationship.
On her birthday, I told her to write her story and I loved it.
I will share the story with y’all tomorrow.
Until then,
Blessings!
Booky Glover 