Volume 1:Chapter 1:Her Story

Mary Louisiana Abraham set the last plates into the dishwasher. She was tired. The day's work was more strenuous than before. She switched the dishwasher on and went towards the kitchen door. Her siblings were already screaming all around the house. The little energy she had left was about to be drained by the consistent screaming. As the eldest child and only girl, her parents had made it known to her that she had a lot of responsibilities. Her family had moved to Pennsylvania a few years back. The whole thought of moving disrupted her. She was sixteen now and she had her social life right before her, she had friends and she wanted to be a free woman who had fewer responsibilities and was also taken care of. These were the things she wanted but she knew they could never come true as her parents were strict in their decisions. She left her brothers and went to sit on the porch. She hummed 'fight song' as she rocked the chair.

Her family was quite religious and her parents made sure their children grew to know God. She never questioned the fact whether God was real or not, she grew up with it and she believed it with all her heart. In her soul, she had always had a feeling He was always beside her. She felt He was going to use her for something great and she was going to surrender to His call. The church beside her house had begun to sing hymns. It was something she had gotten used to over the past four years since she started living there. Their songs always found her way to her soul. The quiet serenity was the break she needed from all the screaming and house chores. Few minutes after enjoying the quiet she headed into the house and still saw her brothers shouting at the top of their lungs. She didn't have the strength to start stopping them. She saw Judah on the floor crying. She bent down to pick him up and saw he was bleeding from his thumb

'Let's get you all cleaned up and bandaged.' She reassured the young lad. She took him to the kitchen and got the first aid box to clean up the injury and stop the blood. After she had bandaged the thumb she set him down from the slab. He walked over to the two boys who were already dragging the cushion pillow with each other. They pushed Judah down as he walked over to where they stood. 'Stubborn boys, they don't even care about their little brother.' She murmured. 'John, James, will you stop all these racketings. Didn't you see your younger brother on the floor crying? When will you learn to put others first rather than yourselves?' Her voice seemed to have calmed the two boys and brought them to reality.

'He pushed me first! And he bit me.' John said angrily.

'Aren't you the eldest of these two boys? You are to be matured. Even if he did so weren't you to report rather than take laws into your hands. That's how you show maturity and be a child of God.' She took the cushion pillow and set it where it was meant to be. 'Now who is hungry for noodles?' The boys nodded. She knew they would be hungry after they had shouted all morning. Mary then went into the kitchen and set a pot on fire with water in it and put the noodles she got from the cabinet in. After waiting for five minutes, the noodles were done and she served it to the boys. They all sat down in the parlor and watched some cartoons. At least that would calm them down. It was already half-past seven and she was exhausted. After eating the boys all sat down and began to play games on John's tablet.

Her mind traveled to her parents. Her parents Martha Abraham and Jesse Abraham were missionaries- which explained why they were so religious- and they didn't want their children having difficulties in settling down and making friends. Their move to Pennsylvania was their last. Her parents were already on another evangelical mission and wouldn't be back till a month's time. Mary knew her parents adored her and they appreciated her efforts in taking care of her brothers especially when they weren't around but she wanted them to know she was a girl that had a life. She looked over to where her brothers were playing and she saw they were already asleep. She took the remote and changed the station. It was time for her favorite TV show; Botched. She was intrigued at how people spent billions of naira changing their natural shape and look that God gave them for something artificial. Her show was interrupted by her phone ringing. The noise was loud and was already sniffling. She picked the call and went to her room.

'Hello, good evening.'

'Hi Mary, How are you doing?'

'I am doing fine today, sir. How about you?'

'Fine, just decided to check up on you since your parents aren't around and I have told you several times to drop this sir of a thing. We are engaged, betrothed to each other. Let's drop this formality and address ourselves as we are meant to. You are my future Bride.' His laughter was cute and small and it rang through the call. She loved that about Joseph but the word future bride still gave her goosebumps. She was sixteen and betrothed to Joseph. He was handsome, no doubt but she was quite underage for marriage. Her parents had told her this news last year and she had argued all night with them but she knew that it couldn't change a thing. Her parents have made her understand that in their family 'your first boyfriend will be your last; he'd be your first fiancée and your last.' Their wedding was to take place when she was eighteen years old. She was in her last year of senior high school and was already preparing for marriage. Her friends in school mocked her and always laughed at her when they found out she was engaged. She didn't even want them to know that his father had a furniture shop. They will call him a carpenter's son. She didn't hate what he did but will her friends accept him.

'I will try. What have you been up to this week?' The last few minutes were spent talking about what they had gone through in the week. She knew Joseph will have a lot to say especially since his father owned a furniture shop in Nazareth and he went to help his father during the weekend. He was in Nazareth already and he was quite enjoying himself while she was at home taking care of her younger ones. She needed a retirement from all these.

'It's getting late; I will see you in Church tomorrow. Have a good night and greet your brothers for me' He kissed her goodbye from the phone and cut the call. Mary appreciated his call as it made her get out of her tired shell. She went out of her room and went to the parlour to see her brothers snuggled together. She began to carry them one by one to the room they shared. After taking care of her brothers she made sure the whole house was tidied up, she ironed their Sunday wears and then retired to bed.