04/27/2026
While growing up, we had this woman in our compound.
She was very bïg in size, very, very biīg… the kind of person you will just notice immediately. She didn’t have any child, it was just her and her husband.
She had a provision shop—one of those busy ones where you’ll stand from morning till night attending to customers, collecting money, bringing out goods. No rest at all.
Her husband, on the other hand, used to go to farm work. He would leave very early in the morning, and come back early too.
But this woman?
She hardly came back before 12 midnight.
And what used to amaze me was what she would do immediately when she comes back.
She would go straight to the kitchen.
If there was no soup, she would start cooking soup Then after that, she would start pounding fufu.
Yes… pounding fufu around midnight.
Every single night.
They were staying upstairs then, so the noise was disturbing the people downstairs. The complaints became too much, and the landlord got angry and gave them quit notice.
That was when the woman started begging.
She said, “Please sir, my husband cannot do without fufu. If he doesn’t eat it, it’s like he has not eaten. His work is too stressful.”
The landlord later adjusted small. He moved them downstairs and gave her one small kitchen outside to be using.
From that day, the routine continued.
She would still come back around 12.
Still cook.
Still pound fufu.
Every night.
No matter how tired she was.
We all got used to it.
Then years later, she started having health issues. The stress, the late nights… it was too much for her body.
Before we knew it, she dïed.
Not long after, the husband married another woman.
The new wife took over the shop. She also works, but she doesn’t come back as late as the first woman. And one thing we all noticed
No more midnight pounding.
No more daily fufu.
Everything just became quiet.
And that’s where my confusion started…
Isn’t this the same man that they said cannot do without fufu?
Why is he not eating fufu every night again?
Why is the new wife not pounding like before?
Does it mean he can now suddenly do without fufu?
Abi the first wife was over doing things or maybe she too can't do without fufü??
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