09/08/2025
"They hired me to care for their 92-year-old grandmother.
They told me not to talk too much, not to expect much.
But that old woman…
She saw what nobody else did.
And before she died, she left something behind that shocked the entire family."
They Paid Me to Take Care of Their Grandmother — But She Took Care of My Life Instead”
1. I TOOK THE JOB OUT OF DESPERATION
My name is Ajoke.
I had just lost my parents and dropped out of school.
I was 26. Jobless. Broke. Tired of asking for help.
A friend told me about a family in Ikoyi who needed a live-in caregiver for their grandmother.
“They’ll pay you ₦40,000 monthly,” she said.
I didn’t care about the pay. I just needed food and a roof over my head.
That’s how I met Grandma Ethel.
---
2. THE FAMILY DIDN’T CARE ABOUT HER
They lived in a mansion.
Everything looked shiny, but cold.
Her children visited once a month — sometimes not at all.
Her grandchildren never called.
“Just feed her. Bathe her. Give her drugs. She likes to talk — don’t mind her too much,” they told me.
But I listened to her anyway.
And she listened to me too.
---
3. THE FIRST TIME SHE HELD MY HAND
She was 92. Fragile. Wrinkled. Wise.
One afternoon, I was crying quietly in the kitchen.
She called out, “Ajoke, come.”
I wiped my face and went to her room.
She held my hand and said,
> “You remind me of my younger self.
Strong on the outside. Broken on the inside.
Don’t worry, child. Everything will change.”_
---
4. THE NIGHTS I SPENT BY HER SIDE
She had insomnia.
Most nights, I’d sit beside her bed, listening to stories about her youth, war, marriage, and regrets.
She’d say, “My children have forgotten me. But you? You see me.”
I didn’t do much.
Just small talk. Back rubs. Hot tea.
But somehow, she said I gave her life again.
---
5. THE FAMILY STARTED TO GET ANNOYED
Her daughter noticed.
“Why is she always calling your name?”
“You’re not here to become her friend, you know?”
I nodded and said nothing.
But Grandma Ethel always said,
> “Let them talk. They never saw me. You did.”_
---
6. THE SECRET ROOM
One day, Grandma Ethel told me,
> “There’s a box under my bed. If anything happens to me, open it.”_
I promised.
Weeks passed.
She got weaker.
Then, one morning… she didn’t wake up.
---
7. THE LETTER THAT SHOCKED EVERYONE
After the funeral, the family didn’t even shed a tear.
They began to argue over her will before the service ended.
That night, I opened the box.
Inside was a letter:
> _“To my dearest Ajoke,
You reminded me of my humanity when the world forgot.
I’ve changed my will.
You now own the property in Shomolu.
And ₦2.5 million in my GTB account.
This is not a reward — it’s a thank you.
Love,
Grandma Ethel”_
---
8. THE FAMILY TRIED TO FIGHT IT
When the lawyer confirmed the will, they went crazy.
“How can a total stranger inherit anything?!”
“She manipulated Mama!”
But the lawyer said,
> “Madam Ethel was of sound mind.
And she wrote this will with her own hand, recorded on video, stating:
‘Ajoke gave me peace. My family gave me presence.’”_
---
9. I MOVED OUT — INTO THE LIFE SHE LEFT FOR ME
I left their mansion quietly.
Moved into the small Shomolu property — a bungalow with a garden.
I renovated it.
Started a small elderly care center.
Named it Ethel’s Arms.
It began with 3 old women.
Today, we care for over 50 across Lagos.
All because one forgotten woman… remembered me.
---
10. THE DAY HER GRANDDAUGHTER CAME TO ME
Years later, Grandma Ethel’s granddaughter visited me.
She sat quietly in the waiting room.
I recognized her immediately.
She looked at me and said,
> “I judged you.
But today I needed help for my own mother… and someone told me to come here.
I’m sorry.”_
I smiled.
“Forgiveness is easy,” I said, “when love leads the way.”
---
Every flower in my garden blooms with her memory.
Every old person I help… is a thank you to her.
I was hired to take care of a dying woman.
But she ended up breathing life into me.
