Is it too late to share my April Tale?

Sorry, I'm not yet the baddest bish on the block.

Dear Reader, 

Remember when I mentioned that I have never had the privilege to do the six-pics-one-month something that wraps a month? Well, my dear readers, I’m here bearing good news. I finally did it!!! And with books, the absolute love of my life. 

Okayyyy, the last time I did a monthly wrap was in February and I promised you all that I would be the baddest bish on the block in March. How did that go for me? Not good.Life sometimes goes differently than planned. March was incredibly chaotic for me; all my plans decided to slip through life's sieve, leaving me feeling not just empty but also angry. 

You know that feeling of really wanting something and then not getting it? That was how March ended for me; I felt betrayed, as if the universe was conspiring against me, and anyone who chose to add, “Everything happens for a reason” to their beautifully packed advice totally failed me. It felt like a slap to my face, more like toxic positivity. 

Then, as I slowly tried to accept life’s blow, boom… I noticed a sharp pain in my lower abdomen. Wait, is this some kind of joke? I thought April would be better. Tell me April Fool is still possible on April 6th when I was rushed to the hospital. 

I was instructed to undergo a scan, which turned out to be a rather amusing experience; I won't lie, but let me not digress. The result came out, and everything seemed okay, but just below, in the last paragraph, it read with bold lettering: Acute Appendicitis. And for the first time in an awful week, I genuinely laughed. If the universe wants to play this game, I might as well join it - I heard being happy has its perks. 

Photo by Senjuti Kundu on Unsplash

I entered the operating room a bit scared but not angry. All the anger in me has evaporated into thin air. My sister said I was out within an hour and a bit unconscious, saying silly things like “I'm in pain” in a comic voice, the same tone I used only when joking. Yes, that voice. 

I won't bore you with the details of how I recovered and began to appreciate food, life, and everything in between. While healing, books were my only means to transport me into another world without moving a muscle. I have always loved reading, but this time… I was particularly grateful for the existence of writers who have taken the time to think constructively, develop their stories, and share them with the world. 

So, even though I couldn't move or do much without the help of someone, I could read, and that I did. 

Yessss, here's my April Dump. I read 16 books, but here are the ones that stayed with me, like my blankets, pillow, and mattress, and made my mind leave the room to places my body couldn't go. Join me as I share some interesting quotes from the books:

“Being an adult is overrated, don’t you think? he said. Just as you solve one problem, ten more pull up.”

It occurs to me that if I do survive, I'll carry a new revelation with me for the rest of my days: we leave this life the same way we enter it, totally alone, berest.

“You must never behave as if your life belongs to a man. Do you hear me?” Aunty Ifeka said. “Your life belongs to you and you alone.”

There are two answers to the things they will teach you about our land: the real answer and the answer you give in school to pass. You must read books and learn both answers.

“Let’s face it, a lot of times love doesn’t work out. Yet even when it fails, it connects you to others and, in the end, that is all you have, the connections. Look at us; you and I have each other now, and just think, if I have kids and you have kids, well, that’s a whole new string of connections. And on it goes.

We all want to think that we’re important to the people who are important to us. But sometimes, our best friend is someone else’s best friend.

The same universe that dispassionately takes things away can bring you things you weren’t imaginative enough to dream up.

Life, I’d learned, is a revolving door. Most things that come into it only stay awhile.

---

Okay, I think this newsletter is getting more serious than I am, see you next time.