Sharp Tongue

Episode 16

Sheila la!d on her bed lost in thoughts. It
was a few minutes past eight. She had woken up
thirty minutes ago. The night had seemed short,
although she slept well. Her parents told
her that they were in the longer days, shorter nights time frame.

She had been discharged from the hospital
a few days ago. She did not recognize the house
or her own bedroom. Her parents had been
supportive.

They were lovely people, she was glad that
she was their daughter.

The retired doctor, her grand-father, had
scheduled weekly check up for her at the
hospital. She wished she didn’t have to go.

She had also been informed that she would be
spending quality time with members of the
Adams family, hopefully, it will help her to
retrieve her memory.

She wondered what kind of relationship she
had, had with each of her family members.
Whenever she remembered her aunt, Martha, it made her shudder. What did she do to deserve such coldness? The woman simply didn’t like
her. If her relationship with Martha was less cordial, what about other members of the family?
Someone knocked at her door. She blinked
and sat up. The door opened and her parents
walked in, one after the other.
“Morning pumpkin.”

“Hope you had a goodnight.”
“Morning dad, mum.”
Her mother sat on the bed, while her father
leaned on the wall.

“How are you feeling?”
She shrugged.
“I bet you are hungry. I made club
sandwich,”

she smiled at her.

She smiled back, eating sandwich alongside
a cup of hot milky beverage, that would be a
fantastic meal.

“You are going to visit your grandparents
today.”

She looked up at her dad, “Really?”
“Yes pumpkin.”

“Will you take your bath or will you eat
first?”

Sheila bit her lower lip, “Hmmm… I think I
will eat first.”

“That’s the Sheila I know,” her dad headed
for the door. Her mother helped her up.
“Do I like eating before taking my bath?”
“Yes,” her parents choroused.
She giggled and followed them out of the
room.

---

Her parents dropped her off at her
grandparents’ home and promised to return in the evening. She didn’t know what to expect. The retired doctor and his wife had been nice to her since the first day she met them. She hoped they were not pretending.

The security guard allowed her in. She
found her way into the mansion and met her
grandparents in the sitting room.

“Baby girl, come over here.”

She smiled and joined them on the seatee.
“How are you doing?”

She nodded and relaxed. They were not
pretending. They were as real as her own
skin.

Aside her parents, she felt safe with them.
“Have you eaten?”
“Yes, grandma.”
“Good.”

“Have you seen the doctor this week?”
She nodded.

“Don’t worry. The check ups will soon be
over,” he patted her on the shoulder.

“Since you are spending the whole day with
us, I have got some things lined up.”

She smiled and met her grandma’s warm
gaze.

“We are going to make lunch together, I will
teach you how to make a local delicacy,
then we will all play scrabble later on.”

“That sounds nice.”
“Glad you like my plans.”
“When do we start?”
“Now,” her grandfather pulled her up.
She looked at him with one brow raised,
“Are you
cooking too?”

He nodded.

“Really?”
He started to laugh.
“Your grandpa is an excellent cook.”
“Seriously?”

He placed both hands on his waist, “Young
woman, I have got skills.”
She giggled, “Okay, let us find out.”
“Attention! Forward march,” he micmiked a
soldier and headed out. Nnese and Sheila
marched after him.

Cooking with her grandparents turned out
to be fun.

They gisted her about her father’s
childhood and how he met her mother. They were so engrossed in their conversation that they
almost forgot what they were cooking. After they
had, had lunch, they sat in the garden and
relaxed with a game of scrabble.

“I thought intelligence reduces with age,”
she
eyed her grandparents. They had won the
first
round of the game and it looked like they
would
win again. Their points were higher than
hers.
“Who told you that nonsense?” Charles
closed the
dictionary.
“She is just venting, we won, remember,” she
winked at her husband.
“You are right my dear.”
They both started to laugh. She bit at her
lower
lip and decided to win the next round at all
cost.
“You better fasten your seat belts, this
round is
mine.”
“Really?” They both choroused and locked
gazes.
It had been ages since they had, had so
much
fun with their grand-daughter.
“I refuse to be beaten by a Seventy-one year
old
man and a Sixty-Six year old woman, not
on my
watch.”
Nnese giggled, “Young man, this sassy lady
means business.”
“Let us teach her a lesson or two. My white
hairs
aren’t there for fashion,” he grinned and
winked
back at her.
Sheila picked up their empty glasses, “I will
go
and refill this and be back in a jiffy,” she
got up and half ran and half walked into the house.

A teardrop slid down her face.
“Darling… ” His concerned gaze met her
calm
ones.

“God makes all things to work for our
good… Her
lost memory, look at her now… Can you
compare
her to the Sheila we used to know?”
He sighed. He had made the same
observations.
It had been years since his grand-daughter
had
acted or spoken in a civil way to anyone. It
made
him begin to wonder what had caused
drastic
change.
“I believe God is giving her… and us… the
whole
family a second chance.”
He folded his arms across his chest. His
wife could
be right. The Adams family was standing on
a very shaky ground and they needed a divine
intervention. This could be it!
Two days later, she visited her aunt, Dorcas
and her family. Her cousins kept their distance,
while their parents tried to keep her entertained.
She wondered what kind of relationship she had
with them all. She hoped her cousins will stop
avioding her before she returned home. She would really
like to sit and chat with them.
Dorcas left Sheila and her husband in the
sitting room and literarily pulled her children into
the kitchen.

“What is wrong with you two?”
Boma folded his arms across his chest,
while
Edidiong frowned, but avoided her mother’s
glare.
“She won’t be here forever… Stop avoiding
her
and try to chat her up.”
“Mum… This is not easy for us. Regardless
of the
fact that she lost her memory, we can’t just
pretend and play nice.”
“Sheila is bad news. She is trouble with a
capital
letter ‘T’, I would rather give her a wide
breth
than clash with her.”
Dorcas placed a frustrated hand on her
forehead.
She dropped it and tried to convince her
children,
“I know the old Sheila… But the girl out
there is
one lost puppy.”
Boma and his sister groaned. Sheila had
hurt
them too many times, in words and actions.
Her
lost of memory was like an opportunity to
take
their pound of flesh. But their parents
wanted
them to help her. How do one play nice
with
someone who had been mean to them for
years.
“I understand how you both feel. Your father
and
I feel the same way, but… Okay, what would
Jesus do?”
“Mum… ” Boma frowned.
“Yes, what would Jesus do? An eye for an
eye is
not the solution here.”

“Really?” Edidiong rested her weight on the
fridge.

“Yes, at this point, I believe we all need to
forgive
Sheila and look for a way forward.”
They stared at her in disbelief.
“I am serious,” she and her husband had
discussed it the other night. Offence,
unforgiveness and bitterness was tearing
them
apart. Every member of the Adams family
need to
forgive one another and reconcile. That was
the only solution to their problems. It was the
only way forward.

Boma and his sister locked gazes. If their
parents were willing to forgive Sheila after
everything she
had done and said to them in the past, they
could also do the same, no matter how
difficult it would be.

“I have a suggestion.”
“Okay.”

“I think we should take her out.”
Dorcas scratched her forehead.
“Just me, Boma and Sheila.”
Her brother’s face brightened, “We could go
to the cinema, eat out… It will help us to relax,
talk…”

“And reconcile,” Edidiong added.
Dorcas sighed, it sounded like a good idea,
but she wasn’t sure if she could trust her
children alone with Sheila.

“Mum… ”

“We will be fine.”
“Let us discuss this with your father, and of
course, Sheila.”

Boma shrugged. Edidiong wondered if their
cousin would agree.