THE STORY OF STELLA

If you're very emotional, you might not want to read this. 😐

When I was much younger, things became tough for my parents. myself and my  immediate younger sister switched from a private school to a public  in the community we lived.


Because of our previous financial state, we couldn't really fit in like the other kids and as a result of this, we were the kids everyone in class picked on to bully or teased out of jealousy and envy... We were the neatest and best dressed kids back then. But we made a friend named Stella.


Stella was same age with us, she was chased away from the home by her step mum who was the breadwinner of the family. She was accused of using witchcraft to remove her achoholic and violent father from work. She was thoroughly beaten with whips, burnt with hot iron and cut with with broken bottles in the process of making her confessed to witchcraft.


She slept inside an uncompleted building that serves as a church. We became friends with her. Yes, we were reported several times to our school teachers who not only called us possessed children by associating with Stella, we were canned several times publicly by our highly religious teachers to the amusement of the other kids.


When mum serves us breakfast, we pretend to eat and pour a large quantity into a nylon bag, or a cloth to give to our homeless friend, Stella.


We sneaked our materials for her to lay on the hard floor, we gave her some of our story books to read, clothes to wear, we were the first to leave the class after the close of school so we could be with Stella.


Stella was always in pains, she sleeps at the mercy of mosquitoes, her body filled with scars, some healed others yet to be healed with flies out to make a feast from those open injuries, passersby who saw her trow stones at her, spat on her "witch, you will die" we've heard them say severally.


We spent so much time with her to the annoyance of other kids, most times, they will trace us to the uncompleted building where Stella stays, trow stones at her calling her "witch", then at us. When the church members come around to clean the church, they would chase her out with whips, call her a little demon and burn her scanty belongings... I mean the rags, those leftovers we gave her to lay on and keep warm... No one tried to protect her 😓... we usually replace  wrappers and clothes... And my mum kept on complaining of missing cloths 🤣 if only she knew...


Our books were constantly smeared with oil from stuffing foods for Stella 🤣 and at school we were bullied by our fellow students and avoided by the teachers... We were just two little girls. 😓


One day, we went to the uncompleted building to meet Stella, she wasn't there, we kept the food and went to school, on our way back, the food was still there untouched and she wasn't there, we knew something was wrong... 😒


The next day we heard the other kids talking excitedly how they heard Stella screaming and crying the previous night... 😢


They argued among themselves who first heard the screaming... Some said she screamed, begged that she is not a witch, then she screamed again, before she became quiet. 😓


Others said she was beaten and driven out of the community, another said someone took her away to be cared for...


We prayed to see our friend again,
We hoped in our little hearts she would sneak to our class window to call us...


Days turned into weeks,
Weeks into months,
And months into years...


We don't know what happened to her and it hurts us so bad that we couldn't ask anyone. We never got any explanation, we were just two scared but concerned kids who lost their only friend. 😭


I wish I could see her again so she could tell me her survival story,
I know she would be a young woman by now, maybe doing well... I don't know... I wish I could really see Stella again.


If you're reading this, ask yourself
Are you one of those confused religious people who tagged old people and children witchcraft?
Are you among those who sees others suffering and look the other way?


There are many Stellas around us,
They are the ones rejected by the society,
Stripped of every form of dignity, beaten and scared by beliefs and harmful cultural practice... they need your protection...

Be their voice,
Be compassionate,
Be human.

PS. This happened in Owhase Community in Udu Local Government Area, Delta State, Nigeria.