It was in 2017 and I was freelancing with Pan African Broadcasting Corporation (now folded, sadly). While there I pitched a documentary on Ajadu (widowhood) essentially looking at how widows are treated in a part of Igboland where I come from.
The first person I thought of as a potential interview partner was my grandmother- Nnemmanwu, Mary Ucheboh. So I travelled from Calabar to Isuaniocha, my hometown. And she granted me this interview.
At the end of the interview she asked me “o olu a ka i cholu ina alu?”(Is this the work you want to be doing?) I burst into a very loud laughter because she asked it in a manner that suggested “will this sort of work be financially sustainable?” She laughed too and called me “onye nta akuko”( a story hunter, literally). We both laughed. She asked me the same question a second time, then I knew she was serious.
I looked at her and she said “e ye”. (Yes). Then she told me in Igbo “then, you will do this in a bigger platform someday”.
The second picture was when I joined Deutsche Welle newly and crossing live into Berlin from Studio Lagos😊. Let’s say prophecy and dreams come alive.
I am currently writing a memoir on her and documenting her experiences of the war. She’s now in her 105th year. Hopefully, when we get to another round of interviews, she makes another prophecy.
NB: Facebook says 2022 because that was when I posted the picture on that platform.
