Let’s Talk To Baaba
David Bondze-Mbir (DBM): Thank you for participating. What name would you want to go by? (It can be your real first name or any other name of your choosing)
Participant 165: Baaba
DBM: Hello Baaba. How would you describe yourself?
Baaba: I have an implausible ability to love, even if it hurts me
DBM: How happy are you on a scale of 1 to 10?
Baaba: Five
DBM: What do you want to talk about?
Baaba: It’s been months since my husband underwent open-heart surgery to fix a valve that was leaking. An artery was also clogged, and so he got that too fixed. He’s slowly recovering; I thank God for that. Truthfully, I am doing everything possible to avoid problems that may slow down his recovery but I can’t seem to let go of an awkward moment he created the day of his surgery, at the hospital. The nurses took all foreign belongings they didn’t need him to carry along to the operating theater: his wallet, wedding ring, shoes, watch, etc. He refused to hand over his phone. He switched the phone off, and held on to it. The nurses assured him it would be in their care and wouldn’t be given to me, but he wouldn’t let go till one of the doctors came to the ward. He asked for a piece of paper to write an agreement to be signed by him and the lead surgeon, before releasing his phone.
DBM: Do you know why he would do that?
Baaba: I can only think of one thing you men are good at
DBM: Lol! And what would that be? Lol!
Baaba: You think it’s funny?
DBM: No!
Baaba: The scene he created made me start to suspect him. I demanded for his phone when they started preparing him for the operation, but the surgeon refused. I was very angry I called my lawyer to demand for his phone from the hospital’s management. The hospital’s administrator sent me a photocopy of the agreement my husband drafted, and part of it read, ‘in the Event of my Death, Dr … is to destroy my phone.’
DBM: Wait! How long was his surgery?
Baaba: Almost six and a half hours
DBM: I see
Baaba: He was in intensive care for more than a week after his surgery, and the phone was still in the custody of the doctor.
DBM: For me, it’s understandable. He was simply honoring the wishes of your partner.
Baaba: He could not trust me with his phone but I am expected to share every step of his recovery journey with him?
DBM: I think your focus should be on your husband and other positive thoughts. He’s recovering from heart surgery and needs to be stable
Baaba: Dave, I’m having this experience too, it’s not just him. Do you know what it feels like to watch your husband go through pain?
DBM: Hmmm!
Baaba: He and I are supposed to be a team.
DBM: What did you think you were going to find on his phone?
Baaba: Evidence of an affair, or he has another family with a child involved
DBM: Is your husband the type to hurt your feelings that way?
Baaba: After what I witnessed at the hospital; anything is possible. The saddest part of it all is, my husband used to be that man who gave me the best memories. Lately, I look at him and he’s become a sour memory.
DBM: I will not doubt your suspicion. From my little association with women, I’ve come to realize you people can tap into a man’s actions faster and more effectively. It could be that you picked up what your partner wouldn’t consider – a very subtle clue into his deeds
Baaba: That’s every woman’s intuition, Dave
DBM: I know. But for the time being, I would suggest you navigate your thought-processes with a little bit of confidence in him.
Baaba: I cannot
DBM: He’s home now, no?
Baaba: Yes
DBM: And you still cannot have access to his phone?
Baaba: He’s deleted whatever he didn’t want me to find out on his phone
DBM: How do you know this?
Baaba: Because he leaves his phone unattended; something he never did
DBM: I see. You have children?
Baaba: Yes, and I am raising them almost alone
DBM: Why is that?
Baaba: He thinks his responsibility is to only provide for the house and pay school fees. I have to sometimes force him to stay at home and make time for our children.
DBM: What is his excuse to be going out that often?
Baaba: He says the children stress him
DBM: But they don’t stress you too?
Baaba: Ask him for me. Hmmm!
DBM: Do you work?
Baaba: I am a Charted Accountant, Dave. I am a very busy woman but I prioritize my marriage and children. My husband does not, and I have to still muster up a feeling of courage to still smile and carry on.
DBM: I honestly do respect parents who can raise strong children and intentionally, lay a pattern of decent living by their own example of life. I applaud your level of resilience
Baaba: It’s not easy
DBM: I can only imagine. Participant 164, Juliana, left a question for you. ‘Whoever is next should evaluate my final decision’
Baaba: Juliana made the right decision. I do not believe that once you are married, your self-worth has to take a backseat to the other party’s mess. A man’s dishonesty cannot be your reality. No woman should endanger her heart just to follow a dishonest man, in the name of marriage.
DBM: It’s your turn to leave a question behind for the next participant
Baaba: I don’t have a question
DBM: Okay!
Image Credit: Jackson David












