I dey collect back one quiet hour

One hour dey today wey na my own. No be di leftover minutes wey remain for di end of everytin else, na real hour, wey I choose on purpose and den defend. Nobody give me dis hour. Na me take am, and na di taking be di part wey suppose change. I go dey take one of dis kain hour every week for di rest of my life, and I go stop to describe am as sometin wey I just dey pamper mysef wit wen person ask me wetin I dey do wit am.

Di door don close. My phone dey anoda room, e don be person else wahala for small time. One cup dey cold near me because I forget am completely, and dat one na im own kain proof say sometin real bin dey happen for inside here. I neva tok to anybody for fifty minutes and e no cost even one person anytin.

I bin dey give dis hour comot for years and I no even notice. E dey go small small to pipo wey no ask for am and wey for no even miss am, and na dat part dey pain pass. Nobody collect am from my hand. Na me hand am over, one yes at a time, because every single yes too small to deserve say I defend am, and not even one of dem ever look like di moment to draw line. Na di small request dem be di dangerous one. Person go refuse full hour. But ten minutes, person go grant am six times for one day. Na so life dey take finish without anybody ever deciding to spend am.

One hour no be selfishness. Na di tin wey dey make me useful for di oda twenty three. Everybody wey I care about dey collect better version of me for di far side of dis hour, wey mean say to protect am no be sometin wey I dey do instead of showing up for dem. Na di tin wey dey make me fit show up at all. Dis one no be time wey I carry comot from di pipo wey matter. Na di servicing wey dey make me worth dia time. Di pipo wey dey lose small pass from dis hour na di ones wey I love pass, and na upside down I bin dey hold dat matter for ten years.

So I go block one hour dis week, inside di calendar, wit name on top am. Di name matter, because block wey no get name dem dey move am, and di one wey get name dem dey respect am, me sef included. Den I go tell one person say dat hour don book, because to tok am wit mout na wetin dey turn intention to fact wey oda pipo gats waka round. Hour wey nobody sabi about na hour wey dem go quietly give anoda work by Wednesday afternoon.

One hour wey na my own. I no need to first work for am, and I no need to justify am to anybody, mysef included, and na me be di last person wey gree.