More Than Just A Reflection.

I grew up with a perspective that was different from that of the rest of the kids around me. One day in my early childhood, I narrated a story about a girl to my mom. I tried to pinpoint the flaws I saw in the girls and the reason for my prior action towards her. The first thing my mom said was "you saw a reflection of yourself in her and that's why you disliked her at first instinct. You fear she will overtake you". I tried so hard to counter this point but irrespective of how hard I tried, I kept coming back to the conclusion that my mom was right.

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There was this girl,Dhee, that was about my age in the neighbourhood. Her mom owned a restaurant close to our house and so I saw her everyday. From a distance, I could tell that we had a lot in common. The way she carried herself, her appearance and her charisma. I made up my mind to ignore her as we never really crossed paths. Maybe I was afraid, or maybe I wasn't.

On one of those days, there was water scarcity in our area but we had water in our compound. I quietly watched as people trooped in with their gallons to fetch water. My siblings and I were basically just messing around with the sand until I saw Dhee and her elder sister. They walked into our compound to fetch some water. I immediately left my siblings and ran to the tap.

Dhee reached the tap and asked to fetch water. I outrightly said "No!". ^{I was one saucy little girl}. Everyone was shocked. They wondered what had transpired between the two of us. With my response, I expected Dhee to plead a little bit but instead, she did what I would have done if I were in her shoes. Dhee picked up her little bucket and headed for the gate. With my mouth agape, I watched as she walked away. The audacity.

Dhee's elder sister on the other hand went to ask my siblings for permission to fetch water and the permission was granted. My siblings told me to allow them to fetch some water but I kept insisting. I said I wouldn't let them fetch. Other people came around to fetch and I gladly shifted from the tap but when Dhee made any attempt to fetch water, I would stand in her way like I was unmovable.

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Ps:Dhee was a plus sized little girl and I, on the other hand, was slender. She could easily push me out of her way if she wanted to, but as a peace advocate, she didn't.

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My action had drawn the attention of everyone around including my dad. When my dad came to ask why I wouldn't let them fetch water, I started wailing. I cried like my life depended on it but I still didn't let go of the tap's handle. After about three minutes of shedding crocodile tears, my brothers came to drag me away from the tap. I didn't want to accept defeat but my dad was getting furious and so I backed down. Dhee fetched water that day and went on her merry way.

The next day came and they returned to fetch water again. This time, I went to confront her head-on. What was her crime you may ask? Well, we had too much in common and I didn't like it. As I approached the tap, Dhee said three words"

"Not today wongi "

How did you know my name? I retorted. She gave a devilish smirk.

"I know more than you think I do," she responded.

That sentence sounded like a threat and that too from a five year old girl. I was a bit intimidated.

My thoughts were running wild. Was she stalking me? How did she know my name? With so many unanswered questions on my mind, I decided to throw in the towel; something I never did. I accepted defeat.

The few sentences she made gave me an instant mind reset. In a bid to find out how she knew so much about me, I decided to be more friendly with her.

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Few days after the "incident", we became very close friends. A stranger looking at us would think that we had been friends for so long. We shared the same views on virtually everything and as such, it was easy to get along. That was how I met my first best friend;Dhee.

It wasn't until I grew up that I understood the in-depth meaning of what my mom said that day . You can instantly dislike or like a person because you see a reflection of yourself in them. It could be a reflection of the part of yourself that you like or dislike. No one else–except you–would know this.

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With love, wongi ✨