A peng thing

She's a little old lady that attends my local church;
Probably a septuagenarian.
Her back is stooped low all the time.
Nor does she dance much during Thanksgiving,
Odd comfort to me as I am a mess on the dance floor (Nothing near a hot mess, just mess mess).
Hers is probably due to arthritis.

She's quiet;
Not usual for women her age that attend my local church.
She doesn't yell at little kids who just want to run and play after the service is over,
Nor does she give "life hacks" to young mothers, trying to remind them of how "wrong" they are in raising their children.
(Owwwww, you know nothing! The big old lady usually told eager mothers before she began lessons on how to choke a kid in the bid to force-feed).

Ìyá ìjèṣà sometimes sleeps during the sermon (a lot of times is sometimes)-
It's in English and I've never heard her speak the language.
You see, she carries a Yoruba bible and asks a literate to write down the sermon for her; in English of course!
I once asked my mom if she thinks ìyá ìjèṣà ever goes back to read them.

She goes easy-
Quiet,
And yet when she smiles, it's stunning
Okay, she's beautiful,
Her skin nearly flawless;
Even the wrinkles would make you wish you'd get some for yourself.
(For the gram, mhmm yeah!)
I believe she sometimes remembers this,
As she blushes when you pass a comment about her dress,
Telling you who made the dress,
It almost sounds like, "Yeahhhh, Micheal Kors made this.." when she's talking about her tailor.
Comporting herself in the manner of a queen while trying to keep up with the English service.

Did I mention her gists are fire?
Not the typical talks about daughter in-laws and stubborn children(boring tales, dork!)
She talks about her chickens,
The ọ̀fadà rice the food vendor brought
The dog that strays over all the time,
Demonstrations to mimic her nosy neighbor,
Or some random thing you weren't ready for.


I have no idea what she did she was younger,
(Nor do I think I care two piggies)
Right now, she's ìyá ìjèṣà;
The nice old lady whose gèlè blocked my view of the pastor this morning,
Yet when she smiled at something my mother said later,
I realized why I just won't take my eyes off her.




'Siyah.

Picture credit: Essence