My larger than life Aunty Susan who packed so much into her slender frame has passed on into glory. In penning this tribute, I have now had to fully accept and embrace this new reality-she is gone! Her voice had a unique timbre that I loved hearing but I will no longer hear that lovely voice enquire, “Dayo kini nkan?”
Oh what a kind, large-hearted, loving, warm, beautiful and glamorous woman! For as long as I can remember, she gave so much in loving and caring for me (us)- in the birthdays she never forgot, in her invaluable advice here and there, her peacemaker role, the honest open conversations we could have, her phone calls regardless of where I was and so on. I remember how I had a home with Aunty and her family when I moved to Lagos in 1999 and it was exactly like living with my own parents down to her anxiety when I got off work late.
Aunty Susan loved God and she served Him to the best of her abilities. She was a woman of faith and was relentless in prayer and worship. We all have memories of her prayers and key Yoruba phrases of worship and thanksgiving. I recall she made sure we all participated in morning and evening devotions and even quizzed us about our own spiritual development.
This is so hard to absorb, to understand, to accept but…the truth is, though of scant consolation to me right now, Aunty Susan has gone home to be with her heavenly father! For her loving husband, Uncle Sonny, my wonderful cousins Titi, Tolu, Tosin and Tinuke…her passing has opened a major rift that only God can fill, mend and make whole. I commit you all into his comfort.