Somewhere, In The Quietness Of My Mind.
Somewhere in the quietness of my mind, I remembered how I planned my life. The life I planned was a far cry from what I live right now. I planned a life free from worries and frivolities of now.
I was young and free when I had my life planned ahead of me. I was a Journalist in my planned life. Marriage was never part of it. I owned mansions in my planned life.
Children were never part of it, despite my love for little children, I didn’t see any from my loin. I was a career woman whose trade took to any part of the world, to whom children would be a hindrance.
I planned a life far from what I experience as a child. A life free from poverty and maltreatment. I never planned to fall in love, this was for the weak and helpless. I grew up seeing maltreatment from menfolk and I planned never to be a victim.
I lived in one of the slums of Lagos mainland. My house could be classified as what the local called “Face me, I face you” style of building, however, mine was a bit different from the norm. At the edge of the corridor was the gutter, part of which was covered with wooden planks and the rest left open. The sight was not pretty, but, we got used to it.
Ours were plights of rooms, lined up unevenly. Inbetween the rolls of rooms was an unsteady path which spread across the entire length of our corridor. Looking up, you could see the sky which I felt was a great advantage. The path only divided the rooms and their chronological arrangement. 
“What is a toxic parent?” you might ask. Well, a toxic parent is a mother, father or guardian whose presence in a child’s life causes more danger or damage emotionally, physically or psychologically to the child.
Toxic behaviours mean behaviours that are transmitted unto children that could cause potential harm directly or indirectly.