Dear Mum,

We, from time to time we wait on you to come calling us every morning to wake up and prepare for school.

For some time now, it’s been our wish that you will be the first person we see when we wake up, but we wake up asking ourselves a million questions, i.e., when is mummy coming home but there is no answer from no one.

Our heart keep calling out your name each blessed day, even though we don’t get to hear your voice, we know you are now an angel which daddy keeps telling us every day that you are an angel and that you are with the lord in heaven which we strongly believe cos your word of multination and encouragement always kept us going and will always continue to keep us moving in the love you brought us up with.

Mummy, even though you are laid, we want you to know we love you and will continue to love you till we meet again.

Mummy, on this day, we want to say a big thank you for not aborting us, but rather you kept us and gave birth to us all, even though you went through pain for our sake. We want to say a big thank you to you, Mummy. Daddy always tells us we were the best things that ever happened to him, but Mummy, you were the best mummy in our lives as well.

Mummy, even though we wish to have you by our side this day, which we can’t, but we know you are with us in spirit, and you will continue to live in our hearts forever.

Mummy

Mummy, even though we love you, God loves you More

Mummy, may God keep you safe for us till we meet again

Today, we stand here with broken hearts.

We are not just speaking words; we are trying to carry a weight that language was never meant to hold. We are here to honor our sister, whom we so affectionately called Kuma. Even now, it still does not feel real. We find ourselves listening for the familiar sound of her voice, hoping—just hoping—that she will call our names one more time… or ask her twin sister to feed her, or call one of us to come and sit beside her and keep her company.

There is a hollow space within us now… a deep emptiness we are struggling to understand. Life has taken on a shape we do not recognize because Sister Helen was woven into the very fabric of our everyday lives.

She was a mother whose love knew no distance. When she entrusted her precious children to Edna’s care, she promised she would come back home. We held onto that promise. We believed in it. And even though she could not return the way we hoped, she never truly left us.

Not a single day passed without her calling—to say thank you, to check on her children, to ask what they had eaten, to make sure they were safe and loved. Even from a distance, she held us close. On that faithful Thursday, the 12th of February, she was brought back from church dancing happily and praising her maker with the lyrics in the song saying (mawugaga dɛ la asiny3) " I have a great God", even telling Sister Akos she would buy her clothes when she got better. Little did we know… that was her quiet goodbye.

We cannot speak about her journey without mentioning Sister Hilda, whom she lovingly called Sister Akos. Through the long days at the hospital, you never left her side—encouraging her that she would be fine, sitting with her in pain, fear, and silence, and holding her up when she had nothing left to give. Even in those moments, she was never alone.

To us, her siblings, this loss has changed everything.

Our home is quieter now. The silence is heavy. There are moments when we still look toward the door, convinced she is about to walk in—that our Kuma will return and everything will feel right again. But the silence remains… and each time it does, it breaks our hearts all over again. We are still learning how to live in the space she has left behind.

And yet… even in this pain, her love remains.

We see it in the eyes of her children. We feel it in the memories we share. We carry it in the bond she built within this family—a bond that even death cannot break.

We will miss her in ways words can never fully express. But we will honor her. We will stay together. We will raise her children with the same deep love and devotion she gave so freely. We will keep her memory alive—in our stories, in our prayers, and in the way we love one another.

Rest well, our dear Sister Helen.

To the world, you were Helen… but to us, you will always be our beloved Kuma. You were deeply loved, and you will remain in our hearts forever.

Hédenyuie, mía nɔvi lɔlɔ̃tɔ Helen.

Dzidzɔ le ŋutifafa me.