I didn’t even think twice before I dropped the broom. My whole body just went cold. The morning was still quiet, that kind of silence that comes after people have finished condolence visits. The smell of leftover firewood smoke still hung in the air, and the house looked empty without Mama’s chair at the corner. I was sweeping the kitchen because nobody else would. Ada and Ifeanyi had gone back to their hotels. Uju was still sleeping in the room we shared, pretending grief was something you could switch off and on like light.

I turned slowly, half expecting to see her standing there, wrapper tied high on her chest like she always did. But it was just the old Philips radio recorder on the table. The small red light was blinking. The thing hadn’t worked for years. I pressed the stop button, then play. Mama’s voice came again: clear, strong, and too alive for someone that had been bur!ed in the red earth behind the compound.

“Chioma, make sure you wash those plates well before evening. And don’t let Ada leave that pot outside, rain will beat it.”

I held my breath, listening. She sounded normal, just giving her usual house instructions. Then, her tone changed suddenly. “If you are hearing this, then you’ve found what I left. Do not trust anyone… not even your blood.”

My heart jumped. I paused the tape and stared at the wall like maybe she would walk out from it. Found what she left? Trust who? What was she talking about?

Before I could think further, Uju’s sleepy voice came from behind me. “Chioma, who are you talking to this early morning?”

I turned quickly. “Nobody,” I said. “I was just… cleaning.”

She looked at me suspiciously, yawned, and walked back to the room. I waited until her footsteps faded, then replayed that part again. The same words. “If you are hearing this, then you’ve found what I left.”

Mama never owned much. Just wrappers, church clothes, and a small wooden box she kept under her bed. I picked up the wrapper I’d been using to wipe the floor: one of her favorites, that blue one with small red flowers: and suddenly felt something heavy inside the hem. It was neatly stitched, like she didn’t want anyone to notice.

My hands started shaking a little as I rubbed the edge. Something flat and stiff was there. I went closer to the window for light, biting my lower lip the way I do when I’m nervous. Carefully, I tore a small part of the seam.

A corner of a brown envelope peeped out. Old, sealed, and hidden so well that nobody would have found it unless they washed or ironed the wrapper.

“Mama…” I whispered, touching it gently. My heart was pounding now: not from fear, but from the strange feeling that she had left me a secret.

Kitchen supplies

I looked at the door to make sure Uju wasn’t watching, then pulled the whole thing out. Written on it in Mama’s shaky handwriting were the words:

“To my child who still carries my name in truth.”

I didn’t even know what that meant. But one thing was certain: whatever Mama left behind, it wasn’t just memory.

And for the first time since the burial, I felt something move inside me… something that told me my mother’s story wasn’t finished yet.