Only one needs to get help or needs to make it in this life. 

We arrived at the local shopping mall, crowded with people. Loud music and full of crime around every shop. Unique items to buy but an enormous price to pay when you are not careful. Instructions clear from the start, get the bread while others wait in the cue to save time.

There was a certain time to get to the bakery section. Or else you will find no bread and have to go back home empty-handed and definitely empty stomachs for the day. Unless grandma came up with another plan to feed us.

 She could make anything, but it all required effort. In her life, I think we were already, the effort. Nine grandkids with you every day, you automatically become creative.

The upside, arriving at the right time. Fresh bread from the oven. There were many things we could not wait to do in life, but fresh bread you wait patiently for.

As soon as we receive the bread, it is a race home. Never any detours, a very mature team. I would later find out that a hungry stomach and maturity have nothing in common.

The moment we reach our street, we know we are safe. They were all younger than me, so I felt compelled to always look out for them.

Finally!

Home!

Time to eat. Everyone even had their favourite plate. We finished eating. All sitting together in a circle. We listened to who had the most interesting day at school.

Followed by an afternoon nap for everyone.

In the beginning, I followed along with this plan but later on, my grandmother told me I did not need to sleep as well but it was critical for me to go and lay down with them and as soon as everyone was asleep I could get up and continue doing other things.

This is the time for me to focus on my schoolwork. The revision time, is my favourite, only if all your previous tests and exams throughout the year showed high marks.

Easier to work through achievements than failure while studying for final exams.

All I needed to do was pass this exam, and all my dreams were one step closer. After completing all my school stuff, I went to the garden.

 A place of rest. One of my favourite things to do is just water all the different plants. It is one thing to say flowers are beautiful and know all the names of the different plants, but seeing the beauty in it growing is another world that most people have never allowed themselves to visit.

 At first, I did not understand it until my grandma woke me up one morning very early to go water the grass. She told me, to not just water it every day but look for change while I do it.

One of the most important lessons in my life, I learned in a garden of all places.

While standing there and looking at the sunset, for a moment, the sky turns yellow before it sets and I always try to catch that moment. The arrival of Victoria's mom and dad confirmed the time of day.

The life I received comes with a lot of pain, but it is like in a book, you ask yourself what will happen next. The secret to life is laid up in this idea.

Everyone left one by one, but I consoled myself with the fact that tomorrow will be another day. We were in total seven, four always had to say goodbye every day. In the future, saying goodbye would be an easy step for us.

We are a group of disciplinary actions. Beaten up in arguments and everyday mess ups. You know you are in a group the moment you all get beaten up and run away and laugh together afterward. 

My grandmother pleaded with us when we were pleading for her to stop. We tried to be smarter than her every time and we got hammered. One thing we can't say is that she did not teach us anything. We did not fear her but admired and respected the woman.

Our group didn't even have a name.

We once were all in primary, and it was a normal Wednesday at school. All in different classes, waiting to see each other again at break time. During the break, Jacqueline bought every one of us anything that we asked her. We ate a lot that day. I even had lots of candy left in my pockets after the break and the last words as we departed were to all meet at the gate after school. 

The wait felt like forever, but the thought of a lot of food and gifts after school humbled me. We even got our grandmother something because we arrived later than usual. We went to the arcade and played video games and everyone got money. I would later learn while everyone laughed that the money we were spending was school fees that Jacqueline's mother gave to her to pay, and she decided to rebel.

 The walk back home was not fun at all, as we were coming to terms with what happened, but I knew the outcome. We all did. I wish we could get a letter with a bird from our grandmother with a warning of what's to come. When we got home, we gave her the juice and fruits and she took it with a smile. Her next words to go into her room had everyone frozen. We got the beating of a lifetime. Such memories kept us on the straight and narrow. Trying to defy her without her knowledge would be the lesson we took.

I observed the grass and flowers grow, which is how I always picture we will grow in strength and knowledge. A plan to lead each other on to new paths and destinies. Giving a helping hand with education because it is all the same work as we are two or three years apart and some only one year. I made it my duty to implement that amongst us.

 The older one teaches the younger one about the grade already passed. It worked wonders. We were all getting exceptional marks. One of us even managed to become the head girl in primary school grade 7, which proved our theory for high school.

The moment everyone left, I went inside to help my grandmother in the kitchen. Her cooking skills rubbed off on me. Spending some time cutting potatoes and listening to her sing in a language I am not familiar with is a stress reliever for both of us. 

Jacqueline got busy with the chicken, marinating and putting it in the oven. We could do the cooking by now while my grandmother observes and if she should ever get sick, she knew we wouldn't burn down the kitchen.

Finally done prepping dinner, I went to lie on the couch to just relax and see what was playing on the television.

 Nothing, as usual.

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