Under The Moonlight is a memoir written by Harrison Okhueleigbe in appreciation of how his parents raised him. He recounts the events that have shaped his very being, personality and reality. The author calls this detailed account a memoir.
The 134-page self published book on KDP is a two-part story of the artist as a child living with his family in suburban Lagos in the ’90s, as he anticipates and experiences his grandmother’s visit, which leads to the bigger picture, Nene’s long awaited folktale.
The first part, Dreams and Imaginations, introduces the reader to the child and his family, the dynamics there, and the world he created and coloured in his imagination, while the second part, Under The Moonlight, portrays the exciting fictional world where humans and spirits either coexisted or communicated in some way, exploring themes like envy and perseverance.
In the first chapter, the reader will encounter behaviours of typical African Nigeria parents in particular, yelling and threateningly advising the son not to allow her call a third time before he comes into the house, as it is dark and the mosquitoes will bite him, then he will end up in the hospital treating malaria and of course, she will be the one to go through the trouble of caring for him. It also shows how communal living aids bonding with other people by telling stories at night or even just staying out late at night to receive fresh air, especially during the hot season before retiring indoors.
The writer is seen not able to contain his excitement in anticipation of his grandmother’s visit because of all the stories she will tell them when she arrives, which is typical of the older generation of Nigerian parents.
The description of his family’s day-to-day activities and behaviour is not any different from that of most African homes. Listening to news stations at that time, especially Voice of America (VOA) or British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), which were not just popular but considered to be the most authentic at the time was a common thing with his father.
Whether he enjoyed the humming sound from bad frequencies, which was rather a complete irritation to him was unimportant because his father, the head of the family was interested in it and he will listen to it no matter whose ox was gored.
He also establishes how his father was not the conventional type who probably thought laughing too much or laughing at all with family would create familiarity and breed contempt. To keep exerting his authority he barely laughed, such that the writer can only remember him laughing when they both danced at his office Christmas party when he was six years old. This is not new to him as many parents at the time were like that. This attitude didn’t mean he didn’t love his family as he played his fatherly role so well by providing to the best of his ability, including putting them in the best of schools too.
The writer takes the reader through all of the things that happen in a normal household setting, including doing chores where boys were not excluded from washing plates.
He established the cordial relationship with his mother. Unlike the father, his mother was his go-to person; he discussed everything with her and she was also interested in what her children did at all times even probing them to get information. She was also the one that did school runs for them so much that her son’s classmates were admired her on one of her visits to the school, “Harrison’s young beautiful mum,” one of them said to him and some of their classmates feigned wanting to use the toilet just to get a peek of her.
The writer saw it as one of his most embarrassing days in school; it angered him because he thought they were too young to admire his mother. Again, as it is wont with him, he discussed the incident with his mother but she took it mildly and didn’t pay attention.
The anxiety of waiting for grandma from the first chapter heightens in chapter three with the drama of her arrival from the village, as there were no handsets to keep in touch. As he clears the room where grandma would stay, he finds his father’s photos from a hospital bed and the thought of seeing him in that condition gave him mixed feelings. It tells of the love he has for his father despite his militant attitude towards them. It is also on this day he discovers the meaning of his name, ‘day of rejoicing’ because his father was discharged from the hospital the day he was born. The scenario brought a burst of emotions even though the relationship between his dad and himself went on to become increasingly unfriendly, like he confirmed, ‘that day struck a connection between him and my heart, an unconditional love for him.’
Grandma or Nene as she is fondly called finally arrives in Chapter four. It brings mixed feelings as he suddenly became shy and didn’t know how to behave himself around her. Why everyone rushed to meet Nene as she arrived, he hid behind a window listening and peeping at the rest of his siblings and mother. Fortunately, Nene asked after him immediately and he rushed out into her embrace, still shy, Nene tried to make him look up at her, surprised at how grown he was. Of course, Nene met expectations of bringing all the goodies.
