Oluremi Abati Simplice

MY QUINTESSENTIAL HAS GONE TO BE WITH THE LORD

Mama Akin at the beginning, then Mama Labo, Mama Jumoke, Mama Se ,Iya Lanre- this is the sequence by which she was known and called as she gave birth to each and every one of her children. She never forgets her first born, a fine boy that looked so much like her wonderful father in law but that died soon after birth. In all of these, the name that stuck to her and by which she is popularly known is MAMA SE. SE by the way is shorter version of Sende, the child immediately after me.

How can I start to talk about this woman of substance other than to start from what I know and cherished about her.
AS A DAUGHTER: Her mother lived with her and died in her arms. Growing up she was a very caring daughter and I believe that was the reward she enjoyed till death. The Lord in the 5th of the Ten Commandments said 'honour thy father and thy mother so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you". We, the children are witnesses to her ways of caring for her parents and siblings. She shuttled between Lagos and Abeokuta to see her father and whenever time did not permit her the lot fell on me so to do. Of course I joyfully did because her father was a joy to be with and listened to anytime. She ever would say', Ola I have not heard from my father, I want to go and see him. She cared for him till death and never failed to send food and money to him in Abeokuta. I happened to be very closed to my grandfather too because she did not let me be unless I went to see him or took her to Abeokuta to see him. She cared for her very beautiful mother till the end .In fact she died in her arms.

AS A LOVING SISTER: She adored her equally caring and loving senior Sister Mama Eniola Ola of blessed memory and cared for her other siblings like Mother Hen. Ola, mo fe lo ri sister mi,o ma to pe die ti mo gburo Baba Iyabo( her elder brother),,Baba Motara ma sick mo fe lo ri won,mi o ma gburo Oluyomi mo fe lo wo ,Ola phone Tayo fun mi,Oduola ati Iya Tunde no,mi o gburo won,je ka lo si Abeokuta.Wahala ni yen fun mi o.All these'mo fe lo ri,'mio o gburo fell on mi. I dared not complain, her words are her command, you just must obey and do exactly as she directs.

AS A MOTHER- Looking back now, I would not have been what I am today if she had not handled me with iron hands. She made sure I was the cook, the washerman, the hair plaiter ,the doer of all menial jobs in the house and never spared me. Till date I just can't understand, why me even though I know I was very troublesome and more of a Tomboy ready to fight and cause wahala anytime. But she tamed me. THANK YOU MAMA SE.I can do anything now and by God's grace I have remained strong.

How sweet and caring can a mother be when her children, the youngest is 58 years old, go out and she monitors them on the hour by phone. Me that I am 72 plus dare not fail to update her about my movements, either going to work every day or whenever I travel. If I travel and fail to call to tell her,I am at the airport, we are boarding, we just landed, I am at the hotel, we are in session-na wahala be dat o. She will phone and castigate you for being careless and uncaring about her anxiety. Go out and don't come home by 8.30 Ahhhh-ask Gani, Emma and Dami- they must tell her where they have taken her daughter to. Ask my professional Colleagues, mama must talk to them wherever we are .Oluwemimo ,pe Baba e funmi,tI o ba ni credit, gba(giving her hand set) Olabopo se o gburo Abimbola ati awon omo, Olanrewaju Atoke, se o mo pe o ye ko pe mi ni,Tami ati Akin nko,Ola O ti se die ti mo gburo aburo e,(referring to Seinde), "wa pe fun mi,mo ti pe titi ko wole ko wole ni phone nso. Awon ara ilu oyinbo yi won kuku ki ngbe phone.Yanju ati iyawo e ti baje ju.To ba pe won ko ki won o.Won o nipe, to ba pe won o ni gbe.Anyway,no news is good news .

MAMA THE DISCIPLINARIAN: Just don't cross her path. She must have you do what she wants you to do and in her own way and at her own time, which is now now or you are omo inu igo. She believed a woman must have more than two hands- one for cooking, one for washing nappies, one for cutting ewedu or vegetables etc and all these she believed a woman must be able to do simultaneously.
MAMA THE TIME KEEPER: If you need to make an early appointment, just tell her what time your appointment is, she will decide for you what time you must wake to meet the appointment. She will wake you up at 3am with a call for a 9am appointment and when you complain she will calculate the movements timing for you-all the traffic points and how many hours it will take you to get there. If you want to go out with her you must be there at least 30 minutes before the event.

MAMA THE NURSE: This was in fact her calling and she cherished the profession with passion till death. She took deliveries with ease and took deliveries of some of her grandchild and nieces and nephews at home and in the hospital. She was a health freak. Ola, sugar to nje yi ti po ju. Ola eat fruits at night it's not good to eat late, it won't digest and those are what convert to fat. She took her blood pressure every day. Just of recent when I came back looking very tired, she said I should check my bp. As I tried to do so I had a call,she was very angry because she said I was supposed to be calmed when taking my bp and was sure the reading was going to be false, Of course I aborted the exercise and just went to sleep.
MAMA SE THE FASHIONISTA- Don't try her for colour combination o,she will tell even me that I think I am not bad in fashion,that ' mo wo iya o ba baba tan,colour rioting,bata ti ko match also gele ti ko wo colour aso etc.She prepared for every event a day ahead. The clothes,the shoes and the jewellery must be ready. Until recently, she used to tie her gele herself. The first time I saw her tie gele, the very modern style that I still don't know how to do, i was very surprised. I asked her how come she does is so well and she said she learnt it on TV.

MAMA THE READER: She was an avid reader. She read the Newspapers every day and the grandchildren would ask her if she was reading for examination. Her Bible is another object of companion and she studied it every day. Whenever she was left to do fellowship alone, she would read the passage and anybody that gets to her at that time must listen to what the passage for the day is all about.

MAMA SE AS A CHRISTIAN: She taught me by her example to love, live, give, forgive, forget bad events and move on .I really marvel at her forgiving spirit. Whenever I am offended and want to throw tantrums, she will tell me to forgive, and though it is difficult or impossible to forget, you must put it behind you and move on. Her philosophy was that if you keep whatever bad thing is done to you in mind, you won't progress as you get hurt each time you see the person and you also get embittered which poison to the spirit is. I practice this and I have gained a lot by this singular principle of life. She had a very free spirit and I try to be same. Every morning, she prays for everyone, her children, grandchildren, great-grandchil dren and those close to her heart. This she did like her very being depends on it.

She had Psalms ready for everyone. And each time I am travelling she will remind me to say ,',Holy Ghost Fire 7 times, Blood of Jesus 7times,Efrata(d on't know what this means o)7 times, at takeoff, in flight and when landing. I must also not forget to say it before I sleep at the Hotel and when I am on the road.

Sun re ooo Maami
I am truly going to miss you. IYA NI IYA MI!!!

DAME Gladys Olajumoke
Moyosoreoluwa
Ayinke Simplice

Mama Se a Rear Gem.
We have been blessed with such a grand mother in- law. We are so proud and so honored to have called you grand mother in-law. You are one of the strongest woman we had the privilege of knowing.

We married your grand daughter OLAITAN OKUNEYE almost ten ( 10 ) years ago, not one day did you make us to feel like a stranger.
We remember your kindness, phone calls not only to the mother of your son in-law(SEYI OKUNEYE) to his other siblings. We are grateful for your exceptional love and supports for Seyi, Laitan and the whole family in general. We will forever cherish your kindness in wellcoming us into your family.

Mama Se, it's a privileged to share the same birthday date with you, I personally will miss your phone calls, early morning prayers on my birthday and on the birthday of my children (The Triplet).

We all will miss you but our joy is that you lived fulfilled Christian life.
You were a shining light and we will hold your ideals forever in our hearts.
We will always love you❤️.

Sleep well in the bossom of the Lord Jesus Christ Mama Se. Adieu Mama

Olukemi Okuneye Fadayomi

For the Okuneye family

METHODIST CHURCH NIGERIA TINUBU CIRCUIT
It is with total submission to God Almighty for a life well spent, that we received the Call unto Glory of your dear Mother, Late MAMA CHRISTIANA OLUREMI ABATI-SIMPLICE whose demise occurred on Saturday September 11, 2021 at the ripe age of 102 years after a brief illness.
Mama was not only a staunch member in Baptist Church but a child of God who did not allow the denominational differences to separate her from the love of Christ to other Churches; she was a prayerful, loving and caring mother.
We know that your faith is strong and wish you can hold it in any situation, may the Lord keep you, your siblings and the entire family in His embrace in this difficult time and give you the Comfort and Peace that you seek. Amen.

May her gentle soul rest in Perfect Peace Amen.
Accept our condolences.
For and on behalf of:
TINUBU CIRCUIT
Very Rev Dr Jonathan B. Osin
Proto-Presbyter

We had a wonderful grandmother,
One who never really grew old;
A woman full of Inspiration.
Her smile was made of sunshine,
And her heart was solid gold;
Her eyes were as bright as shining stars,
And in her cheeks fair roses you see.
We had a wonderful grandmother
Teaching us always to be true
Teaching us wrong from right
Helping us how to shine bright
Teaching us how to stay healthy and most importantly teaching us to be strong
We will greatly miss you MAMA SE

Sun Re o oo!!!!
Bankole Olamilekan

Aujourd’hui mon cœur est très lourd
Il est en panne d’amour
Non pas en panne, car tu m’en as tellement donné
Je dirais qu’il est triste à mourir à cause de la vie et de ses détours.
Tu as aimé la vie si profondément
Qu’elle t’en a rendu grâce, jusqu’au dernier moment
Comment en es-tu arrivée
Pour qu’autant de monde, ne puisse jamais t’oublier?
Tu avais découvert le secret
qui fait qu’on ne vit pas de regrets.
Tu m’as enseignée ainsi qu'à tous tes petits-enfants de si grandes choses
Que même si la vie est noire ou rose, c’est le regard que l’on pose sur elle
Qui souvent nous fait pousser des ailes.
Grand-mère, femme tant aimée
Merci de m’avoir autant donné
Merci d’avoir su être là aussi, pour me montrer toute la puissance, du mot aimer.
Tu nous a quittés pour un monde meilleur, laissant dans notre vie un vide immense.
Que Dieu le tout-puissant nous donne la force pour supporter ton absence, toi qui nous a tant aimé et tant donné.
Dans nos pensées tu resteras, dans nos coeurs tu vivras et dans notre vie nous nous souviendrons toujours de toi, de ta bonté, de ta générosité, de ta simplicité et surtout de ta sagesse.
Que tous ceux qui t'ont connue et aimée se joignent à nous pour célébrer ta mémoire.
Repose en paix grand-ma.
Que Dieu le tout-puissant t'accorde son infinie miséricorde et t'accueille dans son éternel paradis.
Je t'aime
Bamidélé ABIALA KINIFFO

Today my heart is very heavy He's out of love Not broken down, because you gave me so much I would say he is sad to die because of life and its twists and turns. You loved life so deeply That she gave you thanks, until the last moment How did you get there So that so many people can never forget you? You had discovered the secret which means that we do not live with regrets. You taught me and all your grandchildren such great things That even if life is black or pink, it’s the way we look at it Which often makes us grow wings. Grandmother, beloved woman Thank you for giving me so much Thank you for being there too, to show me the power of the word love. You left us for a better world, leaving a huge void in our life. May Almighty God give us the strength to endure your absence, you who loved us so much and gave us so much. In our thoughts you will remain, in our hearts you will live and in our life we ​​will always remember you, your kindness, your generosity, your simplicity and above all your wisdom. May all those who have known and loved you join us in celebrating your memory. Rest in peace grandma. May Almighty God grant you his infinite mercy and welcome you to his eternal paradise. I love you Bamidele ABIALA KINIFFO