If you were present the day Igonibo played the piano at school during one of the school’s events, you would have thought he learnt how to play in school. I do not by any means take anything away from the school but credit must be given to where it truly belongs. In Igonibo’s case, that credit belongs home.

The moment the journey started

When Abiye holds his guitar and sits with his son on the piano, you can’t get either of them to do anything else. They could go on and on, recording and editing, repeating and starting all over again. That they haven’t produced a single is still surprising, but I don’t doubt that might be in the works.

He sees how his son lights up on the piano and joy wells up in him as a father. Who wouldn’t be proud?

These two fix stuffs together. They fix generator together, they fix bulbs together, they fix electrical appliances together. Even though Igonibo cannot drive, he can explain to you driving techniques. If you ask him how he knows, his face brightens up in a wide grin as he belts his favorite sentence, ‘My daddy told me.’ Sometimes he uses that line a lot in conversations it could wear you out. Kids quote lines from TV and Cartoon Network these days. They repeat phrases from what they watch on TV and what they see their friends do. Spend a little time with Abiye’s son, and all you’ll hear is, ‘My daddy said…My daddy said…’ It’s no doubt these two are a team. Wherever you find them, they are doing something together, some chore, some task, some work, some assignment.

All these only point to a singular fact, Abiye prioritizes the time he spends with his son. Like he is on a mission to just pour everything into him and make him a better version of himself. Abiye is a #FatherLikeThat. It’s possible to be home and not home. It’s possible to be present and not there. Physical presence is nothing if it doesn’t result to bonding time with the child.

Lately, Igonibo has started handling his father’s camera. And that is the stuff great fathers are made of. For that is how memories are created and self-confidence built. It is what makes growing up exciting and makes a child look back to so much to remember, so much recollections to relish. A great father knows that. Abiye is a #FatherLikeThat.

We don’t say it often. We sometimes take it for granted too. But, this day we thank you for all that you do, for all that you are and for just being there through thick and thin. You could suit up and speak in board meetings and top level conferences. But you come home, wear your shorts, slide into a tee and bond with the kids. We thank you for playing your role in ensuring the next generation is safe and sane. Thank you for being a #FatherLikeThat.

Thank you, Abiye.