Former Managing Director of Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Timi Alaibe has penned an emotional piece about his late wife, Alaere Alaibe.

He wrote; “She was the wife of my youth. We met in the university. Our friendship seemed moulded in heaven. We grew up loving and trusting each other. We studied and blossomed together.”

“One day, I started nursing the thought that coming together in marriage wouldn’t be a bad idea. We were now out of school. Maturity had set in. A burning desire not to let her go wrapped its sensational fingers around me.”

“Then I took a deep breath and dared the topic. I proposed to her. She looked at me in the eyes, flashed an unnerving smile and uttered those few words: Yes, I will marry you.”

“Instantly, I got lost in joyful imaginations. I had found the love of my life – someone who was as recklessly optimistic as I was. I knew I was in love. And she was too.”

“Days passed pretty fast. We got married after fulfilling all prescribed protocols in line with Ijaw customs and traditions. She was a Lagos girl. But I wasn’t completely a village boy…a veritable Port Harcourt Boy. We never competed. We only complemented one another.”

“It did not take long for me to discover that if I would ever become anything in life, she would play significant roles at different times. I was right. And she was ready. We made mistakes as humans. We corrected ourselves as lovers.”

“We faced life with determination. We had some high and low moments. But we never abandoned each other. We shared a common Biblical belief that though weeping may endure in the night, joy comes in the coming.”

“She encouraged my risky ventures in business and politics. Certainly, there were times things didn’t work out as planned. But through it all, we enjoyed success together and learned profitable lessons from our short-lived failures. She respected my decisions and I cherished her counsel.”

“With children arriving as planned, she became not just a loving wife but an adorable mother. She was a better manager of home affairs than I could ever imagine. While I roared and soared, she guided and directed and put the home in order.”

“She was the wife of my dream. She cared for the neighbours. She loved their children as she did hers. It was her belief that education of the girl child was as much a priority as that of the male child.”

“She preached it. She practised it. She started a school for mothers and the motherless. A community library was built. She dedicated a hospital to the downtrodden. She lived her dream. With global recognitions, awards started pouring in from outside and within.”

“Life was beautiful until the bad news came. She was sick with something terminal. No! That was not to be believed. How can someone so conscious of healthy living be so sick with something incurable!”

“We went in search of cure and found none.”

“Then exactly today, January 31, eleven years ago, she passed on.”

“Her name was ALAERE. She was my wife; the mother of my children.”

“Yes, we have since moved on. But her memory cannot be erased. Her imprints will remain forever. Love does not die. Love only translates to higher glory.”

“Eleven years ago, ALAERE moved to the great beyond. Eleven years after, her impact on earth is still fresh.”

“The memory of the righteous will always be delicious. We all miss her. But the children are proud to have had a mother such as she was. I am personally glad that I married the love of my life.”

“Join us as we remember our beloved ALAERE today.”