A Love Letter From A Diehard Fan

Dear Chimamanda,

I have heard stories about how you turned down every prospective suitor. But I blame those men who thought you would be captivated by their mere show of masculinity. They should have done a background check on you to find out who you are.

However, I thank goodness for creating such irreconcilable differences between you and these men. It gave me a huge opportunity to prepare fully to shoot my own shot at you.

Over the years, I have watched you from a distance. Definitely, it was never stalking, but admiration for your persona.

I first saw your picture on television. It was on a literary show created for book lovers like me. I remember how provocative your dress was. It was unlike the female educators I know, who were always stuffed into old suits like sardines.

I remember wanting to know more about you, but the presenters said little about you except your name, “Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie,” which sounded like a whole industry.

Eventually, I got to read about you from my mother's shelf. It was a short biography about you. That was the only material I could lay my hands on. It was during the COVID-19 lockdown. At the time, I was working on what became my first novel.

After the lockdown, I made my way to the school library, where I found an old copy of Purple Hibiscus. I read a few pages and fell in love with you. You wrote seamlessly in such a way that even a toddler could understand it. You didn't try to sound literary or poetic.

In between the lines, I found fragments of you I could hold on to. You wrote from a place of vulnerability, something I really love about you. I saw you in your characters. In every line, I heard you whispering words of hope and courage.

When I got my first smartphone, I googled your name and found out that you are indeed a powerhouse. At that moment, my eyes flustered and my cheeks turned red. That was when I knew that you are the woman meant for me, the bone of my bone and the flesh of my flesh.

I can't recall the number of your videos I saved on my phone. Whenever deadly thoughts creep into my head, I rush to watch those videos. They fill my blood with adrenaline, the strength needed to go further.

Shall we talk about your love for fashion? That was actually what drew me close to you. I remember when you rocked akwaete pants, and I felt proud of myself for weaving stories around akwaete in what became my second novel.

Your outfits were described as conservative, but they still made a statement. You didn't need any introduction because your name, “Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie,” already carries weight and power.

I admire you for your boldness. Your composure during interviews needs to be studied in schools.

I never thought you were very stubborn. Nti adighi anu gi ihe. But I love you for that. I respect you for fiercely expressing your opinions. I adore you for how articulate and careful you are before making a comment.

You are always trending, even when you do the smallest thing.

I remember when I sat for JAMB. My father insisted on the University of Nigeria, Nsukka as my first choice. I wept so much because I never wanted to be in Nsukka. But because you grew up there, I had to close one eye while writing UNN as my first choice.

Now, I try to imagine, through your characters, how Nsukka looked in “those days.”

I picture the Jackson Building with holes in the walls as a result of gunshots during the Nigerian Civil War.

When I see two lovers holding hands, I imagine Kambili and Father Amadi or Obinze and Ifemelu.

The most intimate part of me loves you because you love Chinua Achebe. Not only do you love him, but you also lived in his house in Nsukka. You found your early inspiration in reading his books.

I love Chinua Achebe for many reasons, including his glasses. He made me wear my glasses proudly. I also owe my inspiration to him.

So, don't you see we are on the same page?

To say the least, I love you so much, and I would love to take you out on a dinner date.

We could talk about you. You can share the secret of how you are able to write a book of more than four hundred pages.

We could plan on sharing a stage and then disappear to Jupiter, where we would write pieces of love letters and throw them down to the earth.

We can start a relationship blog and publish romance stories that will strangle single people to death.

I hope this finds a place in your heart to lie on. Know that I will forever love and talk about you.

I will tell people how much you have inspired me.

Onu na-ekwuru mba niile, the mouthpiece of the world.

Odeluwa nke mbu na mbu n'Abba, the one and only Odeluwa of Abba.

I love you with everything I have.

And for my proposal, I'm not expecting an immediate reply.

Take a few days to think about it, but don't leave me clueless.

I want you to go about your activities bearing in mind that n’ihe gi na-amasi m. I care so much about you.

Until then, ka emesia. Bye.W

With love,                                                                Chidera Onuoha.                                                    (A diehard fan)

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