Popular singer Jose Chameleone’s wife Daniella Atim Mayanja has publicly spoken out about the struggles she had with her in-laws regarding the upbringing of her children.
Through a post shared on her Instagram on Thursday evening, the mother of five revealed how falling in love was rosy until when time came to have kids.
She remembers meeting Chameleone’s family and her in-laws demanding for their first born to be a boy since a boy child sealed a man’s status in society.
Daniella, after months of prayer, fasting, and tithe gave birth to Abba, and later another son and then the in-laws wanted a girl child.
It’s around this time that she felt she was being hard done by with the standards that had been set by her in-laws and she began to develop a tough skin.
The usually calm and smiley lady notes that she had to revamp her fierce character just to protect her needs and her children from her in-laws.
She remembers stopping her kids from visiting their grandparents without her and this made her the topic of discussion among her husband’s relatives.
“I remember all the tingles I felt when I fell in love, I couldn’t wait to have kids with the person I loved. I had met his family and most of his friends, his parents told me they wanted a”boy child” as a first child (even though this sounded very impolite tomy ears).
I was in love and I embarked on a journey to seek out and cry to God to give me a son as my first child.
I fasted for a son, I offered tithe for a son and I even went as far as making a pact with God. I told him, “God if you give me a son for my first child, I will ensure that he serves you.” Of course I had a son. God gave me the son I wanted and we gave him just the perfect name Abba.
I was smart enough to know that it didn’t matter what gender my child was but here I had fallen in love with a man from a very traditional family. To them a boy child sealed a man’s status in society and now it was my duty to do that. And then had a second son and even a third son.
And this time they moved goal posts, they wanted a girl but trust me by this time I had started to outgrow the standards they had set for me as their son’s wife.
I was done walking on egg shells and I wanted the courageous girl Fr John raised to come out of her shell. I wanted to be the brave, principled girl everyone refered to me as. It was time to start living the values Fr John had instilled in us; HUMBLE and FIERCE.
I immediately stopped my kids from visiting their paternal grand parents if I was not in their company. I did not want my kids getting certain ideas in their heads.
I became the VILLAIN who was the topic of discussion in family WhatsApp groups but secretly I was thumping my chest in victory. I had won this battle and I could raise my kids as they kept pointing fingers.
Alba was born, she was an instant sunshine. My in-laws were excited but by this time they already knew not to make tasteless comments around me. The warrior in me had woken up and has never gone to sleep since then.
Anyway, National Daughter’s Day was a few days ago but in our home it is children’s day everyday,. We celebrate the biggest gift God has given humanity…LIFE!” Daniella Atim
