Didiunloluwa Ajayi: Celebrating the gem that conquered Hydrocephalus

Today, two years ago was one of the most shocking days of my life. I remember sleeping only to be woken up by a call well past midnight that Didiunloluwa Ajayi was sleeping but she is not waking up.

I did not understand what was going on and said, ehn no worries, she will wake up in the morning. Maybe she’s tired.

It was then the bombshell dropped that Didun has gone to be with Lord? Which Lord? You dey whine me? 🤨

But it was emphasised that Didun is gone, as in dead!!! 😰 How? Why? When? 😢😭 To get myself together was a struggle. To go back to sleep was a struggle. I was not myself for days.

Here was an adorable and charming princess born with Hydrocephalus from birth like I was. It was a rough road but it was one where I saw remarkable growth and progress like never before.

I got to understand the diverse ways God works miracles which often is not the way we envisage it. I also got to understand it was necessary to look past any disability she had.

Yes, she might not have been walking or talking her age but the milestones she achieved and battles she conquered including near death experiences, made me see an extraordinary human.

Didiunloluwa was a joy to be with and never a dull moment. There was no hate around her but love. Even if some tried to hate, it was not going to go far because the love others had for her was going to conquer it.

Despite all the progress made, Didun succumbed to seizures, the same kind of condition I had growing up. This is what pained me the most.

I remembered how these seizures got the better of me and tried to derail my formative years. I conquered it and I wish Didun did.

She did actually conquer because of the many obstacles and barriers she scaled; from having neck control to having mobility in her hands and legs to being able to utter certain words and mime nursery rhymes and Nigeria’s old national anthem.

These are moments that I will cherish forever in the short time I knew Didiunloluwa Ajayi. It made me understand that what might seem impossible is possible.

Her mother, Dr. Modupe Ajayi, PhD, is an epitome of God’s grace having pushed aggressively in advocacy while her daughter was alive and even after her demise.

Rather than grieve and accept defeat, Dr. Ajayi, PhD, has been emboldened to spread the message of love and hope by setting up Didiunloluwa Ajayi Hydrocephalus Initiative (DHI).

There is really so much to celebrate just two years after Didun’s demise because it is a reminder that there is hope for the future. Everyone will have their time to leave this world. It is not how long we live but the impact that is made in the shortest possible space of time that matters.

Didiunloluwa Ajayi made so much impact which is why this website is in her honour.

We will forever cherish all that she brought to the world to make it better for those living with Hydrocephalus and other neurological and non-neurological conditions.