Angel Of Hope Episode 6.

https://heavenoasis.blogspot.com

“Yes” She said and smiled sadly. She looked at me oddly and I felt momentarily scared. Before I could ask her what was wrong, she began solemnly “I’m so sorry about your brother that passed away. It must have been very hard for you guys, losing your parents and now, your brother. When I didn’t see you again, I became worried so when I asked Nat, he told me that you decided to quit working and go back to your village so when I saw you here today, I couldn’t believe my eyes and that’s why I waited to talk to you. I’m very sorry for the loss. So what are you doing now?” She asked. “Is hawking this thing paying that much?”

I didn’t know what she was talking about so I told her “Aunty I’m sorry to tell you this but nothing happened to my brother and nothing bad will happen to any of us. He is okay and I didn’t go back to the village. I’m always in Lagos.”

She looked unbelievably at me.

“Excuse me. Why did you lie to Nat then? What would you gain by telling such brutal lie? Why going to the extent of saying your brother is dead? If you don’t want to work anymore, you simply can quit…”

“Aunty April I didn’t say anything like that! I swear to God I didn’t! My sibs are my life and they are the reason why I’m doing all these. I’ll never deny them even if my life is at stake.” I said with all the anger I could muster. “He told me that he didn’t need my service anymore. He paid me off. Even then I owed him about thirty five thousand naira that he lent me to secure a room for us…”

We continued to talk about all these and with each passing moment, it became clear to us that uncle Nat had been lying all along but why did he do that? The clouds began to gather in the sky for some sort of meeting and they joined one another until they all became one dark canopy, shielding out the little light that was coming from the dying evening sun. The rain began without warning in torrential downpour. She opened the front door and I hopped into the car to the envy of my co-workers who were hiding under tables and empty cartons.

“Are you sure of all these things?” She asked seriously. Her expression had changed and she looked rigid and inscrutable.

“Yes I’m very sure ma…” I stopped abruptly in the middle of the sentence , remembering that as the rain was falling harder, our house would be flooded and almost submerged by water again. The deep-wide canal had been full for almost two weeks now without any hope of it’s going down and now the rain seemed hell bent on adding to that grief.

“My sibs!” I cursed under my breath and unlocked the door without warning and sprinted out of the car, running away towards the direction of the bus stop to catch a bus back home as soon as I could make it. All the while, I was waving down buses. I was very scared as I ran on on the rain swept road because there was nowhere or no one that my sibs could stay with should the water rise higher. Our house was out of the options because even before I left home, the floods inside our house was knee deep. Thirty more minutes of serious rain would definitely spell disaster for us.

“Hey, get in!” Miss April drew up the car beside me, she opened the door for me but I kept running while she drove slowly beside me to catch up “Mike I said get in. you are getting soaked for Christ’s sake!” she shouted above the din of the rain sounds.

“No. I have to get home now because of my sibs” I shouted back without stopping.

“Don’t worry, I’ll take you there. Now get in before you catch pneumonia!” I was happy and I hopped in beside her, not minding my wetness. I gave her directions to our house and all through the 50 minutes drive there, we talked about my family. It was not a new subject but discussing my family was one of those things that I was not comfortable discussing but I told her everything she wanted to know. I told her the reason why I was so scared.

“My greatest fear is that they won’t wander away into the canal because the water has completely covered it and made everywhere look the same so that anyone who has never been to the area or even an unsuspecting resident may fall into the deep canal and that would be the end. It has happened before. There were two cases of drown people this ear alone” I said.

“Relax, they will be alright by God’s grace” She assured me.

We had to park her car three streets before we reached our own. The streets beyond that had been flooded to knee level and our street was the closest to the canal. I threw away all caution and fears and got into the water and walked to our street where the water level was higher. All the while, Miss April was closely behind me. I told her to wait when I got to the front of our house while I went into the house. I told her to remain like and not to over a limb because she didn’t know the place and any false move can take her to the middle of the canal. I made my way into our house though the water was well above my knees.

“Reuben! Seyi!! Elizabeth!!! Are you guys in there?!” I shouted in the empty house and my voice echoed back at me. I shouted again but there was no response still. I felt happy. At least, they were not anywhere near the house and that has been my prayer since I remembered them. I waded through the water to the third room door and using my own key, I unlocked the door and went inside. Our things were floating happily on the brownish flood water. I got dry cloths from the rack that was up against the wall and where the water has not yet reached. I reached up quickly and took the little amount of money I have been saving for emergencies where I tucked it hidden in one of my shirt’s pocket and made my way back out, ignoring our things that were floating on the water after I packed off all documents from the top of the cupboard.

I joined Miss April who was waiting for me inside the rain and we made our way very carefully back and away from our house, gong to the upper part of the street where the water level was not that high. All the while I was calling my sibs names at the top of my voice. All around us people walked aimlessly about in the rain. Like us, they too have been forced out of their small rooms too. A landlord and his tenants were battling it out in one of the houses we passed but I was not paying attention to all these because my mind was totally on finding my sibs save and sound. I was afraid that one of them might have falling into the canal and while others were trying to help him or her, others had fallen into it too! I almost cried at this horrible thought but I kept on praying to God silently that it wouldn’t happen.

All these evil thoughts were still tormenting me when I heard Eliza’s happy and childish voice beside me. “It’s Mike!!!” she shouted excitedly from the doorway of a wooden shed that serves as a canteen for a woman who had already closed for the day. I felt happy and relieved at this and I sighed appreciatively to God. She sprang out of the shed and ran into the rain towards me. When she got to few feet before she reached me, she flew towards me and though I was tired, I caught her midair and hugged her very tightly. I ruffled her hair and pulled her cheeks. She loved it when I do that so she giggled excitedly.

“Hey Lizzy, you shouldn’t have come out into the rain. You could get drenched like that!” I said but she didn’t mind. “Where are Seyi and Reuben?” I asked as she led us to the shed.

“We are here!” Seyi and Reuben too said excitedly from within the shed. They sounded so joyful that I was wondering if they were happy that we were forced out of the house into the pelting rain. I was expecting them to be sad and gloomy and I’ve been bracing myself for the soothing words to tell them but somehow God has taken care of that.

We ducked under the shed to take shelter from the rain. I quickly introduced Miss April to them and they curtsied and said hellos. Lizzy however did more than others, she took her hand in hers and shook it very warmly and this brought a glowing smile to Miss April’s face. She bent down and pecked her on the cheek.

“Mike I think we can pass the night here. I’ve taken our quilts and enough cloths to ward off the cold and the mosquitoes. The flood cannot reach this place cuz we are far from the canal now” Seyi said. She had already spread a blanket on the cold and uncemented floor of the shed and it looked warm enough.

“Yeah, Seyi. I’ve been thinking about that too. We would be gone before the owner comes in the morning. Now what do you guys want to eat tonight?” I asked through my chattering teeth and vibrating body. The cold was penetrating through my bones marrow. Miss April too was shaking pretty badly even though she tried so hard not to show it.

“Indomie! We will eat indomie tonight Mike” Elizabeth said excitedly as if she just found a cure for HIV/AIDS when many people have tried and failed.

“That’s dumb.” Reuben retorted. “Mike, don’t mind her. Bread or any other emergency food will do” He said sagely and Seyi nodded her approval.

“But why can’t we eat indomie?” Elizabeth shot back angrily. She was close to tears. She obviously hated the way Reuben treated her last statement.

“Because this is an emergency center. It’s not our house and no pot and other cooking things and without those things, we can’t do any cooking” he explained with his usual I-am-your-big-brother attitude and Lizzy strangely accepted his explanation.

“I’ll go out to get something when Miss April is going back to her place…” I was saying but Miss April cuts in.

“We can really cook together guys and eat hot and spicy indomie instead of dry bread. I think everyone is cold now?” Miss April asked and I became dumbstruck.

“Miss April…” I protested weakly.

“Don’t you guys like the idea?” She asked and ignored me. My sibs went wild with excitement as they leapt up in jubilation. “Now pack your things and let’s rush into the car, we are not coming back here tonight” She said.

“Miss…” I began as my sibs rushed past us with their cloths and school bags. “Are you s….”

“Am I sure if I really want to do this? Of course I am! I can’t just let you guys sleep in this thing while I sleep alone in a big house with many empty rooms. We will not have this conversation again, now get in the car and let’s scram from here because I’m chilled to the bones”

GRASS TO ABUNDANT GRACE.

Miss April’s house must have been the best house my sibs had ever seen because they didn’t conceal their amazements and wonders as they wowed everything they saw right from the gates to the lounge. I walked with the confidence of one who was familiar with the place while my sibs trailed gingerly behind me, afraid to touch and spoil anything from the exquisitely beautiful house. It was a duplex with the lounge, dining room and library on the ground floor while the bedrooms and restrooms were on the top floor.

“Wow! This is the most beautiful room I’ve ever seen!” Seyi exclaimed, Reuben and Lizzy agreed silently by nodding their heads in agreement. Miss April just smiled through it all.

“Okay now I’m hungry but I don’t know about you guys, before we head to the kitchen, let me show you to your rooms” She said and we all followed her upstairs. She gave the girls a bedroom beside hers while she gave Reuben and me the third room from hers. This was more than my expectation all through the drive to her house. I wasn’t thinking much of getting separate rooms for us. All I was really expecting was a guest room for all of us to crash in. I wanted to cry for joy but I didn’t. I was about to thank her when Seyi began to sob. We all felt the same way so it didn’t surprise any of us- not even Lizzy who was the baby of the house.

After we’ve comfortably settled in, Miss April retreated to the kitchen and both Seyi and Lizzy followed her. Reuben and I hung aimlessly about, not knowing what to do while the ladies cook up something from the kitchen. We decided to stay put in our room and we were hearing excited voices drifting in from the kitchen as the trio prepared the late supper. After 35 minutes or thereabout, we supped together and then retreated back to the living room to watch a movie on the satellite. We’ve never watched one before, it was always on the local channels with our epileptic black and white television that must be slapped and kicked before it could even on. It seldom on but when it does, it’s always a sort of celebration in our room because Christmas celebrations come more often than the times that the TV used to work. So watching movie on the unbelievably big screen TV which we later knew as LCD TV was like having a taste of heaven after spending centuries in hellfire. While this was going on, I used the opportunity to help them all with their assignments; not that they really needed the help but I oversee what they were doing just for the fun of it.

When it was 10pm, Seyi told us that it was time to pray and say goodnights (that was one of the things we always do. It has become part of us to the extent that even outside our house, we can’t overlook it. It’s like a bad habit; it sticks to its owner like a glue. Miss April looked surprise and a little awkward at first but when we began singing praises, she relaxed and soon forgot about all her reservations)

The next day was Sunday so we all attended a parish of The Redeemed Christian Church Of God at the estate. Before we left home for the church, Miss April confessed to us that she couldn’t remember the last time she was in a church. She said she believe that there is a God up there who controls everything down on earth and beyond but that she just found it hard to believe too strongly in religion.

The service was brief but awesome. Every one of us loved every minute we spent right there in the church. We sang and danced and prayed without restrictions. When the first timers were asked to step forward for recognition we all trouped out to a loud and friendly ovation from all the members of the church. We shook hands and hugged many people with lots of joy and peace of mind that was so rare to us. Miss April spoke for all of us when we were given microphones to introduce ourselves and if we would love to join the parish as one big and happy family.

“My name’s April and these are my siblings; Michael, Reuben, Seyi and Lizzy. We love this place and we want to be part of this family” She said and the church broke into another joyful celebration as if we were the most important people in the world.

The service began by nine AM and two hours later we closed. We were surrounded by both the members and the leaders of the church, answering questions and giving assurances to be coming frequently. At last we were free and while we were going to the park, Miss April told us how happy she was. “The last church I went to must have been five or six years ago but the service was….that was why I lost interest in going to any church. I thought that the people that constitute the church are a bunch of boring people” She said and we laughed.

“Aunty it’s good to go to church” April said. “Because when we do, God would be happy with us and beat the devil if he wants to harm us. God would tell him not to touch his children but if we don’t go, God will not stop the devil if he wants to harm us.”

“That’s dumb Elice” Reuben said with exasperation.

“Grow up sister” Seyi said.

“Lizzy don’t mind them. They are just jealous because you know the truth” Miss April said and she took Lizzy’s small hand in hers and turned her to face her. She bent down in front of her when we reached her car. Seyi and Reuben got into the backseat. “When the pastor told us to make a request to God before we shared the grace, hope you prayed for a great future? Did you pray about what you want to become in the future?” Miss April asked seriously. God knows who told her but since she was in Kg 2, she had been hammering the fact that when she grows up; she wanted to become a medical doctor and she has talked our ears off with that fact to the extent that whenever she began talking about it, we used to shut her up but Miss April strangely seemed to be fascinated and believe it every time she starts saying it.

Lizzy shook her head. “I didn’t pray about it” She replied.

“Why, what did you pray about then?” Miss April asked, amused.

“I prayed to God to protect you and make you happy all the days of your life as you are making us happy.” She replied quietly. I was taken aback. Sometimes she used to say things that goes beyond her age and surprise someone with her utterances.

Two ripe tears emerged from Miss April’s eyes and she let them fall freely in her squat position. She took Lizzy’s head in her palms and spoke softly. I turned my eyes away from them to look at the horizon where the sky and the land joined together but I was hearing everything she said.

Search This Blog

HeavenOasis

Angel Of Hope Episode 6.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular Posts This Month.

GRAMMATICAL NAMES AND FUNCTIONS

HOW TO ANSWER SUMMARY QUESTIONS CORRECTLY.

Why Are Degree Holders Poor?