MissPurpleheart.com: WRITERS VAULT: Encounter

I just left her house to mine. I didn't spend up to five minutes. Though I wanted to spend more time, but my knees were already jerking and I was sweating profusely. I barely maintained concentration as I was gazing into her smiles, her smile looked unreal, I could tell that even in her beautiful wet face. The room was dark with no fan and proper ventilation, I was sitting on a very low stool. As I stormed out the room, I was greeted with fresh air, I can sense the relieve in my face though sweat was still dripping down my bushy beards.

Angela was my childhood friend, still in her 20's. A pretty young girl who couldn't finish her secondary education because of her poor background. I still remember what she wore on our first graduation day, thanks to the fact that I still have our group photo and she was sitting next to me. We were arranged according to our ranks, and she was the second best graduating student. Hmmm, that was the last time I had sat next to her until this day!.

She welcomed me warmly and was full of surprise. I was taken aback with what I saw, her pretty look didn't change much but she was looking tattered, her skin looking rough and wrinkled, she was wearing a black bra with a supposed white but 'milky' skirt. My brain seized for a moment and the saliva in my mouth thickened, it was as if the ptyalin in my saliva was choking my oesophagus as I could barely mutter a word.

Lying beside her was a sleeping new born and a crying little girl, she was reaching for her bra in desperation.

"Pretty little girl", I managed to speak. Don't mind her, Angela mussed, she's never tired of sucking. She's a year and six months, she continued. The little girl was naked and had all her hair shaved. The new born was still fast asleep with a hand fan beside her.

I forced out a smile, with my eyes fully locked with that of Angela's. Congratulations my dear, I said in an exciting tone, we thank God Basil, she giggled. It was Angela's 5th child...

Angela had been married against her free will to a man twice her age. She was 'exchanged' with a plot of land to farm in, a land which is now a gully erosion site. Her husband is a trader who lacks basic education, and could barely spell his name.

*****

My favorite TV program was being aired, it was the last episode of a popular soap opera. I started watching the TV 30 minutes earlier out of anticipation, analyzing the soap and wondering how it will end, I was excited like a child on Christmas eve.

The program had started, but surprisingly, I was drifting away. I find myself losing concentration, it was as if I was in limbo. It had been 5 minutes into the program already and I had no clue about what was going on, my mind was restless and I struggled in vein.

The hapless Angela has been in my mind all evening, her ordeal was too severe to be true. I was finding it hard to believe what I saw. Nobody would have guessed her present state right from secondary school.

I spent the whole evening pondering on the kind of lady she might have been if she had come from a different background. For the first time in my life, I have been weighed down by 'another person's' problem.

I abandoned the soap after a while and rushed down to my shelf to get my photo album. I quickly searched for my graduation picture. I was greeted by a delightful smile, her dimples was clearly visible and she was on a clean low cut. On the contrary, I welcomed the smile with tears gathering in my eyes, a taste of dissatisfaction and disappointment. A lost dream smiling at me, a great mind, a wonderful personality which was subdued by fate.
For a whole week, I was reflecting on my own life, how things would have turned if I had the same fate as my childhood friend. I could picture her face in my mind everywhere i went.

*****

"Democracy has come to stay, it is for the people". That was the headline news in THE PARROT newspaper of may 29, 2001. It was democracy day and a public holiday. It was a relief for me, because I didn't have to go to the office.
I took out time to do my laundry and I was done in no time. I normally hang out with my friends during public holidays, but I opted to visit Angela instead. I felt maybe another visit would clear her off my mind.

I was ready for another emotional torture, but this time It would no longer come as a surprise.

The kids were playing outside when I entered the compound. Angela was playing with them happily. "Happy mood, I guess!", I shouted jokingly. "What a surprise", she said in an exciting tone. "You were the last person I was expecting today", she added.
"You are looking very strong today, I'm happy about that", I continued. She smiled at me, and then turned away. She raised her head and said subtly, "To be strong doesn't mean you don't feel the pain, it means you feel and understand it, but you still choose to be happy".

I was flabbergasted with what I heard, I never expected such a reply. This lady might have been robbed of her future, but her sheer brilliance was still intact, I thought to myself.

"Basil, my ordeal is no longer news as you can see for yourself. I really need your help. My future was taken away from me by my parents", she said, "and these kids were the fruit of that union", she continued. I was concentrating with my whole mind that I could hear the sound of the wind, she was talking with so much authority and vigor.

"These kids must not suffer the same ordeal as me, she said. Her eyes were fiercely looking, with so much fire. Not just my kids but other poor kids as well", she added.

"Our kids must earn the right to education, irrespective of their background, they must have the right to choose their future". She was in 'auto mode', it was as if I was at a university lecture. I was beginning to feel a sense of responsibility.

"I want you to join me Basil, I have a new dream, a new cause", she continued. "The first was taken away from me, but this one, with you, nobody would be able to rob me of it".

My legs were shaking, I couldn't place why she had so much faith in me. But one thing was certain, I was in for a ride with 'fate', I need to help my childhood friend achieve her dream.

She gave me no choice to choose. A lady to admire. That was the birth of 'An African child', a leading NGO in the country today.