Skip to main content

THE MEET UP

 



THE MEET UP

“I dreamt I missed the rapture,” he said to me. “There are terrible things I have been thinking of lately and I know that is the reason why.”

 

I asked what terrible thoughts have been dancing to the disco in  his head and he answered, after arranging his thoughts properly so that God will not send an angel to whoop his mouth, “YOU. Please do not say anything. Let me speak my mind as quickly as possible because I might never confess this to you. I want you to be my wife. However, I know God will not accept you because you are of the world; you put on trousers, makeup, you attend parties and dance to corrupt music. These are the only obstacles to us being together in holy matrimony. You have to turn to God so he can save you and we will both make heaven together.”

I recalled when we used to play in secondary school. Lawrence was the people’s guy that stepped into the room and everyone went woahh. He did not think of rapture then but rapport. He did not mind trousers but liked hanging out with beautiful girls from other classes. He would play football and hug anyone close to him once he scored a goal. There was always this light in his eyes that no sad words could put out. Until his mother appeared in school one afternoon, taking Lawrence away to only God knows where. I did not see nor hear from him until ten years later.

We were mature beings. He said to me when we met, after arranging this grand meeting for weeks: “I got your contact from an old classmate and I just want to tell you that I never forgot you.” He evaded every question hitting on why his mother took him away and where he had been all the while. But we had heard a long time ago that his father died and they could no longer afford his school fees. We also heard that they lived in a church where ghosts and demons were always tormenting their members. I let the sleeping dog sleep since I had no bone to offer it.

As he spoke about the past years, I searched for that light but all I saw were struggling eyes that had starved and prayed and battled and doubted crawling cockroaches, flying birds, banana trees, and every other sign of witchcraft. I saw how scared he was of the future and restless of the present.

“I thought of marrying Lawrence, not you. I am sorry you see me as a child of the world but hey, I am not dead so where else should I be? I hear your mother is in an asylum after hitting her head on the wall while praying for her village people to quench. I do not want you to end up like her. If you love God, you would know he does not like how you have depreciated all in His name. I know He sent you not on such an errand. Please, let Him be the judge and lead you. I hope you find your angel from heaven who you can marry with God’s blessings. As for me, I will find another Lawrence with sparkling eyes and our heaven will start here on earth.”

He said he would pray for me as I was but a child lacking the knowledge of the spiritual world. We departed.

Don’t Forget to subscribe to this blog/page for future post notifications…


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

MAKEOVER

  When she realized her hair was gone, the barber had increased the volume of his radio and India Arie’s ‘I am not my hair’ filled the room. ‘If I can manage the situation like a professional, my construction contract with her father will hold tomorrow,’ I thought. I breathe in and out, a logic that never works for me, but I do it anyway. I rehearse my words, changing each sound to a softer version of the previous one - aligning my looks to the words so that my eyes become half closed and there is a faint smile on my face. I wait for the explosion. All the while, the barber is busy touching what is left on her head with his clipper. He says it is the final addition and calls it the moon look. He fumbles with the chair, turning Stella from left to right like a child’s play. The large mirror in front of us escalates the mishap and the fumes on my girlfriend’s face seem to be burning the white walls. It was meant to be a makeover since her 25 th birthday was the next day. Now it...

WHEN IT RAINS IT POURS

In those days, when it rained we would stay by the window and watch how the trees danced to the beats of the wind, the singing of raindrops and thunder. The lighter the music, the closer our legs would get to the door post, quietly watching the eyes of our mother; and waiting for an approval. When she wiggled her legs, it was a negative signal. But when she praised the beautiful works of God in the rainy moment, it was a positive sign. Note, there was no going outside when it rained in the night. That was why Joseph composed the song: Rain visit us when the sun is not old Rain sing for us when the moon is not young So that mother will open the door for us to play with you So that papa will come home dry and happy. Rain visit us as we sing to you. Rain oh rain oh rain. That particular day, the rain was deaf to our singing, or calling and yelling. We became frustrated because the sun was kissing the lines of the sea, workers were returning home while livestock owners were gathering their...

WHEN WE ARE OLD

  I heard them laughing, pointing at different buildings at each bus stop. Some were tall, old, and short buildings but they had something in common. They were whitewashed. The daughter talked more than her mother. She even laughed out loud sometimes as if they were the only passengers onboard. They occupied the first two seats on the deck of the bus and could see the clouds moving slowly even better than the driver. The daughter pointed to a small house and said to her mother:  “Ma, do you remember Auntie Debbie? She used to live in a tiny house just like that. Ha-ha! It was too small to even accommodate our cat when I was 7, remember?” “Yes, I remember darling. But you’re all grown up, tired of kitty. She is all mine now.” They both smiled and then the daughter mumbled something, and it turned into a wild laugh, as if something went awry in their heads. My mother will not laugh with me like this. Never! I thought. In fact, I dared not laugh at anyone’s house - big or small. ...