IT FEELS GOOD TO BE FINALLY BACK

Source: Pixabay, CC0 Licenced

The rush of fresh breeze over my entire face as the bus starts rolling, dissuading every residue of the heat we all had to be subjected to over the period of time the bus was being loaded and goods packed beneath and behind every passenger on our bus. I felt the engines rolling and rising from its sleeping form,the driver pressing down the clutch and firing the bus all away, alas! Am off to serve my country!

It was Thursday night, or was it actually Friday? Well, anyways the date and time might be wavy right now, but we will get to that soon, however, on this particular date, as i was filling the online form for NYSC Mobilization, my eyes were dim and full of sleep, all i wanted to do was to fill this crazy form and get over with it, so it didn't matter what was been typed, all that matters was to get it done, when it reached the point to choose the four places that would likely be where am going to, honestly, i don’t know what i filled there.

24 hours later, the online community is raving, everyone is happy,my friends are calling, people are sharing details of their call-up letters being showcased on their dashboards,some are happy being posted to awesome locations, some are not, Aha! It was a Friday!( Now, i remember). I hurried down to check out mine (having full belief that my call up letter can never be out, partly because i just concluded my online registration the previous day, and partly because i was not in any way ready for whats about to follow. What met my eyes of no little in-congruence.

NASARAWA! NASARAWA! CORPER NO DEY REST! Everything happened so quick that within the next three days, i was totally ready for Camp, it was the fastest three days of my life (so far), and YES! I was posted to Nasarawa State.I had managed to get different lists from different people, and as i know how to do best, i sat and rearranged the entire list into one that suits me very well, and off to the market i went ( the tale would be in another publication).being unable to decide what might become of me in the strange land, i decided to park light, and take only things of utmost necessity and importance to camp. The turn of events which would lead to my unwitting redeployment would be amazingly intertwined.

As the bus rolled off from the park that faithful Tuesday morning, i could still remember in bits and pieces the prayers and advice of my mum as she packed my bags with the little stuffs and camp materials i had managed to acquire within the previous 3 days, it was going to be a very far journey, hence i had to leave very early, unfortunately and indeed ironically for me, i had to wake up at the particular time i normally go to sleep,Four AM!.

As my mum kept on with layers and layers of advice for her beloved child leaving to a far land to spend 3 weeks with different people from different parts of the country, she feared what wrong might befall me, hence she was poised to equip me well enough for anything that might happen during my stay there, while i was busy, falling on and off, gliding through the world of the living and the dream world, that i only caught little of everything she said.

I was directly beside the driver in the front seat, actually it was for so many reasons, for which seemed really important to me at the time, one was so that i wouldn’t have to miss the glimpse of any and every amazing sight on our way to the promised land, or was it because i craved to be the first to see everything?(after the driver, of course), Perhaps, it was because i had wanted not to fall asleep during the journey, so as to curb any plans of me being kidnapped (forgive me, i can be a little naive in my imaginations), or my needs to find out about any important place we pass by simply asking the driver.

7 hours and we are still on the road, all my expectations have been far outreached, including my worst expectations, we had just crossed Enugu borders, when the driver announced to me happily “in the next 4 hours, we will be in Lafia”, My Heart Sank, “4 HOURS!!???” I thought, “Wow”, i replied him, “ so, when next are we stopping, i can’t feel my legs anymore” i asked, He turned, to me with a smile “soon, its like its your first time?”, i nodded affirmatively, (we had stopped twice before now, the first place to refill our tanks, while the second place was to buy foods, and i was already tired).

BANG!!!!!!!!!, it was as if i was dreaming, was this an accident? did anybody die? Are we injured? What actually happened? This questions were rummaging on my mind as i was awoke by that sound (apparently, i had slept off), and Oh!, it was just a busted Tyre, i was so glad that no one was hurt, however, i couldn’t account for the amount of adrenaline that was pumped into my blood at that moment, because, i never slept again till we reached our destination.

From the outside, it looked like one of those Russian Concentration Camps, where their enemies were subdued to untold hardship and pains and people had to live the worst of their lives, without hope and a load of despair to add to their faith on daily basis, “its just for 21 days!, and i will be free once again” i consoled myself as i dragged my bag from the junction into the gates of the camp.

The Experience of the camp and my diverse escapades with the military men would have to be scattered across my subsequent publications. I have so many things to talk about, so many friends met, so many experiences garnered, its exhilarating how that we can learn wisdom of years within the space of 3 weeks and have a change in mindset and behavior within those times.

It had been a worthwhile experience.Now, am back, with mixed feelings,which i haven’t particularly figured out why, probably due to the events i missed out on, or the people i had issues with, or the opportunities missed, or due to my total absence and its brutal effects on those who depended on me, but one thing is for sure, a better me is here, and i am turning a new leaf, extending an olive branch to all those i have hurt and making promise for a better me, i hope i am welcome here?