October Opts Out

So I woke up very excited that Sunday morning. Just a little over one hour journey to get to Aba, the town where I grew up and left sixteen years ago. I was going home. Close to my land of nativity where my life like a clean slate had her foundational letters written upon.



I walked down to the park and boarded a coaster bus for the a-little-over-one hour journey. My first ‘aha’ moment was when I was asked to squeeze myself in the middle of four passengers sitting on a row of seats obviously meant for four people. I was surprised and unhappy though other passengers didn’t seem to mind. Imagine sitting in a way that you couldn’t move your hands to ransack your hand bag like a typical lady even if you had nothing exactly you were looking for. Very awkward posture and to think that I paid full fare with other passengers was unfair. I reminded myself a lesson I learnt recently, when you are sandwiched in between two slices of ‘bread’, you burrow within and enjoy the world in there before emerging with a different outlook to life. Anyway, for the homeward journey, I could bear. I managed to bring out a book i had planned to read through the journey when I get tired of watching the country side.



Barely had I settled to read, I heard a voice that asked us for our attention. A mobile preacher. He told us a thousand and one reason why we had to listen to the good news he was about to bring. Then he lifted his voice in a song. For each line he sang, the passengers responded in diverse keys and octaves with exclamations and sighs typical of people who come from South Eastern Nigeria. I tried to sing along but it was a bit difficult blending in as everything sounded flat and off. A conscious mockery of harmonious melody. I wondered that God perhaps wouldn’t mind because He sees the heart first. The singing went on and on and it was not hard to figure out that this preacher does mobile preaching frequently along this particular route.



Remember I said I couldn’t sing along. I couldn’t also dare to open my book to read while the singing was going on. I may have been away from home for a while but I know my kith and kin like the back of my hands. The disapproving looks will bore a hole on the back of my head. I bet you. So do I just mope about?



‘Challenges, opportunity for greatness’ was the title of that morning’s homily. The story of Goliath and David was embellished and brought to life like I was in pre-school class. I almost wondered if I had heard the full story before.

Then the prayer time came shortly before freewill offering for the man of God who maintained that he didn’t need the offering but just to fulfil all righteousness and give us opportunity to support God’s work. He cited instances of people that had opportunity to give but didn’t and woe befell them. Even though the passengers clamoured to ‘drop’ money by passing it on from passenger to passenger, I was worried by this as it sounded like manipulation. There were all manners of prayer. ‘Put your mobile handset on your head and receive network connection for collection (…of money, contract, husband, pregnancy, etc.)’.  



One thing I took away from the trip was the susceptible nature of man and the power of words. As October opts out, I choose to embrace every second sowing the right words in the hearts of people.