THE REALITY OF LIFE.

It all started like a fairy tale, but this one has a long tail. A day a young man never envisage that destiny was around the corner, waiting to smile on him.

On that day he was on a visit to a friend who stays far away from the city, after embarking on such a back breaking journey, he met the doors and gates locked like that of a bank closed for services. Out of frustration and utter disappointment, he sat on a wooden bench in front of the quiet and lifeless house waiting for the arrival of is dear friend.

After some minutes he plugged in his ipod and drifted gradually into and hot and steamy sleep, he slept so deep that it took more than just a shout to bring him back to reality, a heavy and long body shake by an old lady who happens to be a neighbour was what it took to make his red and heavy eyes flip open like a book, still dazed by the long sleep, he stared into the open air as if he has just being caught doing something wrong.

Then came the voice of a lanky, tall, old lady, she said hey! Young man who are you looking for, he checked the time it was 12:30pm, which made him stand up with some unusual urgency and he said. Sorry ma, am actually looking for my friend who I haven’t seen for a long time, he stays in that compound, he indicated by pointing his finger. The old woman’s gaze followed the pointed finger meticulously, after some time she shook her head in pity and dismay, then she replied, oh! My son, no body actually lives there anymore. The last person I saw lived here left 3months ago; maybe that’s who you are looking for. All she was saying sounded like a bad news broken on a live TV. He couldn’t even wait for the woman to finish breaking the news before he turned and walked away defeated and exhausted.

As he was walking down the dusty road, still hating himself for going through such energy draining journey, he had no idea what he would be encountering on his way.

Just a few meters away from where he was coming from, on the other side of the road he saw a long queue of people, there were boys, girls, old men and women, some of the old folks even brought dogs with them, which made the queue so unattractive.

The young man lead by some strange spirit of curiosity, changed course, forgot why he came to that locality, ignored the anger inside and over looked the big disappointment before him. He crossed over to get a closer view of what was happening, just as he was approaching the line, he heard a group of people talking casually about lottery, lotto and buying of ticket.

Still trying to make sense of what they were saying, a young man approached him and asked if he was on the queue for the ticket. Out of shock and surprise he said yes, so the man took a position behind him. So as not to appear confused and stupid, he quietly tapped the person in front of him to get more information about the lottery ticket. Apparently what the person said was good enough to make him wait and purchase the ticket. The ticket was sold for $2, at that time he only had $20 on him, but something unusual just kept him on that queue, a queue that will make him have a life changing encounter with destiny.

After 1hour the queue, was gradually depleting in number, and there were just two persons in front of him. When it eventually got to his turn, a young lady out of nowhere forcefully fixed herself in front of him, unapologetic about it. Due to his nature, he said nothing and just smiled back to the lady, which annoyed those behind him. They started calling him names, trying to awake the anger and ego inside him, the more they shouted the cooler and calmer he gets.

All this while he still never knew what awaits him, the lady picked the ticket and left in self fulfilment, ignorant of the favour she just did for the young man, even though the young man knows nothing.

When it was eventually his turn, the ticket sales girl took time fondling with the ticket before she gave it to him, he left and went back home, folding the ticket and putting it in the back pocket of the pant he wore that day.

After that day he never thought about the ticket and what happened that day.

He went back to the way things used to be. After 3weeks, on a cool Saturday while cleaning his bedroom, the phone rang, thinking it was his mother. That was the call that changed his story. On picking the call, a female voice asked for his name, he told her, and then she said something that sounded crazy to him at that moment. She said “MR PAUL, THE LOTTERY TICKET WITH SERIAL NUMBER 568382, JUST WON $20 MILLION NO TAX “out of disbelieve he dropped the phone and continued with what he was doing. He even started laughing thinking someone was trying to pull a fast one on him.

In the middle of his laughter the lady called back and said the same thing; she also said there was a ticket with 568381, which came before his own ticket, that his ticket was the winning ticket. He couldn’t put himself together, he broke into an uncontrollable tears, then he remembered the day he went to visit a friend, the queue, the lady that jumped into his front on the line and the killing heat, all these made him fall face down in an erupting tears of joy and peace.

He looked in the back pocket of the pant in wore that day and found the ticket, with the same winning numbers.

Why has our love gone soar my love, what happened to the girdle holding our hearts together, why is everything falling apart like a park of cards. Laughter and peace was all we knew, but now there is something new, and that thing might break the chain holding our souls together. Know that we exist in the body but connect in spirit. So please don’t leave me, because if you do I might dry up. I fear I might not be strong enough to move on without you, my strength lies in that thing we share, so my dear please don’t give in to the storms of life, let’s take a dive into a river that holds no fever.

Let us grow graciously together, let us mature in love, because this love is from above and it’s as beautiful as a dove.

Tears drop from my eyes when I think about the joy and peace you bring to my heart, the thought of been with you in a world that knows no mortality, puts some vitality in my day.

If you want to dry my tears, please shoot the arrow of your love into my soul, let it move and lighten up my heart, just like a comet, which moves like a bright ball in space. My mother once said its okay for a man to cry, but I say its okay for a man to fall down flat in love.

When I think of all these it brings fresh tears from my heart through my eyes, until you bring back that love, my tears may never stop.