There are some stories that happen in life that feel so mysterious that you can't really explain them or pinpoint what happened. Well, this didn't happen to me, but it happened to my dad, and somehow I was involved in it.
I won't say I was born with a silver spoon, but I was sure that I didn't lack anything as a kid. Yes, we were not wealthy; we were just comfortable. My dad did the best he could to provide for me and my siblings. He made sure we didn't lack the necessities of life.
Not until my teenage years, when life took a bad turn, did my dad struggle with his business, and he couldn't provide for us as he did. At one point, I had to skip a whole school year in my secondary school just so my other siblings could continue with their own schooling because Dad didn't have the finances to pay for our tuition.
I was livid at first, then I began having these childish thoughts that my dad didn't really love me as much as he loved my other siblings or that he just didn't want me to finish up when my friends were finishing.
I recall one time I walked up to him, seated in the sitting room. He was watching TV with my brothers. I had inquired to know why he had decided to let me waste a whole school year. And then I asked if he really did love me the same way he loved my brothers. To be honest, I don't know where I got the courage to do that. I guess the adrenaline from being a teenager was just pumping in me.
My dad went silent for a few seconds before he asked me to come sit with him on the three-seater couch he was sitting on. I gradually walked over to where he was seated and sat down, then he picked up the TV remote and reduced the volume of the TV. I watched him as he held back for some seconds before he took a deep sigh and said
"Son," he paused. "There is something I have not told you before. How you saved me from death as a kid Up until today, it's still a mystery to me how it all transpired."
He looked at me. I guess he wasn't surprised to see how shocked I was to hear him say that as he continued.
"I had to travel to a business meeting years ago. First, I was supposed to drive down to Port Harcourt and catch my flight, which was in a few hours, to Lagos. You were still a kid, not even up to a year old, and your mom still cuddles you in her arms. But on that particular day, as I got into the car to leave, you started crying. It is not like you haven't been a crybaby before, but that particular day, it all felt different. It was so serious that your cry pierced my heart. We tried all we could to calm you down, but none proved fruitful; instead, you cried louder. Your mom asked me to leave, promising that she could take care of the situation. But each time I keyed the car ignition to leave, you cried harder, and my heart couldn't stand leaving you in that manner."
"I decided to stay back and travel early the next day. And just like magic, it worked because, as I stepped back into the house with you nestled in my arms, you stopped crying. The crazy thing was, you didn't let any other person carry you throughout that day, not even your mom. Your mom said you probably did that to make sure I didn't travel that day". He paused
By now, my siblings and I were so engrossed and eager to know where his story was leading.
"Later that evening, as I sat in the sitting room watching TV, it came on: Breaking News: The ADC Airlines Flight 086 (ADK086) traveling from Port Harcourt to Lagos on the afternoon of November 7, 1996. The exact flight I was supposed to board for my trip that day had crashed at a very high speed into a lagoon, killing all 144 passengers and crew on board; not a single soul survived. To this day, it's still a mystery to me what or how it all happened. I lost a friend and business partner that day," he said, making the sign of the cross.
"My son's, he said, holding my shoulder while at the same time looking at my brothers. " Each and every one of you brings me blessings that I never imagined. He pointed to my little brother. "It was the birth of Emmanuel that motivated me to start the foundation of this house we're seated in right now. And you saved me from perishing on that flight. I love each and every one of you equally. Things might not be as they were before now, and I'll do my best to give you all the best of life. But it wouldn't come without sacrifices from all of us until we find our path again."
I didn't know what to say as my dad finished talking. I felt so bad for making such a crazy utterance. I apologized to him and promised to do better.
A few months later, I got back to school and completed my secondary school education.
I looked up the crash online, and just as he narrated, it was true. Till today, the mystery of my cry that day still lingers within me.