WATCH THAT UNFRIENDLY FRIEND

CHAPTER ONE Unfortunately, Unfriendly Friends are multiplying by the day; and sad enough, innocent individuals often fall into their traps without remedy. In case you are wondering what I'm talking about, I am simply referring to some unscrupulous fellows who specialize in disguising as good friends initially, only to end up manifesting as unreliable, wicked and dangerous destiny destroyers in innocent victims' lives. Of course, the best description for them is: 'unfriendly friends'. The plight of Tendo happened to be such a pathetic one as he had to pay with his own blood, the debt he knew nothing about, just because of his entanglement with an 'unfriendly friend'. The boy in question happened to be a very brilliant student in the secondary school, but his story changed drastically in the negative direction as soon as he gained admission to read medicine and surgery in the university, all because of his new-found friend called Junka. Quite unknown to Tendo, Junka was already a die- hard night club-star as well as an expert examination malpractitioner who was virtually every guy's babe on campus.As soon as they met in their first undergraduate year, Junka instantly fell in love with Tendo who was just an innocent fresh Jambito(new student). Sooner or later , both of them became 'Romeo and Juliet', according to William Shakespeare. Being every guy's babe, Junka remained as unstoppable as water, but Tendo who was as naive as ever, hardly understood her scope,instead, he held her in high esteem,in view of her characteristic pretentious mannerism,. Not even her truancy could persuade him to suspect her. Accordingly, as course-mates, Tendo did virtually everything under the sun to carry his girlfriend along academically, in as much as she successful cajoled him that he was the only man in her life, whereas, she had over ten of his type, both within and without the campus.So sorry for Tendo! However, Junka who had gone too far as a mini-prostitute, kept on attending late night parties and club without Tendo's knowledge. In the process, a couple of her uncountable immoral customers began to tackle Tendo , despite his absolute innocence. One night, Junka invited Tendo to her nightclub but he declined. Thereafter, she kept on doubling efforts at luring him into late-night partying and clubbing, and succeeded at last. Sooner or later, examinations arrived. As usual ,Tendo performed excellently while his so-called friend failed woefully. As fate would have it, ,half way into the examination, Junka was caught in the act of examination malpractice, and in spite of attempts to exonerate herself, she was sentenced to twenty-two o years imprisonment. Sad enough, in a twinkling of an eye, Junka roped Tendo into her 'black-s**t' and the attendant shame. Consequently, before the school governing board, she falsely and wickedly accused him of having spearheaded the nefarious act; and unfortunately for Tendo, nobody could doubt her because, even the blind on campus knew both of them as 'lover birds' of a feather who usually flock together. In essence, Tendo lacked defence on every side. As a result, both of them were rusticated. Junka decided to elope with one of her numerous husbands while Tendo ended up roaming the streets aimlessly, upon his good brain. Eventually , Tendo fell into the cold hands of cruel and merciless ritualists, and that was the last anyone ever heard concerning him. No doubt, he almost paid dearly with his blood. CHAPTER TWO However, being a child of great destiny, God had mercy on Tendo, and miraculously delivered him from the hands of the wicked ritualists. How did it happen? One fine day, news of Tendo's uncommon deliverance filled his home town. Both the young and the old went ahead celebrating his miraculous recovery by faith. His village head killed seventy cows on hearing the good news. Suddenly, Tendo emerged like a ghost; and as fortune would have it, a good Samaritan volunteered to fend for him until he recovered fully. Just like a Calabar nursing -mother who is usually compulsorily confined to the four walls of a fattening room, Tendo maintained his accommodation under the auspices of his benefactor without moving an inch to anywhere outside his allocated apartment, dining and wining anyhow. But quite unknown to him, the good Samaritan in question was Junka's favourite man-friend who sought every means of slaying Tendo . Meanwhile, Junka laid ambush at a nearby bush where her cohort was operating. However, Tendo's supposed helper of destiny did all his best to convince Tendo to join his gang as a money doubler and ritual killer, but all to no avail. CHAPTER THREE After all said and done,Tendo reluctantly surrendered, with the hope of having his peace of mind at last, but quite beyond his imagination, his girlfriend Junka was already using his name to transact her illicit business, as a yahoo girl. Accordingly, she ensured that his name appeared in every document relevant to the illicit business in question. She kept on repeating the same wicked deal, year after year; yet, remained undiscovered. This time around, it was the ' Nigerian Independence Day,' when all patriots usually display their loyalty to their nation. Ask me what Junka did. Unbelievably, just to implicate the innocent boy, she went as far as publishing at all media houses, an erroneous report that she had caught an internet fraud in person of Tendo. Guess what! To buttress her point, she ensured that his picture was pasted everywhere, all for the purpose of tarnishing his image.You can imagine what Tendo's fate would be. Trust our noble law enforcement agents. As the fake news circulated, Tendo got arrested outrightly, and was instantly thrown into the prison without any trial. This is why it's very important to be mindful of whom you befriend. While in prison, Tendo metamorphosed into something close to a mere skeleton. Accordingly, his bones were not difficult to view through his skin which had absolutely dried up. In short, he was only different from a ghost just because he was still breathing. Tendo spent endless years in prison, and became rather hopeless. Meanwhile, only his Creator can still revive him. Personally, the only best friend I can ever boast of is Jesus, because of his agape love and faithfulness.gg No doubt, even a blind, deaf and dumb would learn from Tendo's fate, and no matter the magnitude of the folly of a fool, he is bound to be wise for once, after reading this eye opening write-up. At this point, it may interest you to hear a little about the genuine love of my agape lover towards me and other friends of his. I pray you don't fall victim to fake friends, as they are all over the world. CHAPTER FOUR I happened to fall in love with my agape lover in question over thirty years ago, though as a little child still tied to my mother's apron- string. As a matter of fact. being so tender in those good days, I embraced the agape lover in allusion without actual consciousness, as I was yet to distinguish my right hand from my left, as a mere child. At the moment, all I can vividly recall doing diligently then was following my SU mentor (elder sister) religiously; and today, I have no regret. However, while praying that your case would not be akin to Tendo's, I earnestly enjoin you to remember that the ball is ever in your court; hence, you've got to be wise for once. At this juncture, I wish everyone could be meticulous enough to embrace the culture of 'agape love' because ever since I fell in love with my own agape lover, it has been joy galore and bundles of excitement for me, as he wouldn't disappoint me. I was so fortunate that he chose me as an innocent little girl, several years ago, as earlier indicated. Unfortunately, out of ignorance, I would have discarded the relationship before the age of twenty-five, but God kept me going, on a serious note. Today, without gainsaying, the confidence I repose in this agape lover of mine is far stronger than the bar of any castle, anywhere. Unto God be the glory that I can vividly recall how our love affair began. Luckily for me, while I was still virtually an infant journeying through primary education, my true lover in reference caught me young. Initially, I felt like escaping and avoiding him, but all to no avail. Once in a while, as a teenager on those days, I would soliloquize: 'I wish I could have my freedom,' yet, my agape lover refused to let me go and perish. Only God knows how damaged my life would have been at teenage if I didn't have this wonderful friend called Jesus. Imagine, in spite of losing my mother before the age of fifteen, the same good friend of mine kept on comforting me until I attained the age of accountability. Undoubtedly, this faithful friend is the reason for my existence today. What a good friend! I thank God I never fell into the wicked hands of an unfriendly friend who would have finished me ever since. CHAPTER FIVE I have eventually come to realise that everyone under the sun including a day old has enemies. In time past, whenever I heard the term 'enemy', I took it with levity, just like any other abstract noun, but right now I dread it like any deadly disease anybody can ever imagine. Sincerely speaking, I have more than a trillion reasons for appreciating my agape lover Jesus, who secures me on every side, even when I am ignorant of the nefarious activities of my countless die- hard enemies. Indeed, it's quite heart- warming to understand that his divine presence in my life has grossly repelled would-be unfriendly friends from me, thus shielding me from every cause of alarm. Isn't my friend excellent? The kind of battle I i on campus, my agape lover proved his worth, to my amazement. Imagine, even junior students who applied for opportunity to squat at my hostel corner decided to attack me after obliging them, but at last I was compelled to sympathise with them due to how brutally my agape friend dealt with them on my behalf, as usual. You can imagine what the case would have been if my lover had been the fake type. Of course, your guess is as good as mine: without any controversy, in a twinkling of an eye, he would have denied me ten times, perhaps by now those agents of satan would have killed me, since they were too many for me to handle alone.Truly, it pays to have a reliable friend and not an unfriendly one. CHAPTER SIX On another occasion, I happened to embark on one of my missionary journeys to Akaraba, a surburb of Apapa across the Atlantic ocean. In the process of boarding a speed boat to my destination, God forbid, my life almost ended up inside deep water if not for my agape lover who rescued me and others . The wave of the sea was so high that turbulence bastardized peace in the scene, and all passengers became absolutely confused, exception of my humble self, because I knew whom I had as friend. However, owing to the troubled sea, we reeled to and fro based on how the wind and wave directed us on the high sea. Indeed, we were at our wit's end. Despite the fact that my co-missionary who was on board the boat with me knew so much about my agape lover, she couldn't help doubting his ability to deliver us from the boisterous storm that fateful day. However, while my co-missionary in allusion was still jerking, I assured her that Jesus was on the boat with me, therefore, there was no cause for alarm. Rather miraculously, my agape friend showed up as usual, and calmed the storm instantly.Who did that, if not Jesus? Oh my God, wow! Accordingly, before we could say Roy Robinson, a fisherman was already rushing towards us in his boat, as if he was heading to war.This was necessarily the quick response squad Jesus sent to me, I believe, even without any sooth - sayer. As a matter of urgency, all of us hopped into the boat belonging to the fisherman and he zoomed off immediately, and conveyed us to the shore. At last, I was persuaded to challenge my co-missionary on the boat by asking whether my agape lover succeeded in rescuing us as I earlier assured her or not. I thank God that her response was in the affirmative. Instantly, she believed in my faithful friend more than ever before, and went ahead hailing him. Who did it? Jesus! oh my God!! wow!!! CHAPTER SEVEN About three months ago, I was about crossing a semi-express way somewhere in Ogun State and almost ran into a fast racing car that would have crushed me instantly if not for my faithful lover who rescued me. I ascribe every glory to him. As a matter of fact, I have countless instances of averted motor accident experience besides the foregoing, in which cases I can't still fathom how I was able to escape, yet I'm not ignorant of the usual faithful role played by my agape lover,to rescue me. To him be every glory. On a certain day, a particular fast speeding car suddenly emerged from nowhere on my campus (Unical), and I was at the middle of the road, only for my fellow students who were around to start raising alarm, shouting my name, and before I could realise what was going on, my invisible agape lover had already thrusted me unto the other side of the road safely. I truly appreciate this my all- time lover because, without him, my life would ave been a forgotten issue by now without controversy. Even when I lost my dear Mum in the course of my primary education (primary six precisely), this same agape lover of mine stood by me tenaciously and comforted me on every side. What a lover! CHAPTER EIGHTH When it was time for my youth service call-up, after my final year project defence in the university, I notified my agape lover of my choice of Ibadan in Oyo state; and miraculously, I was eventually posted there for youth service without bribing anybody. This singular incident went a long way to convince me that he is always available to meet all my needs and honour all my counsels. I bow to his lordship forever. I dare not forget the fierce and unimaginable war waged against me by certain unscrupulous fellows earlier alluded to, during my final year in the university. The battle was so tough that fear almost gripped me, but in the midst of the inferno, my agape lover rose up in my favour, thus demonstrating his worth in my life. It's a pity that time and space would fail me if I have to narrate details of the story of how he fought for me; but suffice it to say in a nutshell that he fought victoriously for me. If not for him, my antagonists would have killed me, point blank. How then can I forget him? Of course, forgetting him would tantamount to losing my life. God forbid! Lest I forget, my agape lover has also granted me divine security. Necessarily, an experience to buttress this point occurred immediately after I disembarked from youth service several years ago. I happened to have gone out right from the morning of that fateful day, in search of job at Ojota. To cut a long story short, I fell into the cold hands of certain wicked vigilante on my way back to my resident where I was squatting with a certain sister. Unfortunately, while in the process, night met me on the way, and the evil night watchmen in question arrested me as I was rushing down home to pick up my scarf for a vigil at church that night. Indeed, the sight of the torture I experienced in the hands of the so-called vigilante was more terrible than I can explain, as they virtually condemned my legs with their satanic kobuko which they used in flogging me anyhow, just because I refused to cooperate with them as a girl, according to their boss. Undoubtedly, my life was between 'the devil and the deep blue sea,' except that my agape lover stood by me. That my c holy legs are still intact today is only the Lord's doing. Actually, the climax of the entire drama was the order issued by the leader of the vigilante that I should say my last prayer at gun-point. Accordingly, though unexpectedly, I heard a sudden evil command: 'Say your last prayer ', with an ancient- looking gun pointing at my forehead. Please dear reader, what would you have done if you were in my shoe at that material moment? I guess a normal person, especially an innocent Youth Corps member who had just disembarked from Youth Service would have had no better alternative than to collapse and faint; but to the glory of the Almighty God, courage located me from above and suddenly, I prayed : ' Lord, into thy able hands i commit my spirit ' after the order of the first martyr: Stephen. At this juncture, you need no sooth-sayer to tell you who won the battle at last. Of course, this write- up alone is an adequate evidence to that effect: only the living has opportunity to recount his or her experience. So, kudos to my agape lover who never denies me, not even by midnight. By default, any young girl involved in the ordeal in reference may likely not be expected to survive, yet, here am I, hail and hearty, by God's grace. In the long run, my one and only agape lover rescued me. I shall always appreciate him as far as he keeps me safe and secure without ever disappointing me. Moreso, I remain ever grateful to the Almighty God who caused the evil hand of the vigilante boss to drop the merciless gun he would have used in scattering his own life, thus truncating my glorious destiny. God forbid! CHAPTER NINE I dare not forget a certain experience had outside Nigeria over a decade ago. Even in a foreign land my wonderful lover still protects me. On a particular occasion, it happened that official duty demanded my travelling out of Nigeria to a particular country on a particular day. Quite beyond my control, my arrival was terribly belated; so much so that 12:00 midnight met me at the door steps of my apartment, as I was just about entering. Meanwhile, I learnt some ritualists were observing their rites that very night, and I even over-heard the sound of their drums and enchantments as I passed by their shrine fearlessly, yet, my sure lover saw me through. Glory be to his holy name. Honestly speaking, I never knew the real meaning of 'power' until I met my agape lover. The first time I began to understand the perfect meaning of the term.'power' was when I was confronted by evil forces on my campus (Unical) in the process of my first degree programme. Accordingly, it happened that sympathy and mercy compelled me to squat two undergraduate girls at the hostel, as earlier mentioned, but unfortunately for me, their stay at with me was virtually hell on earth for me as a final year student, due to the incessant trooping in and out of their male visitors who never bothered to know whether it was a female hostel or not. You can imagine what my plight must have been, as two tiger-like girls intimidated me daily, ignoring the fact that I was their hostel land-lady (by God's grace). Behold, one fine day, my agape lover empowered me to announce to them that he was with me, and that I necessarily did.Of a truth, my agape lover defended me expressly. I shall always appreciate him.I recall the unique success my genuine lover granted me in my federal common entrance examination several years ago, I feel ever elated. Indeed, it was an uncommon common entrance which appeared strange, yet my uncommon lover saw me through. Indeed, I hail him! Moreso, I must not forget to make mention of the tremendous success he accorded me at the end of my secondary education at Federal Government Girls' College, Calabar precisely. In fact, the origin of the calibre of writer that I am today is not far from the 'A' which I obtained in English Language at WASSCE level.The same equally led me to campus journalism which I found myself successfully practizing like no man's business, until the arrival of my NYSC call-up letter. To crown it all, currently I can't even do without writing, anytime, anywhere. What a supernatural gift! I sincerely appreciate my Maker for this. Without any form of gainsaying, I'm grateful to God for not allowing me to choose amiss, and I sincerely sympathise with anyone who might have fallen into the trap of an unfriendly friend anywhere along the line. At this juncture, in case you have interest in contacting my agape friend in order to enjoy all the benefits that he has been bestowing on me, the procedure is not high-handed at all. Hence,you need to repent of all forms of evil and wickedness. Accordingly, cheat no one, fight no one, hate no one, attack no one,deceive no one, backbite no one, steal nothing, do not worship anything outside the Almighty God, eschew all forms of immorality, do not bear false witness against anybody; above all, fear God and keep his commandments! If only you can comply with the foregoing, I can assure you that your limit is beyond the sky, and you'll be glad forever. At this point, if you wouldn't mind, I enjoin you to look for an agape lover like mine, who would not cajole or short change you anytime, anywhere. Therefore, if you are interested, the first criterion is that you must be holy. Actually, besides holiness, prices to pay in order to be qualified to have my type of agape lover in this very world are numerous, though quite simple. They include: no stealing, no back-biting, no fighting, no gossipping, no lying, no cheating, no fornicating, no coveting, no hating, no adultery, no spoiling, no killing, no grudging, etc. Therefore, instead of destroying, prefer constructing; and try to build up instead of marring anybody. Without any iota of doubt, it pays to follow peace with all men, as the holy scriptures confirm. As a matter of fact, if all men could follow peace with one another in this world, the earth would be like heaven, because all things would function smoothly and appropriately. CHAPTER TEN Once in a while, we come across persons who threaten the lives of others. My agape lover abhors such attitudes. Therefore, whoever desires my kin of agape lover need to realize that this world isn't our eternal home where anybody can live forever. We are all strangers on earth, hence life is too short to spend in rancour, hatred, malice and acrimony or battle. Definitely, we shall all return to our maker someday. Consequently, everyone has to learn to Tolerate his or her neighbour and show love (agape), thus, obeying the holy injunction which say:'love your neighbor as yourself'. For instance, if neighbour A loves neighbour B, and neighbor B in turn loves neighbour C, and the three love one another reciprocally and genuinely, surely, the entire world would be a better place. Moreover, I counsel all families to dwell In unity because family was the first institution established by the Almighty creator; and accordingly, all other institutions depend on it. The first man and woman - Adam and eve, according to divine creation story, gave rise to children who in turn, gave rise to nations who kept on replenishing the earth until the current generation emerged, and that is talking about you and me. This is the more reason why we must dwell peacefully with one another.An unfriendly friend ought to understand that there is no profit in dubiousness, but honesty is the best policy so far. Funny enough, those who delight in deceiving others usually end up paying dearly for their wickedness, in fulfilment of the holy scripture which specifically declares that God is not mocked: whatsoever a man sows, he will also reap same. At this juncture, if I may pause to ask: what quality of seeds are you sowing into the lives of your fellowmen? Remember, no one sows cassava and reaps potato. Hence,if any unfriendly friend is working against anyone anywhere, it's high time he turned a new leaf and repent because the Creator of that person he or she is secretly short changing or molesting is omnivisual. His eyes go to and fro the surface of the earth; and as far as he is concerned, every man's secret deal is an open scandal. Certainly, it is a pleasant thing when friends relate without dissimulation; and by the way, a deceiver stands the risk of being deceived himself/herself, as a matter of 'garbage in, garbage out. ' After all, no one eats his or her cake and still have it. To the best of my understanding, there's nothing to pretend about, as far as friendship is concerned; hence, one is either a friend or foe. It's even better to remain neutral: no friend, no foe, instead of flaunting hypocrisy towards an innocent soul. By the way, who knows tomorrow? Of course, nobody! In case you happen to be an unfriendly friend unconsciously, you need to take stock of your life and repent genuinely. Take cognisance of the fact that the same follow you are molesting spitefully treating miraculously become your destiny helper tomorrow. No doubt,such is life. So, be careful and mind what you do to your fellowmen. Personally, I would rather be genuine and just towards whoever God brings my way as friend, because, based on my humble knowledge of the term friendship, 'a friend in need is always a friend indeed '. Therefore, as a good friend, it is pertinent to be faithful towards one's friend. There is no sense in displaying disloyalty towards one's. friend. The holy Word says: ' Let your yes be yes, and your no be no'. Imagine somebody who happens to be in zamfara deceiving his friend that he is in Sokoto,thus, portraying the telephone technology as evil through such and other forms of negative attitudes. Indeed, there's no justification in deceiving your friend at all, except if you are an unfriendly friend, whereas, there is nothing glorious about fake, dubious, unreliable or unfriendly friendship. CHAPTER ELEVEN If you can supply an accurate answer to the following question, sincerely speaking, I shall pray heartily for you ; and your breakthrough will be inexhaustible. The question goes thus: 'What on earth can anybody born of a woman ever do in this very world without being criticized?' Undoubtedly, the foregone question is worrisome, yet pertinent, due to the insatiable character of human expectations. Just imagine, if you are not gentle, you are judged for not being cool like your brother or sister , and if you are cold, there's still someone somewhere who would likely say: he/she is just too cold for my liking; and if you are one degree hotter than normal, they would declare you problematic ; if you're a peace lover, just get ready because your new name is coward; should you act satanically, expect devil as your new name; but if you attempt to be holy, automatically, pretender becomes your latest name. Moreover, if you're an economist and perhaps prudent in your spending, 'miser' alias 'aka gum' is simply your name; but dare to spend extravagantly, your new name automatically becomes 'waster.' If you are fond of frowning, probably because you lack what is termed: 'smiling face,' don't be surprised to hear some people describing you as wicked; and if you over smile, you're bound to be declared demonized. Furthermore, if you are simple, you're most likely to be called 'big fool,' but how dare you attempt to be akin to King Solomon in wisdom, as they would hastily declare you 'fox.' And in case you are a diligent staff wherever you work, 'eye-servant' is your special name, whereas, you would be nicknamed 'indolent,' should you be the easy-going type. What a world. Left to me, I would simply make the law of reciprocal social treatment a norm; perhaps that would help to curb fraudulence among friends and others. Ever since I was born, I am yet to see anybody whom truth implicated for once. Impossible! Therefore, just keep on doing good as much as possible, because it will definitely speak for you someday, just as the Holy Book confirms. Anytime you see evil doers strategizing against an innocent soul, quickly pick race for your dear life. . One more time, remember the golden rule. Hence, if you wouldn't like anybody to step on your toe, make sure you don't do so to anyone else. In other words, do not tempt someone else with any measure you can't tolerate; in as much as 'what is good for the goose is good for the gander.' According to an age-long adage, 'a word is enough for the wise,' therefore, I pray you'll not be foolish on any account. Sometimes, it seem better to be an island instead of fumbling, all in the name of friendship. As part of my parting words, I hereby enjoin you to beware of deceivers alias unfriendly friends; and on your own part, do your best not to be deceptive. Conclusively, as you take your steps in life, be extremely careful and vigilant because unimaginable mockers are already awaiting your calamities. Shalom!.