A STORY OF REALITY

The Weight Of Trust

The following days were like any other since Daniel started the job. The construction site where he works felt half dead–all the machines turned off, heaps of sand and granites, heaps of cement covered with tarps, and all the workers around in the area in small groups, whispering to them selves in worried voices saying.

“Do you think they will shut the whole place down?”

a man asked as Daniel passed by.

“The government have really been complaining about the safety issues,” another man replied.

Daniel said nothing about the case. He simply sat on some of the bags of cement that were covered with tarps, staring at his hands, the calluses hardened from more than seven weeks of mixing cement, lifting pile of blocks and hauling. Daniel lost his composure, he couldn’t get some thoughts out of his head, he thought to him self while looking at his cold and bruised hands, “am I going to get fired?, where am I going to find a new job?, where am I going to find the money to pay back Mrs. Mercy?. A lot of negative thoughts went through his head, he didn’t know what to do.

That evening, Daniel made his way back home, his pocket didn’t receive the usual pay amount in weeks-Mr Victor, the construction instructor had cut everyone’s pay since there was less work being done. The cut was small, but to Daniel it felt like a lot of money has been taken away from him and the world was about to swallow him. After everything Daniel decided to go home since they finished work early.

Daniel stopped at Mrs. Mercy’s shop just to say hi. Mrs. Mercy gave him a look that was both firm and patient. “Daniel,” she said softly, “I know things are hard, but you promised to pay me back the money on time. “I know, Mrs. Mercy,” he said softly and low.

Please ma, just a little more time, our salary has been cut, work is now slow ma, “he said”.

She nods and says “I will wait, but you must not break your promise and dissapear on me, i am trusting you Daniel”. He goes back home and rests on his squeaky bed to go to sleep.

Her words stay in his mind all through the night.”I am trusting you Daniel”.

The next morning, as he walked into the working site, he overheard two men whispering, “Mr. Victor is going to cut more workers this week,” one of them said.

Daniel was in shock and froze on the spot.

“They said that they will only keep the ones who are strong and fast enough to keep up with the job. The rest will have to be fired.

A cold sweat broke out on Daniel’s back.

Daniel worked harder than ever that day, he ignored the pains on his back, the ache on his shoulders, the weight in his legs. He lifted and lifted blocks without even going for a break, until sweat soaked through his shirt. When Mr. Victor walked past, Daniel picked up the pace and worked even faster desperate to prove himself. But that evening, as he sat under the shade of a tree, Mr. David walked up to him with a grim expression on his face.

“Daniel,” he said quietly, “there’s gossip that Mr. Victor’s nephew is taking over your spot.”

Daniel blinked, frozen for some seconds then he shouts “What?!”.

“Mr. David said you didn’t hear it from me, but they said Mr. Victor is making space for family.” Something sharp his Daniel in his stomach. All his efforts, all his sweat, the starvation and still… someone could take it all away with a single decision. That night, Daniel laid awake on his squeaky bed, staring at the ceiling fan. Saying to himself “is this what life is?, working your self to the bone, just to get replaced by someone with a better connection than you shows up?. That night he was really mad, he wanted to scream, to punch the wall, to break something. But he just couldn’t and decided to lie there, silently, letting the anger burn through him.

Two days later, Mr. Victor called him over during break saying “Daniel, I’m afraid we have to let you go.” Daniel’s heart was broken.

Mr. Victor also said you are a good worker, “he added quickly”–to make himself feel less guilty. Mr.Victor also said “my nephew needs the job more than you do”. “when things are back on track again, I will make sure to call you”. The words sounded hollow because Daniel already knew what was coming for him. He simply nodded, turned around and walked out of the construction site for the last time. The walk home felt longer and more lonely than ever. When he got home he didn’t even bother going to sleep. He sat on the floor, looking depressed, resting his back against the cracked wall–was engulfed with sadness, but eventually, he cried him self to sleep.

But Daniel wasn’t the type to stay down for long. The next morning, he was out again, searching. He went from street to street, looking for someone that could employ him, every small business, every mechanic’s shed. Most of them said that they didn’t need to employ anyone right now. Finally, it has been hours since Daniel has been out looking for a job, it was afternoon. He saw a small sign in front of a cyber cafe: HELP WANTED. OFFICE ASSISTANT NEEDED URGENTLY.

He decided to go into the cafe, he hesitated. He had never worked in an office before. But something inside told him to try. When he entered the shop, it was cool, with the smell of papers, the air was cool. A woman sat behind the counter, typing on a computer, she looked up at Daniel as he entered.

“Yes?” she said calmly.

“I saw the sign outside, “Daniel said”. I am looking for a job here, she studied him for a moment, then she told him to have a sit.

After a few minutes, an older man came out from the office at the back, it was the manager. He introduced himself to Daniel saying– “my name is Mr. Emmanuel”, and then you asked Daniel, “you want to work here?”

Look at Daniel from top to bottom.

“Yes, sir”, Daniel said. Can you read and write?

“Yes, sir”, Daniel said. Can you follow instructions?

“Yes,sir “ Daniel replied.

Mr. Emmanuel stared at him for a moment longer, then he nodded. “Start tommorow, the pay is small, but work is steady. Don’t be late, and then he asks for his name -Daniel replies, “it’s Daniel sir”. Mr. Emmanuel nods and heads back into his office.

The next morning, Daniel gets up early, puts on his cleanest shirt and walked into the shop. The work was simple, sweeping the floor, delivering printed papers to nearby businesses, taking notes from customers. But it all felt different to Daniel, it was like stepping into another world to him. In there, there no shouting, no lifting of heavy brick till his shoulder aches. Instead, there was peace and order. It was the first time Daniel worked with a pen and notebook instead of his bare hands. Still, it wasn’t that easy. Customers were impatient and Mr. Emmanuel was strict. Daniel made mistakes in the first few weeks, putting the wrong address on the papers, messing up orders. But with time, he got the hang of it.

One evening, Daniel sat down outside the shop resting after a hard day, staring at the ground. Mrs.Mercy happened to pass by the shop he working in. She stopped and decided to talk him.

“Daniel, you look tired,” she said.

“I am, he admitted. “but this new job I am doing, feels different.”

Mrs. Mercy smiled and said “that’s because you are building something other than your body, but your mind.”

As the weeks passed, Daniel began to settle into the job, he started arriving earlier than required, he also learnt how to operate the printer and how to handle more complicated tasks. One day, Mr. Emmanuel handed him the keys to the shop and said lock up tonight. Daniel felt something warm rise in his chest, trust–but with trust came responsibility and temptation. A week late, Daniel saw that a customer had accidentally left money on the counter, no one else saw it– that’s when temptation came in.

Daniel just stared at the money, thinking to himself,” if I take this money it would be able to help me contribute to Mrs. Mercy’s loan money,” he thought “can’t I just take a little?”. But then he thought of Mr. Emmanuel’s face, the trust and respect that had grown between them. He then picked up the money, ran outside and caught unto the customer before he left. And then Daniel said, ”sir! You forgot your change!”. The man was surprised,thanked him and told Daniel that most people wouldn’t have done what he just did.

Most people aren’t me “Daniel replied” and smiled back at the man.

That night, Daniel went to to lay on his squeaky bed, staring up again–but this time, it was depression and sadness. This time he felt happy and proud of the actions he made earlier.

Not because his life became less cruel on him. But because for the first time in a long time, he felt like a was becoming better person in life.