Drowning

Mom is sick.

Like Mr Olarinde, professor Donald was a purist and a good teacher, but I still didn't find him to be as good as his predecessor. Maybe his newbie status was still having effect on him. He settled soon enough as he easily got along with the students. Valentine's day was soon approaching and I wasn't really expecting gifts, but thanks to my friends from whom I received a few gifts, among which was a gold-plated Rolex wristwatch from Thelma. Well to be specific, I received two gifts from her. I also reciprocated her kind gesture by getting her a cool white sneakers. I was quite surprised on how a university student could afford such a gift. I soon discovered the true owner, as a note on the inside read:

"Much love for my Sharon"

xoxo, Daniel.

I was so moved by those words, but that didn't stop me from querying Thelma as to why she hid the identity of the true owner of the gift.

"he warned me not to tell you till you unwrapped it" she said.

I was quite relieved but not so happy. knowing that I couldn't get him something for Valentine., as he wasn't serving close by. Well,i called him soon enough to thank him for the gift and also rendered apologies for missing his calls. We had a brief but interesting chat, as he yet again made me laugh. It was quite cool as I felt relieved on hearing his voice. Exams were drawing close, as I tried exhaustively to balance my new engagement with my Alma mater along with academic activities.

We were close to finishing our exams when my sole sibling called updating me of my mother's health status, as she had been struggling with it for some time now. She was said to have slumped while preparing dinner, and when taken to the hospital had series of tests carried out on her, after which she was diagnosed with cervicitis an also shortage of blood. What a catastrophe!! This was a very disheartening news to me as I was emotionally drained for sending days. Precarious situations of such weren't the ones people shoved away easily, as I went for counselling in order not to lose my mental stability. For the last days of the exams, I struggled a bit, but for God and my friends who were my bedrock during that period. We were set for vacation and I felt happy about that since I would be able to monitor my mum's health. Just before I went to sleep the night preceding my journey, I decided to say a quick prayer to God.

I was undecided on what my next lime of action should be. Insane thoughts were beginning to creep into my mind. Some were making me question God's existence. I would say I felt deluded for a while. I slept and had a dream of me crying in a hospital while my younger brother was by my side. I believe the dream of that night could be attributed to my previous thoughts, notwithstanding, I prayed over it.

I began my journey home, while still brooding over the recent events. I arrived home safely and was so excited seeing my mom being cheerful as she went about preparing me a welcome home meal. This got me happy as I also couldn't hide my excitement while eating. That night, I engaged in a brief chat with my brother, heading to my room I began meditating. The feeling of that night was like I had reconnected back to God. It was morning, and I had a lot time to formulate my options since the previous night's events. I was now interested in getting back to my normal life after struggling with mental health issues for a while.

It was then it occurred to me that people who find themselves in hopeless and life-threatening situations will approach God for help. I guess I learnt something special that evening, as I also made meditation an every day thing, especially when it was about time for me to retire to bed.

My mom also started going on weekly health seminars and tests in line with her new health status. This started draining my mom's purse as she was the bread winner of the family and had been ever since we lost our Father (her husband). The loss was very tragic that it took years for my mom to recover both emotionally and mentally.

My dad was a naval officer while he was alive, and was close to retiring when the sad news of his death hit us. He was setting up a joint business with my mom as at the time of his death, and was close to finishing when it happened. My bedtime stories those days composed of his numerous on-sea battles, and his victories at Sea. The challenging periods je experienced in his career were caused by his frequent war with pirates who were into hijacking of vessels containing petroleum products. His pictures were a constant reminder of such times. Not forgetting the day we all went on a voyage with my dad, it was thrilling and fun-filled, as we had to spend nights on the ship. I'll forever remain grateful to God for giving me such a dad.