WORRIES VERSUS ACTION

Some things seem impossible in this world of endless possibilities. Surprisingly, they do happen. We are then left to wonder about how they happened. This is something that we're not supposed to do. We are only supposed to face them and face the consequences of whatever happens after them.

And so I was approaching the last corner to get to our home. I was happy that I would be back home. I anticipated the warm reception that I would receive, although not with expensive food but at least with stories and laughter. I had missed playing with my neighboring friends and I envisioned how they would feel when they would see me.

I slowed down my bike. With a smile on my face, I took the parcel from my pocket (it was small enough to fit inside my pocket) and looked at it for a long time without opening it. At school, some of my schoolmates had phones which they used to boast about so much. I would also have a story to tell them. I wondered whether I should show my parents the phone.

"They will ask me where I got it." I thought to myself, "What is the big deal of telling them that Uncle Jack bought it for me?" As I pondered about that, another question arose. They would ask the reason why he bought it for me. I remembered how they stressed that he never liked sharing his money with others which has set him apart from most of the family contributions and events. They emphasized that he only gave money in extreme conditions which were very important to him. They stressed the words "very important" in their explanations which I laughed about. I was now in a dilemma about the same issue.

I now regretted why I had left Uncle Jack alone. I somehow felt the depression that I must have left him with. I felt pity for him as much as I claimed not to fear him. I debated whether I should go back to him and tell him that I had gone for a small exercise with my bike and my new phone. I had not even opened the phone in the first place. I was still holding it in my hand. As I pondered over the matter, a deep shocking voice came from the corner. At first, I thought I was dreaming. I spent much time wondering about how that could be possible without giving candid answers to whoever was talking.

"Are you not going to open the parcel and get your phone?"

"Wait, did I not hear my uncle?" I thought to myself. "How could that be possible? I left him at the house with no idea that I was going back home. How could he have noticed so quickly and pursued me?" Question after another occupied my mind. I stood there for quite some time wondering what to do next. I looked at where the voice was coming from, and only then did I notice that the parcel was still in my hands. I unwrapped it carefully and revealed a shining box written "SAMSUNG GALAXY." Those were the only words that were clear to me. I quickly unboxed it, placed it on both hands, and raised it a little as if I wanted to pray. I closed my eyes and said a short instantaneous prayer. I continued closing my eyes waiting to surprise myself.

"Three, two, one!" I counted before opening my eyes. What I saw made me lose grip of the bike and it fell in between my legs! I could not believe it. I rubbed my eyes almost five times just to confirm whether I was awake and not dreaming. In the box, there was no phone! There was a folded paper instead. I took the paper quickly and unfolded it. I did not want to close my eyes again lest I find a stone ahead of me instead of the paper. I unfolded it! On the paper, an arrow was drawn that indicated a left turn. I tried to figure out what that meant. I looked behind me but there was nobody to even ask about it. I wondered why Uncle Jack had decided to give me a folded paper instead of a phone. I was disappointed. I packed the bike aside and sat down on some grass that had grown beside the path.

I analyzed the box once more. There was a charger in there and some folded papers too. I quickly picked them up and unfolded them eager to get more information about the weird paper. Surprisingly, these were user manuals. They couldn't give any clue about the arrow. This was an indication that Uncle Jack had instructed the delivery guy to take the phone away and put the note there. That meant that I had to go back to my uncle to collect the phone. It also meant that I was to tell him the truth in order to get the phone. I was angry with myself for moving away from my uncle's place without his permission and authorization.

"How would I even approach him?" I thought, tears welling up in my eyes. "I have destroyed my reputation with my uncle. I have lost his trust. He will never leave me alone in the house for fear that I will tamper with his items. I will no longer be able to complete my research about his whole life and the source of the riches that he owned." I sobbed uncontrollably.

The wind began blowing bringing with it the smell of moisture. Dark clouds began to gather in the sky. The wind blew more hurriedly and I raised my hands high in the air for the wind to caress my tired and sweating armpits. I stretched my arms and wiped the sweat that had formed on my face. The ground below me became wet within minutes of the sweat that dropped from my face.

Sooner than later, a drop of rain fell on my cheek. I licked it and behold, it was very sweet! Another drop fell on my forehead and I shook my head until the drop rolled down my face and entered my mouth! I was very happy. I threw the box aside, stood up and chased after the rain droplets. One drop fell on my head with a might that felt abnormal. I looked above to see what had fallen over me. Immediately, my eyes were hit by other droplets and I closed them involuntarily. I wiped my eyes with my hands. I still wanted to know what had hit me. Fierce drops came now. They hit my whole body mercilessly. I had no time to look back and what seemed to be a source of happiness had turned out to be a source of trouble.

My bike was there too. It however seemed to withstand the merciless battering of the heavy downpour. I looked at where I had thrown the box. It was there. When I touched it, it tore up as a result of being wet. I touched the charger. It was smooth with droplets of water on its surface. The folded user manuals tore when I tried unfolding them again to read what was written on them. The ground was becoming wet and slippery. My clothes clang to my shivering skin. My teeth were clenched involuntarily from the cold and my lower lip opened to welcome any drop of water that fell from my face to my mouth. A stream of water began running downstream at the center of the path. I picked up the charger, put it in my pocket, and held my bike. These were my two companions, who were to move with me back to Uncle Jack's place and to help me ask for forgiveness. My clothes were to bear me witness of the heavy downpour and how it has attacked me.

I started pushing the bike slowly. The downpour increased its frequency. I could hardly keep my eyes open because of it. Occasionally, I wiped my face with my hands and tried to lift my shirt from getting in contact with my chest since it made my chest very cold. I had taken a few steps when I thought about a new way to eradicate the cold and the shivering. I stopped the bike aside from the path and looked behind to see whether there was anyone who was passing. When I just looked back, I noticed a tarmacked road that ran parallel to the path. The two ways were separated by dense vegetation that prevented one from seeing through unless from scrutiny. I then started jogging quickly. I did almost a hundred push-ups and sit-ups. I ran to and from where I was quickly and within no time, I felt energized. I felt cold no more. The rain had now reduced its intensity.

I then took the bike and mounted it. The pathway was slippery thus requiring extra care. I heard a car hooting on the side of the tarmac road. On looking closely, I noticed that it was my uncle's. I was quick to speed up the bike before the side window was lowered and his face appeared. He signaled me to find a way in between the dense vegetation and go to where he was. I did that.

"You have been rained on! That was so unfortunate of you!" He said.

"Yes," I replied, "Unfortunately it happened."

"Are you feeling cold?" He asked and added with a caring tone, "Come, get inside the car, here are dry clothes for you to change." My uncle had just become the most caring person I could have imagined.

"Meaning he had pursued me and carried dry clothes knowing very well that I would be rained on!" I thought to myself. After changing, he helped me secure the bike on top of the car by tying it with a rope. He then sat on the steering wheel. I sat in the back seat, afraid of him and his burning questions which I knew he would ask. However, he urged me to sit beside him in the front seat and promised that he wouldn't question me about anything. We then set off to his home.

As we drove off, my mind was still disturbed. As far as I was concerned, I knew he would question me about many things. I knew I had to answer why I went away without his consent. I also knew that I had to tell him whether I got into his secret room. I also needed to ask him about the phone and why he asked the delivery guy to put a note instead of the phone. When I thought of that, my hand went to my pocket to confirm whether the charger was present and my eyes switched from the road and looked at him as he was busy turning the vehicle to the left corner that went to his homestead. A lot of tension built within me. I almost wished to reverse the vehicle or prolong the journey.

I now feared him very much. My mind was so disturbed that I didn't hear the gate being opened and the car gliding on the tiled pathway to the packing area. My heart skipped a beat when he announced that we had arrived and opened the door for me. He then untied the bike at the top and set it beside the car. We then proceeded towards the door.

Being disturbed in such a situation is something that I did, and also something that you could have done. I never thought of asking for forgiveness. I never thought of seeking shelter in the shade of the dense vegetation that could have reduced the aftermath of the rain. When I saw the folded paper with the arrow pointing to the left side, I never sat down to think about it cleverly. Did it instruct me to look to the left where the tarmac road was? I only got more and more worried. that time, I had not thought about asking my uncle all my worries and questions that I had about him and his riches. I only got more and more worried about him, something which had led me to escape his home trying to run away without telling him about the fate of his future, from the way he called it!

"The way it transpires, I'll be in hot soup tonight," I thought.