As I drove to work that fateful morning basking in the euphoria of the feather newly added to my hat;my newly acquired Toyota SUV. I felt I was 'on top of the world'.
"I have arrived",I mused to myself. Everybody was of little or no importance to me, I've got everything moving well for me. I felt the world was under my control and I was so proud of myself that I considered other people and their opinions valueless. My preferment last week did not help matters as it fanned the embers of my pride which continued to rise unabated. I treated virtually everybody with contempt, especially those I thought I was better of than.
I drove to 'Prax Restaurant' down town for a drive-in and to flaunt my car as well. After a few minutes, I hit the road again this time, I was plying the part of the road that was being reconstructed. My movement through that part of the road was a bumpy one and I loathed it.
I looked through the side glass to see if I could catch sight of something that would make me animated as I was becoming impatient and tensed up...What I only took notice of was a shabbily clothed man (who looked more or less like an insane man) which aggravated my current inordinate feeling of repugnance. Gosh! "What is keeping the government from eliminating these guys from the streets of this country, even the so called beggars"? Was my rhetorical but aggressive, interrogative remark.
Before I could reach the other part of the road that was already tarred, the engine of my car had gone off. "Oh mercy"!! "What nonsense"!! I quickly applied the brakes, pulled over and tried to switch the ignition on again but to no avail. The man who wore torn clothe I earlier saw; or rather the mad man I drove past was now approaching.
Immediately he came to the point I was standing, he laughed, perhaps, at me which jarred on my nerves." This is it"!!! "These guys are brainless", was my hostile response to his jarring laughter.
He (the mad man) walked past me, moved a distance somewhat far from where I was standing, turned and started coming towards me. When he came close again, he repeated what he did the first time, and in a more annoying manner.
He continued this for four consecutive times. But something incredible happened when he came back the fifth time; he asked me If I needed his help, that I looked confused."Of what use are you"? Idiot!! Was my abrupt and cold reply to him. I stood there for hours very confused and without an inkling on how to grapple with my current situation.
"Should I board a commercial bus to work and come back later for my car"? "No, my car is very much important to me"!! I pondered aloud. When he(the mad man) came back the second time to offer help to me, I reluctantly told him to render whatever help he thought he had. "Oga which route yhu follo come"? He asked. "The straight route, undergoing reconstruction, of course", I replied. "And yhu no know wetin do ya motor"? He said more things in pidgin (which I translated to standard English thus) that I should kindly open the bonnet of my car and check whether the terminals of the battery were well placed and firmly fixed that the terminals could have gone out of contact during the bumpy ride I went through.
I was humbled when his predictions turned out to be my vehicle's problem. It had not occurred to me to open the bonnet and do some checks prior to his suggestion.
(Fast forward to my arrival at the office)....An encounter between me and my boss ensued. (I was late to work considering what transpired on the way) "Mr Ike, I considered you a very punctual and committed worker we have here at GRM but your recent attitude to work has undermined your reputation a great deal. Having warned you three times since your last promotion, we agreed to issue you with a sack letter if you reneged on our agreement to be in office on or before 8:00 AM," Mr Sam, my boss said. "You can't be earning such a mouth-watering salary and continue to give us less value for it". "We have kept our part of the agreement by paying you as and when due and prompt promotion as well.
However, you have reneged on your own part of the agreement", he continued. We already employed a replacement, he surprisingly, has more qualifications than you and is even willing to give more value than he will be paid,"he added." I think he will replace Mr Ude (who is more experienced), hence Mr Ude will take up your position as...."But sir, I..."Young man you can now leave my office"! What an eye-watering information I had just received!! I exclaimed.
It then dawned on me that I was indispensable and my meteoric career had come to an abrupt end; much faster than I could ever anticipate. Yes, my pride, everything culminated in my being sacked.
Just two weeks ago I had told Mr Ude that he was of no use to the company and that the company regretted ever hiring him, therefore he would soon be laid off/fired, just because he asked me some questions on projects in connection with the work he did...."This must be a nightmare of some sort"!! "God please wake me up"!!
Hey Mr/Mrs/Miss, do not despise anybody on the grounds of social/political strata they belong or for another reason whatsoever.
Everybody is as much important as yourself. Everybody has unique roles to play in life,their privations, creed notwithstanding, just as some substrates can only be acted upon by a specific catalyst, so does everyone have specific roles to play in life .
Also, nobody is indispensable in life; just as God made some important parts in man double, so did He create a replacement for anybody who could, for any reason, not fulfill his purpose (s) in life (God has provision for a perfect substitute that will replace you just in case you fail to fulfill the purpose (s) for which he created you) Before 2016 draws the curtain on its existence, call all those you wronged and apologize for your wrong-doing.
Also call those who wronged you and tell them that you have forgiven them. Don't move on to 2017 with that malice!!! #Complimen t_of_the_season#The_ Echoes(vol.1)#Pure fictional_work. #No plagiarism. .
Written By K.C. EGBO
Contact Information: 07062121101
Email: [email protected]
