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*THE COST OF SAVING A LIFE*
...when I looked round my surroundings, I noticed no face was smiling.
I observed that every face I came across, frowned.
On a normal day, I wouldn't be so bothered unlike today that the sight of a fainted old lady took away the little smile that dresses my frown.
Everyone that gathered round the fainted old lady could do nothing than pour a sachet water on her.
As the water was being sprayed on her, a woman shouted from afar: "Who's this wasting a fifty naira? Don't you know the price of a bag of water is now very expensive?"
The young lady that was spraying the water stopped the act and withdrew from the crowd when she saw the older woman with a bucket of water.
She actually went to get water to revive the fainted old lady but took a while to return and the younger lady deemed it fit to make do with what was available.
I understood the woman and the young lady's actions;
The older woman was trying to save cost even at the expense of a person's life while the young lady was trying to save life even at the cost of her expenses.
With a side eye, I saw the younger lady gulping what's left of the sachet water and the way and manner in which she took it, showed that she had been thirsty since but was reluctant to drink it.
Probably because she was trying to save it for later use. Unfortunately, the later use was to save a fainted life but she was fortunate enough to drink out of it.
Perhaps God sees her true humanitarian act and caused the older woman to make a scene with her shout so she can quench her thirst.
I don't know why my thoughts ran and travelled this far when I saw how the younger lady drank the water but anyways, that must have been the reason she drank like that.
After feeding my imagination and curiosity, I returned my eyes to the normal line of focus and then, I saw the older woman pour the whole bucket of water at once on the fainted old lady.
Again, another woman shouted "Why waste water like this? Don't you know how much a bucket of water now cost since the increase in fuel price and unavailability of NEPA's light?"
"Don't worry my sister, I don't waste my money on fetching water as there's a well behind my house and thank God it's raining season" She replied.
"My sister, please where's your house so I can come fetch well water because the cost of fetching water is about to choke me to the point of death" The other woman said.
The response of the older woman, I didn't pay attention to as the waking up of the fainted old lady drew my attention.
The old lady was drenched as she coughed back to life.
At first, I thought she was going to catch a cold but then, I thought: with this intensity of heat, she'll probably feel cool and refreshed.
The old lady was helped from the ground to sit on a hot cemented floor at the front of the house she fainted at.
After a short exchange of words with the old lady, it was discovered that she fainted due to a chronic hunger.
Chronic, because she hasn't eaten for days and if at all she ate, maybe a crumb of this and that.
The owner of the house she fainted at was a man and he was asked to provide her with food.
The man complained that he has no foodstuffs to give except garri and the quantity of garri he can spare too, is small.
No one argued with him and accepted what he has to offer.
"You're supposed to give her milk" Subconsciously, I opined.
"Onígbèsè wo nìyẹn? Miliki kọ, miliiki ní!" A woman voiced.
I have completed the statement before I realized what I said
when it dawned on me that no one could afford the milk and I'm of no help either.
I wish I could be of help but like them, I'm of no difference.
I could only look on in pity as I solemnly and silently left the scene...
I was a few steps away from my hostel when I saw and heard a father chastising his children for eating leftovers at a party like wolves, behaving like children with no home or parents.
He asked why they aren't contented with the little he was able to provide for them but the kids were not able to give an answer. They only stared at him with guilt on their faces.
I felt for the father and children and I believe he can't outrightly blame the children. For they haven't been feeding well and they looked malnourished.
Even though I felt sorry for them, I could do nothing about it because like them, I also have a share of the nation's economy decline and abnormalities.
I could only walk past them as I concluded in my mind that this is a trying season for every Nigerians and this period is that of the survival of the fittest.
And I really do hope that everyone is rich enough to get food to eat because after God, food is the primary thing that keeps a person alive and the cost of getting it now, is higher.
Hence, the increase in the cost of saving a life.
As the Yorubas would say _"Ẹ̀mí tí kò bá jẹun, ẹ̀mí yẹpẹrẹ ni"
Day: 069/100
#the100writingmarathon
© AM Odunayo
I observed that every face I came across, frowned.
On a normal day, I wouldn't be so bothered unlike today that the sight of a fainted old lady took away the little smile that dresses my frown.
Everyone that gathered round the fainted old lady could do nothing than pour a sachet water on her.
As the water was being sprayed on her, a woman shouted from afar: "Who's this wasting a fifty naira? Don't you know the price of a bag of water is now very expensive?"
The young lady that was spraying the water stopped the act and withdrew from the crowd when she saw the older woman with a bucket of water.
She actually went to get water to revive the fainted old lady but took a while to return and the younger lady deemed it fit to make do with what was available.
I understood the woman and the young lady's actions;
The older woman was trying to save cost even at the expense of a person's life while the young lady was trying to save life even at the cost of her expenses.
With a side eye, I saw the younger lady gulping what's left of the sachet water and the way and manner in which she took it, showed that she had been thirsty since but was reluctant to drink it.
Probably because she was trying to save it for later use. Unfortunately, the later use was to save a fainted life but she was fortunate enough to drink out of it.
Perhaps God sees her true humanitarian act and caused the older woman to make a scene with her shout so she can quench her thirst.
I don't know why my thoughts ran and travelled this far when I saw how the younger lady drank the water but anyways, that must have been the reason she drank like that.
After feeding my imagination and curiosity, I returned my eyes to the normal line of focus and then, I saw the older woman pour the whole bucket of water at once on the fainted old lady.
Again, another woman shouted "Why waste water like this? Don't you know how much a bucket of water now cost since the increase in fuel price and unavailability of NEPA's light?"
"Don't worry my sister, I don't waste my money on fetching water as there's a well behind my house and thank God it's raining season" She replied.
"My sister, please where's your house so I can come fetch well water because the cost of fetching water is about to choke me to the point of death" The other woman said.
The response of the older woman, I didn't pay attention to as the waking up of the fainted old lady drew my attention.
The old lady was drenched as she coughed back to life.
At first, I thought she was going to catch a cold but then, I thought: with this intensity of heat, she'll probably feel cool and refreshed.
The old lady was helped from the ground to sit on a hot cemented floor at the front of the house she fainted at.
After a short exchange of words with the old lady, it was discovered that she fainted due to a chronic hunger.
Chronic, because she hasn't eaten for days and if at all she ate, maybe a crumb of this and that.
The owner of the house she fainted at was a man and he was asked to provide her with food.
The man complained that he has no foodstuffs to give except garri and the quantity of garri he can spare too, is small.
No one argued with him and accepted what he has to offer.
"You're supposed to give her milk" Subconsciously, I opined.
"Onígbèsè wo nìyẹn? Miliki kọ, miliiki ní!" A woman voiced.
I have completed the statement before I realized what I said
when it dawned on me that no one could afford the milk and I'm of no help either.
I wish I could be of help but like them, I'm of no difference.
I could only look on in pity as I solemnly and silently left the scene...
I was a few steps away from my hostel when I saw and heard a father chastising his children for eating leftovers at a party like wolves, behaving like children with no home or parents.
He asked why they aren't contented with the little he was able to provide for them but the kids were not able to give an answer. They only stared at him with guilt on their faces.
I felt for the father and children and I believe he can't outrightly blame the children. For they haven't been feeding well and they looked malnourished.
Even though I felt sorry for them, I could do nothing about it because like them, I also have a share of the nation's economy decline and abnormalities.
I could only walk past them as I concluded in my mind that this is a trying season for every Nigerians and this period is that of the survival of the fittest.
And I really do hope that everyone is rich enough to get food to eat because after God, food is the primary thing that keeps a person alive and the cost of getting it now, is higher.
Hence, the increase in the cost of saving a life.
As the Yorubas would say _"Ẹ̀mí tí kò bá jẹun, ẹ̀mí yẹpẹrẹ ni"
Day: 069/100
#the100writingmarathon
© AM Odunayo
