I was seventeen, among the torch bearers at night time also fighting for an uncalled and undeserved war which later saw to the destruction of mankind including myself internally. I still remember every detail about the events and the aftermath of everything. It all began with a disagreement over the closure of my town's border.
My town Mbita was a very big one located in a relatively hilly part of Longaso. It was teemed with giant and evergreen trees in part, lushed fruits for every season made living colourful. It was a blessing to be an inhabitant here. It was also in a developing state as education was fully embraced, technology was easily accepted, we had big factories, good hospitals, good roads to name a few. Everyone in Mbita was just seen to be living a happy and fulfilled life. Indeed my town was superfluous with resources. The only thing I couldn't decipher was its people lingering to the past in the guise of being conservative. I could understand that even if we came out of an era to embrace development and growth, some rich history, traditions and practices should be passed along for one to have an identity and pass it on for posterity's sake. This conservative style led to remarkable things that are written in history's book. A particular event would shape me for the rest of my days on earth.
Mbita was bordered by two other big towns Buti and Zono. Zono being the closest had good relations, were interdependent, had schools which were well attended by children ,market places, worship centers and everyone got to see each other as having no differences.
I was a tall, dark and quiet young boy living with my parents and three younger brothers with an inseparable kind of bond. My parents were very receptive to good changes and were very calm in taking decisions. They enrolled all four of us into schools and gave us the needed support. I was already in my final class at high school preparing to seek admission into the University in the city of Limbasa so I needed to read and work hard. My nature could be regarded as feeble and soft rather than the usual ideology people have assumed for boys to be stoic, rigid and sometimes rough. I was often regarded as a sissy by my peers whenever we joked or played around as I would stylishly shy away from some kind of plays that involved tugging and being tardy. Indeed I was a soft boy, a mummy's boy. My younger ones were quite different from me. They each possessed some kind of undaunted prowess and would sometimes protect me even though I was the eldest. This made our bond stronger as I sought and found some kind of solace in them but time had it that I would later be drifted away by circumstances one couldn't control.
The bright and smiling sun ushered a calm and peaceful Tuesday afternoon. The birds chirped loudly as usual, little children frolicking and chattering in open spaces, everyone going about their activities. I sat down in front of my house staring at thin space creating imaginations in my blank head. My mother had just returned from a bidding event and my father was reading a book with his glasses and mumblings some words to himself when we heard a very loud bang from no particular direction. Everyone muted for a few seconds before we started hearing voices screaming run!!!they are coming. I ran into the house and saw mother trembling and shouting in fear saying 'it has happened, we are finished'. My father ran frantically to my siblings' room to get them out and we all ran out trying to seek refuge and safety with a confused crowd going in different directions. As we scampered for safety, I couldn't help but see some little children looking confused and scared to death screaming for their mothers, mothers in turn crying for their children and at the same time running to save their lives. It was indeed a blackout for me as I never saw anything coming.
Calamity had hit Mbita violently with a clear warning but strong headed leaders were blinded to see what was coming.
My family and some other families, the united and scattered individuals hid in a bush not certainly whether it was safe for anyone to go back to the house at this period. We never knew the extent of what our town had got into. A slice of what was yet to arise. I looked at my father as he clasped his hands on his head. He fixed his gaze at the ground not saying anything. On my part, I was so terrified and couldn't grasp what was happening anymore. Questions kept flowing through my mind. What would happen afterwards, what was the cause of this chaos, what if this never ends? I didn't know what had become of my town. I was totally a confused being.
We had been in hiding for almost nine hours and little children began crying and sulking for hunger and sleep. We were at a standstill not knowing what was going on. Some men gathered around and discussed on the next action to take whether we all go back home or just stay in the bush without help. The fact was that we could not measure the extent our so called 'enemies' had prevailed in the town.
Finally, a decision was made that we in our circle (those of us in that particular section of the bush) go back home as we had nothing on us. We would go home and remain indoors and await what the government would declare and tell us the way forward. We all moved stealthily in small groups as we safely reached our various homes. Some families had suffered deal as properties were destroyed. My siblings kept asking my parents what was happening as I just sat down quietly listening to what they had to say. My father just said that that my town was having problems with town and no one wanted to settle but the government was intervening.
Two days later as we listened to the news we learnt my town had had a dispute with Zono over smuggling of arms and exploitation of some mineral resources especially our diamonds as this was our trademark, we prospered with the trading of our diamonds to foreigners and Zono was a subsequent beneficiary in terms of economic gains from my town. It was speculated that was allowing miscreants carry out illegal businesses by smuggling and trading illegal arms with some king pins in my town through our shared border. It was said that even some elites had hands in it too but were discreet.
My town accused Zono warning that if they didn't curb these and beef up security,.all ties would be cut and drastic actions would be taken. The leaders from Zono came out refuting the accusation but our leaders were bent on laying the accusation on them. A tear that could easily be stitched and life would continue.
The government advised everyone to remain calm claiming it was just a little bump on the road. Everything would be normal again.
Two weeks before we ran, there was a clash between our town's soldiers and Zono's soldiers at the border. The leaders had given authority to the soldiers to stop all activities at the border, nobody could bring anything through to our town not even for tourism. Their soldiers insisted they were carrying out their duties to see the foreigners through to explore my town. Our soldiers resisted then trouble ensued as shots were fired and ten of Mbita's soldiers were killed. My town enforced a total and forced closure of the border and this indicated the beginning of enmity. They also retaliated by sending soldiers to ambush and destroy defence base and some key industrial enterprises that the town depended on. Our leaders were oblivious to the fact that a dialogue would have caused all these and assumed they were victors with the retaliation.
Their leaders were mute and didn't make any statement or take an action against is so there was no need to panic after all we were ready for anything. They would come grovelling so as to regain ties with us especially for trade with our diamonds.
The first surprise came the day we ran like headless ducks in directions. No wonder mother screamed 'it has happened'. Now I could place the tiny scraps into one piece noting that a war had slowly started creeping if not it had leapt in our faces. Zono had been hatching carefully how to bring my town down. They were silent killers, it was clear we had not been forgiven when we destroyed their means survival.
had called for the impending calamity that would take a toll on every life. Their first attack was a warning and overtime the opposition's leader promised to shock our big but little town. Our fearless and fortified town was beginning to look like it was running from it's shadows.
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My life took an unexpected turn the day I was returning from a visit to my friend's house when a kind of ambush took place right before my very eyes. I was confronted by two soldiers with guns in their hands. One of them motioned to me 'don't try to run, just follow us'. I was dumbfounded as a hot stream of tears flowed from my eyes as I climbed into the van and I saw a company of boys my age and even younger boys. Some crying just as I was while some trembled as we started out to an unknown destination. We were taken to join the rest where we saw a handful of boys in our destination our camp!. Later learnt that my town's defence was short of personnel for fighting as some had fled away so we had to scramble to get in formation to fight as we had been taken aback by the attack. We I forcefully taken from a life we used to know to an unknown picture. I remembered my parents and sibling and felt so empty. They would be dead worried about me. I never figured out how I could cope with this ordeal. I'm the camp we wey divided into groups and given a rush hour training on how to handle different forms of attack. What could children who couldn't decide their fate be doing at the battlefield? We were victims of what our predecessors refused to fix. We were the last option.
I was made the torch bearer because my unit's commander felt my height was suitable in guarding the camp at night alongside other boy and proper soldiers. I was in a world of my own my heart went out to my family as the thought about seeing them or knowing if they were alive made my heart heavy. I feared about surviving this ordeal, everything was just out of the ordinary,who knew that today you are living a happy life with hope in sight of a brighter outcome then all of a sudden everything becomes bleak all you think is one thing survival. What if I die today,what if we don't make this war, what would we be normal again like it was?
Another attack happened, again we were really unprepared,this time our border now laid bare. It had been destroyed. The protected and glorified border was now naked.
Our leaders began to resolve for a dialogue to settle this but the hatchet could not be buried at this time, it was too late.
Schools were deserted, farm lands destroyed, families separated just like me, lives had been lost. I was too weak to unsee the shambles my town had become.
The opposition was getting tougher and harder and harder on us as we lost soldiers day by day. I still wondered how I held strong. A normal person couldn't get to stand this kind of situation. I had never held a gun not even shot at an animal but here I was shooting another life against my will. As the opposition grew closer to us, we all fled to save ourselves because we knew we had lost no point fighting. I just ran as my weak body could take me through but I fell and really hit a sharp metal with my arm. I quickly stood up trying to take my pain in. I cried so hard I was tired of it all. I kept trying to run in no particular direction as fatigue drew in coupled with my injury. I has already fled quite far from chaos when I saw a small house nearby. I tried opening the see through gate to enter and find refuge but it wasn't open. Who would leave his house open? I began knocking at the gate hoping someone would be inside. I almost gave up as I was too weak as my hazy eyes saw a figure coming to the gate slowly, I passe out.
I woke up with a sharp pain on my arm I saw my injury had been covered with a bandage. I looked around and saw a woman looking straight at me. I sat up straight but she calmed me 'I am Ziti, you passed out, don't be afraid I know you are from Mbita but I won't give you in to our soldiers you can stay with me till everything is over. Tears flowed from my eyes as I thanked her. Ziti saw how feeble and weary I was at heart and was aroused by pity to help me. This was a kindness of a stranger. Someone whom my town had destroyed her means of living had the heart of gold to save my life.
I hid with Ziti as he helped me treat my wound till it healed. I still thought about my family, I missed them everyday. My town as I heard was in shambles as our defense had become weak.Day by day we fell till we surrendered completely as enough lives had been wasted. It was discovered that Mbita had some elites who were involved in some hideous dealings. They wanted to have a total share and control of our diamonds and minerals so they plotted with the interested foreigners to exploit them illegally as their cut would be life rewarding. These people tried to sell us out by inciting chaos by falsely accusing town. Some of these leaders upon the discovery of their ugly acts fled and continued to live their lives like nothing happened. The ones that were caught were given life sentence. The government declared my town a failed town as we were completely down. Our lives had been put into another phase, families would never see their loved ones again or if fate decided they would. The important nothing was that both town's relationship had been severed as we had to start from the scratch. The war was our fault.
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I continued to live with Ziti and was sponsored to continue my education. All efforts to reunite with my family were futile as I couldn't really trace if they were still alive or were no more.
I finished school got a good job, found love and continued to take care of Ziti as she was my family asides my wife and children. Ziti kept reminding me to have hope that I would still reunite with my long lost family. I sure never wanted that hope to wane.
It's been a long time coming and recovering from the war as I have never visited my town since the day of my ambush. I couldn't seem to forget the war in a matter of time. Echoes and images of helpless cries and wounded and dead people played in mind. I sought the help of a therapist and progressed in getting self care .
The war taught me to value life better it made it made me stronger at heart. Today could be blissful but tomorrow still remains a mystery.
I tell my children I don't wish to see war in my life even in my death. My eyes still sore from my experience. Telling my children about it is a hard pill to take but it's for posterity's sake. A lesson should be learnt from the war. My town for sure has never been the way it was before as it's still trying to recover from the crumbles it created.
Obianuju.
#RealityofLife