In the manner in which a child is formed in the womb, I am adding another year.

 

On this day toward the close of the millennium, a woman went into labour-  pushing, sweating, crying, and praying for her second child. As an answer to the prayer of family, friends, and acquaintances, our slithered a dark, grossly underweight boy with curly hairs- those typical of sacred children-  The type that took Pokuwaa to her black hen in Woman in her prime.

Days afterward, the child became sickly. It took a pound of faith to christen the boy on the seventh day.  But the mother's faith was dogged. While performing her mothering duty to the baby, she would go: "This one is my son. I got him from the Lord and not from any god or man. He will live..." In the clangs and clashings of prayers, intensive care, and drugs- both herbal and prescribed- some overdosed and overused, the child grew. The tiny legs became strong enough to carry a toadly toddler. The scrawny eyes were now replaced by piercing deep-seated, intelligent ones. The only testament of a sickly childhood was brandished milk teeth- a proof of heavy iron intake which was soon lost in the development of permanent teeth.

The child became school age. It was not easy for the mom to leave the caring of her child to a stranger - but what other choice does she have. "The Lord has kept him. Not me." He took his class like a storm- being better than his colleagues. Primary school came and went. A teacher asked why he rarely smiles and is always weak. The simple answer was "He is not fine!" This brought me to this observation. Children are not dumb. They are biological recorders. Be careful what you say to them, how you say it to them and what you do to them. Even if they do not tell anyone, they still do remember.

Time for Grammar School in an overpopulated and less supervised public school- bullying, booing, and brash behaviour were unchecked and so encouraged. Having grown around loving, caring and supportive people, he had his first episode of what then he does not have a name for which makes him think less of himself. Not feeling good enough and not down up to his right. (I am sure you have a name for it already.) -Yes, low self-esteem.

Senior school came with its own set of challenges - wanting to fit in, trying to impress the girls who obviously are not impressed, breaking all the rules, and questioning the status quo. He got roped in a crime that if not for God and the support of men would have brought a soil of name. I won't go into the details of it now but it left a scar that is still healing and that will continue to heal. This scar is a trademark of trusting overtly which at all costs he has been avoiding by building thick walls and thickening them daily.

The loss of a brother was not easy. He was young, vibrant, and handsome. They were very close. By six months, they were inseparable. Then it happened. Everyone was consoling a mother for the loss of a baby. No one remembered that siblings also have bonds. This loss sat deeply. A loss that made him lock out loved ones because one day, they will die as the brother did.

One important thing that has kept him going is that the faith of his parents has been passed down. The same faith that they held unto for this survival during those years of sickness and slim hope- the faith in Christ as both Saviour and Lord. As a Father and a Friend. An Arbiter and a Confidence. A King and a Lamb. Through the teenage exuberance, there was always the nudging of that Friend and Father.

The boy broke the stereotypes, strode over the hurdles, and is learning to continuously trust in that Lord and Saviour. Crushed low self-esteem, beat down depression, broke habits, is learning to love genuinely and express it.

To the boy whose name He(God) knows and who is trusting, learning, striving, and becoming who He has made him be, this compressed bio is written.

It is hard right now but the yesterdays which are now part of the war stories were hard too. Find hope. Keep the faith. It will go into the archives.

Footnote: That boy is me and he added a year today- April 4th, 2022.