LOVE AND LIES
NINE
Nkiru walked into her bank with a sweaty face that had her make up a bit washed. Though her thick eye lids and red lipsticks were still visible and attractive. Judith watched her as she tried to gather herself impatiently that morning. Nkiru removed her jacket and swung it round her arm-chair. She paged the files on her table staring into them with questionable glances, wondering at their intricacies. She sighed and later threw herself into her chair. All this while she didnt know she had been standing. Judith walked up to her with a grin.
“Good morning Nkiru. I saw you hurrying in.” She sat pulling her skirt.
“I had to take a bike” Nkiru snapped at her without paying enough attention. Her mind was divided between the work she needed to do and Judith.
“What about your car?” Judith asked. “I noticed I haven’t seen your car for a while now.”
” You won’t understand Judith.”Nkiru shut the file tiredly and stared at her. “You seem to pay attention to everything about me these days. It is about time you started minding your business.” Nkiru eyed her playfully.
“You are my business.” Judith stared back at her with intense demand for more explanation.
“Okay. I sold it. We needed to pay up the loan we collected from the bank.” Nkiru gave in just to get rid of Judith.
“Really? Judith stared at her harder with a glint of shock. “Is it the one you collected that time for Kola?”
“Yes.” Nkiru answered and stamped her feet to show she was probably tired of Judith questions.
“You really must be kidding. You mean you sold up your car to pay up a loan for a man? I can’t believe this. You are showing so much love to this man and he doesn’t seem to reciprocate it in anyway. He doesn’t care about you. And soon you will become nothing to him but a fool.”
“Thanks Judith.” Nkiru nodded.
“See Nkiru. Love is something that doesn’t exist. People are extremely wicked especially men. They use you and dump you. You show so much love to them and they refuse to love you in return. When you show so much love to a man, he will begin to kick you around like a ball.
“That’s true” Nkiru told her. It is sometimes like that. You see most times we want to be loved,” Nkiru began ” It is ok as humans but when we don’t get that, we become embittered. We carry hate everywhere we go because we have given love and we want love in return. That is why we find bitterness and hate in the world today. We forget that it is human nature to be selfish. It is what the devil wants. He has robbed the world of the essence to love. He loves it when we are embittered by jealousy, disappointments, hatred and more. He is happy because they draw us away from God. But, you as someone who has the God kind of life. You need to love and not wait to be loved back. Just love people without expecting them to love you in return. It helps you to manage love and hatred at the same time and not being embittered when you are disappointed by people whom you expect to love you back. It makes you live a life of happiness and not being indebted to anyone. And believe me at the end of the day, you can never lose. Trust me!
“So you keep showing love to people who don’t care about you. Is that what you mean?” Judith winked inquistively.
“Life is serious. Show love to people in the capacity you can. I have viewed life in general. It is not only men that fail to reciprocate love. It is the human nature in general. It takes someone who has a bit of God in him to remember that you have shown love to him and he needs to reciprocate. Some people don’t see it that way because of the sin nature. I have seen a woman that sold everything she had including her wrapper just to send her son to school. But when the boy finished school and got a job, he abandoned the poor woman and enjoyed his life. I have also seen a wife who gave out all she got to her man only for the man to go out and bring in another woman.”
” I have also seen a man who was once rich.” Nkiru continued. “He married this lady and gave her everything she wanted. He made life comfortable for her. But when situation changed and this man became poor, she abandoned him and went away with another man. I have seen several cases Judith. All we need to do is keep praying for our spouses. The devil doesn’t want people to reciprocate love. Why? He wants people to be hurt and bitter. That is what he wants to achieve. He knows when that happens you also will carry hatred and bitterness everywhere. Then the whole world will be chaotic and violent.
“But….” Judith cut in.
“Wait I am still making a point” Nkiru continued while Judith sighed and sat back. ” If you have been caring and loving to man who doesn’t care. If you try to wicked him it becomes worst. The devil will throw himself in and destroy your marriage totally. But when you forget about him and you keep showing love because that is your nature, one day he might be touched. He might just realize you are the best woman for him. God might touch his heart to see that and things will turn out good. I have learnt you don’t quench fire with fire.”
“Yes I know nothing good has ever come out from hate and bitterness. But you also have to be smart as a woman.” Judith countered.
“Both of you are one. Don’t run your marriage with that mentality. If he doesn’t see things in the God-like or spiritual way you see it, it then must be the devil. Remember when the devil knows you are strong he doesn’t fight you. He fights your spouse. He knew if he strikes him, he strikes you.”
“Yes that’s true.” Judith nodded.
” That’s his technique. He manipulates him to frustrate you. The only way you won’t give in is for you to keep praying.”
“Hmm” Judith sighed. “You are really a strong woman.”
Nkiru laughed. “You need to work on your relationship with God.
” Yes I need to because I am not tolerant when it comes to some certain things.” Judith admitted and laughed, throwing her hand at the same time in a way to emphasize how temperamental she could be sometimes. But it could be read from her voice that she had learnt a lot from Nkiru.
“We will talk more later on how you build your spiritual life. ” Nkiru sat back and Judith stood and carried herself hurriedly away.
******
It was some minute past four. Nkiru was done for the day and was ready to leave. She had expected Kola to come pick her but she hadn’t heard from him. Kola had really changed since she sold her car to pay up for the loan she collected from the bank for him. He promised to always drive her to work and also take her home considering the dangers of taking motor-bikes. But Kola had hardly fulfilled his promise. He had not done that twice before he began to give several excuses of places he needed to go and other engagements. Nkiru had refused to complain. She had taken her fate. But she believed Kola would one day change for good.
She called Kola many times via her phone and when he refused to pick, she got her bag and her jacket and walked tiredly out of the bank into the faint evening sun. She saw a bike man who suddenly rallied round before squeaking his bike to a halt. Nkiru bargain with him and he agreed smiling at her pretty face and attractive curves. He rode Nkiru to the market where she got somethings for soup before taking her home. Nkiru coughed as she got down. It was not easy for her to be on bike. She took in so much dust while the bike man raced up and down the road. He nodded his head and hummed a tune in a fashion he was accustomed to as he ride, not bothering about the dust or the potty road.
Nkiru got into the house. Even with the stress she was overjoyed. She realized that there was this joy in her that seemed to be undefined. It wasn’t something she had got from the world or her circumstances. It appeared like a river of living water flowing inside of her. Her favourite gospel tune came back to her. She began to sing it peeling the leaves and watching the meat boil on the gas.
She suddenly heard footsteps. Someone stole a peep into the kitchen. She stopped and looked round. It was Kola.
“When did you come in? Nkiru asked with a glow of shock in her eyes.
“I have been around for a while.” Kola coughed. His face had a remnant of sleep.
“And you didn’t come to pick me after I called you many times.” Nkiru’s voice had an edge of bitterness.
“I was tired.” Kola told her and shuffled away.
“Do you know the dangers you put me through when you make me fly bike through the highway?” Nkiru shouted after him in anger. Kola didn’t reply. He went to sit in the living room watching his favourite football station. Nkiru could hear him laughing and giving comments at every move of the players. She was embittered. But she had vowed not to allow anything to steal her joy away, not even Kola in anyway.
To be continued………
ยฉEmmanuel Erondu, 2019
