Jesus son of David have mercy on me-Mark 10:47,
Luke18:38. These were the words that came to my mind not up to an hour before
this write up.
There had been a discussion in a public vehicle I had
entered in the morning of the day. The weather had been far from friendly, it
rained intermittently and here was a multitude of children of varying ages
numbering in thousands all queued up to far distances that I could only see a
section of them.
As long as poverty,
injustice and gross inequality persist in our world, none of us can truly rest-Nelson
Mandela. Here I wonder how many of us have gone to rest.
I could not but ask what
this whole thing was all about. No sooner had I finished asking than I got
multiples of answers flying in from different directions. This had initiated a
discourse.
This children had queued
up to be given free items like school materials and food items by Daystar
Christian Centre Oregun, Ikeja shepherd by Pastor Sam Adeyemi and I learnt that
so many children were seen coming all the way from Lagos Island in buses and
different means of road transport to the venue.
For those of us that are
familiar with Lagos terrain, you could imagine a far stretch from the Centre to
down Christ Embassy LCA, Billings Way.
Hmm! To think about it
that many will get back home shivering from cold but that still does not
underscore this act of love and kindness. The centre can in subsequent times
plan to arrange the programme to be better, putting many factors into
consideration but for now, it is very much welcomed especially in this period
of recession that the country has found herself in.
Many wondered why parents
could allow their children and wards go such far distances and experience these
harsh conditions. The answers were springing up from me as I would say that
many would not have known of the great number they were going to face because
the hope of having ones needs met could on its own interfere with some sense of
reasoning. So one family leaves as the other and thus the number grows to what
it becomes.
While many blamed their parents,
all I could see was the ravaging effect of poverty. Poverty gets one’s mind
knackered to the point of disillusionment were almost every sense of being
human is lost.
The mind is the field of
creation and resourcefulness, when this centre itself loses its purpose what
becomes of the life it’s supposed to make and control? The life only becomes a
container of emptiness were anything goes.
I saw a woman get in the vehicle, and no one could reason
why because there was no reason to. I had mentioned that it was a public
vehicle. It was conveying people to their destinations with stoppages at
different bus stops. She sat down and almost immediately started with the
challenges she was facing. She was in her 60’s and has been a widow with two children
that came in late in her marriage, jobs had not been there amongst other prevailing
factors she emphasized.
She sounded as one that was educated, as the English she
spoke was very constructive and good. The woman ended the story of her
predicament asked for help saying she only needed help to start up a business
even if it was biro, pencil or recharge card business. Her manner of appeal
caused me to reach out to her and so did many others.
What struck me was the glee on her face, she was so happy
like she never thought people would respond as they did. I like to believe that
the act of giving we had earlier seen had unconsciously played out in that
collective magnanimity. Imagine what a single spark of love had caused!
