Survive However You Must

 

In the year 2016, I had the privilege to “serve” my fatherland in Calabar, Cross River State, Nigeria.

During the 3 weeks camp orientation, I fell really ill. On that fateful day I woke up with a terrible headache as the sound of the bugle woke us up to the assembly ground. I was too weak to stand and decided to sit by the curb instead, a female soldier approached me and commanded me to join the line. I told her I was very ill and could not join. Within seconds, she grabbed me abruptly by my shirt and pulled me close to her. She was obviously power drunk and could not believe that a bloody civilian refused her command. At this point she was furious and ordered me to hand over my lanyard. If you have ever undergone NYSC orientation, you will know the importance of having your lanyard on your neck 24/7. At this point, I decided I will rather not serve than to die for nothing.

As luck will have it a superior officer observed what played out and told her to leave me be. I approached the clinic entrance to get medical attention just for another female superior to order me to go back to the assembly ground and return after the morning parade. All my pleas of being ill and head throbbing with headache fell on deaf ears as she threatened to deal with me if I did not head back to the assembly.

My dear reader, at this point I was certain I was going to faint as I dragged myself back to the field. I started to cry so much that mucus was dripping down my nose, I was helpless, frustrated, and hopeless until I heard a male officer beckon to me. Let us call him Mr. W.

Mr. W was moved at my state and could tell that something was wrong. He told me to keep calm and stop crying. He understood what was going on and offered his cabin to me so I could get some rest till the morning parade was over. I felt so relieved that I could lay my head somewhere till I could get medical attention. After a short period, I drifted into a deep sleep only to be woken up by the feeling of a strange sensation around my thighs. As I regained full consciousness, I was shocked by what was going on, Mr. W had started to caress my bum and my thighs. My eyes started to well up with tears again. I knew that this man could do anything to me if he wanted to and the whole world will blame me without knowing the circumstances that led to my predicament. I decided to play smart by telling him I needed to get injections and will be back shortly. As I walked out of his cabin, I started to cry all over again.

On getting to the clinic, I was administered malaria injections and was told there was no space for me to rest. I walked back into the scorching heat realising that I was practically facing the devil and the deep blue sea. In the end, I sat under a tree, head dropped and pounding more than ever. The things that transpired afterwards, I cannot really remember. However, I definitely got better and avoided Mr. W as much as I could till I left camp.

As most of us already know, life is moving really fast and many of us are consumed and overwhelmed with our journey that we hardly have the time to think of anyone else. The flipside to this is that no one is thinking of us either but if you ever find yourself between the devil and the deep blue sea in this journey, please jump in the ocean and survive however you must.

P.s- Do not hurt anyone in the process.

Happy 2022.