Indeed as I recollected the happenings over the last academic calendar, I felt slightly fulfilled but mostly disappointed that I was caught up in an academic struggle before the examinations. As I pondered over this, the bus I boarded set off from the community station and headed to Accra. At this point, I did not even realize that my eyes were fixed outside staring at the beautiful town I had come to study in. It was an extremely sunny day hence I had to put a handkerchief all over my forehead as I gazed with intent. From the busy street, I knew I would miss these guys while I was gone.
I must chip in that since it was my first vacation, I wanted to keep an eagle eye on the road just to catch a glimpse of some interesting happenings on the road. Among the many things I saw, food hawkers were at the top of my list. Most of the things they sold were the well-acclaimed “Fante Kenkey” and “Etew” meals. That was fair enough because most people who trooped into the town were there for recreational facilities and were often seen trying these meals at events and during nightclub sessions. I had initially wanted to buy some and surprise my folks back home but rescinded the decision and opted to get loaves of bread for them instead. The ride was enjoyable till fatigue set in for most of my colleagues who were headed in the same location as I was.
To my surprise, I dozed off and nearly missed my alighting spot which was at Odorkor. From there I boarded a Sowutuom car and made my way to Lomnava. I finally arrived in the afternoon approximately at 2 pm. with no one at home. My mom sells items related to home decor hence has been going to town most of the time to retrieve her goods hence she was not available as well. Of course, I knew where the keys to the house were before my earlier communication with my dad so I did not hesitate to find it and unlock the doors to my room. I was hungry but proceeded to undress and take a nap with the hope of suppressing my urges for food. That sadly did not work hence I got out of bed and made my way to the station to grab any food I could get my hands on.
Let us not forget it was still very much sunny at 3: 40 pm hence I was lucky to chance on a beans seller who helped relinquish my hunger. I made my way back home and slept through it and by the time I was awake, everyone was back home. My mom was in the kitchen preparing the evening’s supper. I greeted her and she met me with a broad welcoming smile. Well, my dad and siblings on the other hand had come home but had also left to attend to other responsibilities outside the home. I had to wait for them to speak to them as well. So around 7 pm later in the evening, I had the opportunity to speak to other members of the family with my dad happy to see me again. To him, it seemed like I had gone for an eternity hence he was glad that I was back. I felt happy really because I experienced another level of love from folks.
The following day was also not a regular one. I was not even allowed to touch a broom in the house. I was given a king’s treat. Growing up, I usually saw my elder siblings being treated as such but never thought my turn would even come. Oh, it was a great day. I recall eating my favorite food and playing football with close friends in the neighborhood later in the day. All I am saying is I did nothing productive at home for the first few days of staying at home for the vacation break. The following week as I still lay in bed fantasizing about the earlier week, I was called by my father. Upon reaching there, he asked about my first year in school and inquired about how eventful it was. I was in shock as to how much detail he wanted to know because he was not a sociable character at home most of the time.
So through my conversations with him, he advised me to do something so I don’t become idle. He also chipped in that I would earn some money on the side if looked for a profitable job. I was kind of happy with his thoughtful suggestion but deep inside I planned to rest the entire vacation. Dad’s job was very lucrative but for some reason, he prevented us from working with him. From my mom’s point of view, he saw his work as “too dirty” for me mainly because he was taking me through the University to be a graduate. Secondly, he was bragging at work with the level of Education his son was acquiring at this point. To be honest I did not mind working at his car firm which is into the sale of spare parts but after hearing mummy’s idealogy on the whole situation, I felt some wisdom in there and hence decided to complete school before opting to venture into dad’s field.
Yes, so I had to look for a job and get busy. Since it was a long vacation beginning in March, I had to find a job and work till June. Upon several interactions with my peers back home, I secured a place to work in a unisex salon. This was not my ideal place of work but I needed the money hence that was enough motivation for me. The salary at the time was 300 cedis which seemed quite a lot to me. Now my job at this salon was pretty direct per my boss’ directives. I was to welcome people or to be professional “customers” to her establishment with a wide smile. I kind of knew this wouldn’t be easy because I was placed on a shift with 3 other colleagues. The shop was open 24 hours a week hence the security section needed to be beefed up.
At some point, I wondered what would happen if we were faced with thugs and bandits at odd times of the day. No protective tools were dished out to us hence during the day we smiled and opened doors for these people we did not know and got very alert when it was late. As time passed, I became okay with the situation. One thing that bothered me during this period was the lack of sleep scenarios I had put or exposed myself to after work. Back at school, I was not sleeping right hence I developed insomnia which I was experiencing throughout this work period. I remember following many videos online and taking many drugs to combat the issue and sleep peacefully when not on duty but all to no avail. Sleep they say is a vital tool for the success and progression of any human so upon further reading, I stumbled upon this blood tonic called Zincovit which pretty much solved and took me out of my misery.
Continue in the next post.