BEHOLD; HOPE COMES

All the people gathered
Around the dying man, they all hurdled.
The Medical examiner arrived just in time
Shaking his head sadly upon confirming the absence of a central pulse on palpation.
Mornfully offering his last respects as he confirmed the absence of heart sounds on auscultation.

After a close five minute observation to confirm his diagnosis, he declare the man dead based on confirmation that irreversible cardiorespiratory arrest has occurred.

The Medical examiner quickly placed a call to the coroner
All the while, calling the oldest man aside in order to break the sad news to him.

"Epa o. This man don kpai. Abeg you go find way to tell him wife"

Epa shook his head and a tear escaped from each eyelid.
He had experienced so much hurt, yet none weighed like this on him
For with his eyes, he withness the final passage of his only son into the afterlife.
For with his rheumatoid arthritis stricken joints, he had carried his twitching son to the local medical shelter.
For with his already failing eyes due to river blindness, he watched his son breathe his last.

Epa (old man) signed deeply and spoke up.

"Ma pikin. So you want make I tell him wife say nobody go dey to comfort am for night again? You want make I tell am say the fire of love wey dey shine for him eyes nor go dey again? You want make I tell am say her oyoyo di oma (fine husband) no go pass through their gate and carry him pikin again? With which mouth I wan use deliver that kain message?"

The Medical examiner remained silent while he pondered deeply.

He had seen depressing cases before;

Felt the cold skin upon the ribcage of still born children.
Seen old mothers breathe their last while their arms were up raised in thanks to God Almighty for a life well spent
Watched as the pulse rate, of accident victims, drop from 74 to 0 on the EKG machine
Taken part in the unsuccessful liver transplant of a prominent lawyer whose daughter was waiting and praying in the corridor of the hospital.

Yet, none of those cases touched him like the case of the young man he had just pronounced dead.

While the people began to murmur ceaselessly in foreknowledge of the man's death,
Someone came.

While the wife threw herself on the floor, headgear flung away, hair scattered and dress torn in anguish,
A man entered.

While the children of the diseased stood by, hands squeezing each other tightly and minds already getting weak due to realization that the uncles would take every away,
The hope entered.

While the local 'amebo' (talkertive) woman texted the news of the death on the church's watsapp page,
The king came

While a young man took pictures on his phone with a desire to paste it on Facebook in order to get a thousand likes and 'Amen's',
The savior entered.

"Arise"
The savior said.

An order that was met with jesting from the young men around
An order that was met with pity from the old women around.
For they thought that he was somehow related to the dead man and felt a deep grief.

"Arise"
The savior said again.
More firmly than the last time.

A firmness that caused the wailing wife to sit up.
A firmness that caused the downcast children to come further.
A firmness that caused the medical examiner to squint his eyes further.
For he thought he saw what appeared to be a slight moving of the hand of the dead man.

"Arise"
The savior said the third time.
An order which forced the man to jump up with a start.
An order which brought blissful chaos at the moment.

For the young men who had mocked, began to race away in all directions
For the old women who had pitied, began to hobble away with an unnatural speed despite their aged joints.
For the medical examiner fainted at once just like he had fainted when he had first seen the insides of a cadaver in University Anatomy class.

The hope had done what none could do.
The man called Jesus had resuscitated the man declared dead.
#BASHORUN

Okontas.com

Never lose hope
Don't you dare lose hope my friend