HOME SWEET HOME

The dry leaves from shrubs and weeds wiped my face painfully as I ran in the dark, frantically and desperately in the thick bush farm surrounding the community of the town. I was crying and heaving from fear that had taken the shape of a human in my mind who was after my soul and had blinded me enough not to see where I was running to or who I was running from. As I ran, I kept  falling from stumps and running into trees which was as painful as being hit with a heavy pestle on the face. I knew fresh blood dripped from my nose and mouth to where already dried blood had caked on my mouth and neck and night dress from previous falls. "Ta-ta-ta-ta-ta-ta-ta-ta!" The sound of gun shots blinded my ears as they resounded in the dark hot air, reminding everyone alive that the invasion of armed men in my hostel was intimidating and dominant. "God help me," I cried out low enough to sound like a desperate frightened whisper, "please God, help me o. I don't want to die," I began crying again as I choked on my words. I must have been running for four or five hours with a few seconds in between to catch my breath. The time would have been around 4am or so from midnight when the gunmen attacked. We were up to eight girls and boys running for our dear lives after the massacre we had witnessed but as we ran we began to decrease until I realized I was the only one running after what seemed like an hour. I had never felt so lonely and so much fear that almost took my breath away. Even in the pitch blackness of the night, I could still manage to make out human forms running and trusting my instincts not to trust anyone, I would stop and hide under the numerous leaves of clustered shrubs until the only sound I could hear were cricket sounds before continuing to run. "Ta-ta-ta!" Another round of bullets in the air and I began to wonder if they were right behind me. I was getting close to the express as a truck sound signaled me and just as I made to jump forward out of the forest, I saw a bus with men holding long guns pointed at the forest. They were killing every person who came out running from the bush! I began to panic and cry again as I didn't know what to do. A voice in my head told me to run towards my left. As soon as I took the second step to activate my race, I almost went deaf. "Ta-ta-ta!" They had shot into the space where I was standing a while ago. My heart began to race so fast it began to hurt me. I was sure I was having a heart attack. Tears were blinding me from the shock that I would have been dead some ten seconds ago had I not moved. I continued in my journey in this dark abyss called a forest. As I ran, I began to notice that the shrubs were no longer greeting me with slaps and the air was free on my blood-caked sweaty face. It was dark but I could make out houses in a neighborhood. I was so happy that I stopped to catch my breathe even though I didn't know where I was. "Thank you Jesus," I whispered genuinely, "how I wish I knew where I was. How I wish I was home and not out in the dark." At the slightest sound of movement, I took off like a sprinter. I didn't care to know if it was a rat or a person. Run now, ask questions later. I ran for what seemed like another thirty minutes when I fell. I was sure I was dead or about to die. I crawled with the last strength in me and rested my back on what seemed like a gate that squeaked loudly in the thick silence from my weight. I slowly fell on the sandy ground and began to ask God to forgive me my sins and to take care of my family in my head. I could no longer talk as every nerve in me felt dead. I had already made out the morning headline news from my death. Helpless tears slid out of my eyes as I looked up at the starry dark early morning sky. Just then, the electricity power came on, powering the street with light. For the first time, I hadn't seen beauty like this but I was too weak to even get up or look around to recognize the place or hide in a darker area from where I could be clearly seen by the bulbs outside each house. As my eyes began to close slowly, I heard the sound of the gate I collapsed on open. This time, I was no longer afraid because I was ready for anything. A person stepped closer to me and touched me on my face. "Joy!" I instantly recognized the voice. It was my father's! I was home...