Honestly, I would say I’ve broken quite a few rules in my life — maybe more than I’d like to admit. Most of those times happened in school.
My school is actually not an ordinary one; it is a church-owned school owned by the Baptists. That means discipline is always taken very seriously, and spiritual activities are part of our weekly routine.
Now, one of the major rules we had to follow was that everyone must attend church services on Sundays and Wednesdays mornings. It didn’t matter how you felt — tired, or just not in the mood — you had to be there. The only way anyone could miss the service is if they are actually very sick and they have a valid hospital report. In my school, missing church service is actually considered a serious offence that could even get a student suspended when caught.
But then, if I’m being truthful, there were several times I got tired of it all. Sometimes, I just wanted to rest instead of sitting through another long service. So, there were days I made the conscious decision to stay back in the hostel, knowing full well that I was breaking one of the school’s biggest rules.
One particular experience I’ll never forget happened in my 300 level. That day, a few of my roommates and I decided we were not going to the Wednesday service that lasted for about 2 hours, which was from 10 am to 12 pm. There were eight of us in the room, but only two of them went to church while the remaining six of us stayed back. We closed the door, turned off the lights, and made ourselves comfortable on our beds. We kept whispering and laughing quietly, hoping the hostel wardens wouldn’t decide to check the rooms that evening.
The entire time, my heart was beating fast because I knew the kind of trouble we could get into if we were caught. When the service finally ended, we all sighed in relief. We were happy that we had managed to stay under the radar. Just then, one of our roommates named Dire, who went to church, came back and knocked on the door. Thinking the service was over, we rushed to open it. But immediately we did, one of the hostel wardens followed him in! Apparently, the man had followed Dire from the church and decided to “greet” us — or maybe check what we were up to.
The moment he stepped in and saw us lying shirtless on our beds, the look on his face said it all. He didn’t even need to ask any questions; it was clear we hadn’t attended the church service. I won’t lie. My heart almost jumped out of my chest. I thought we were finished — and that suspension letter was just waiting around the corner.
But then, luckily for us, that warden was someone one of us had a pretty good relationship with. He just looked at us, shook his head, and decided to let it go. I still don’t know why, but that day, we were saved by pure grace.
Of course, after he left, we all turned on Dire for bringing the warden with him. He said he only stepped out to pee when we didn't open the door immediately so he didn’t realize the man was following him, but that didn’t stop us from teasing him non-stop until he got annoyed. Looking back now, it’s actually funny, but that day was far from funny — we were all trembling inside.
That experience taught me to be a lot more careful, though I’ll be honest — I still skipped a few services after that, but I made sure to plan better. It’s one of those funny school memories that still makes me smile whenever I think about it. Sometimes breaking rules gives you stories you’ll never forget, even if at the moment, it nearly gives you a heart attack.
Thanks for reading.
