The death of my maternal grandmother hit her husband very hard. To help him overcome the trauma and also navigate through the mourning period, my parents asked me to go and stay with him so that I could run errands. He was living with his wife alone before her death. My uncle lived in the town and only visited his parents once in a while. That was how I joined him in the farm settlement where he lived.
There was no school in the settlement. Children of school age had to trek for about five kilometers to have access to education in the closest town.
I was not used to trekking such a distance. To lessen the potential stress, a room apartment was secured for me in the town. The room was occupied by my uncle before his mother's death. He relocated to a city far away afterward and handed over the room to me. I would stay in the room during the weekdays and by Friday evening I would go and meet my grandfather on the farm. On Sunday evening, I would return to the town in preparation to resume school on Monday.
This new development came with a freedom that I never tasted before. At 15, I was staying all alone in my room in the town. Nobody monitors my endeavors.
To avoid boredom at home, I invited three other friends to stay with me in my room. Two of them were my classmates while Ade, the third person was a professional driver. Our stay together grew my interest in driving. I told my Ade of my wishes and he offered to teach me how to drive.
He started teaching me how to drive anytime we were free. On a Saturday, I decided to follow him to work to see what commercial driving entailed. I sent a message to my grandfather that I won't be coming for the weekend because of some project work in school. Early in the morning, we set out on the journey to the park.
"We will work together this morning. Later in the evening, we will continue our practical driving class," Ade informed me.
My role was that of a conductor. I would stay at the rear door of the minibus popularly known as Akoto. I would call passengers and thereafter collect transport fares from each of them.
Immediately after we arrived at the park, Ade suggested we have our breakfast before loading passengers. The breakfast wasn't just about food. As soon as Ade dropped his spoon on the empty plate, he stood up and walked towards a paraga seller. Paraga was a local gin in which herbs were soaked for days.
"Give me two shots," he ordered the woman.
While my hand was holding a toothpick to my mouth to pick the beef pieces in between my teeth, my eyes were on him. "How will someone who is going to drive a bus drink alcohol?" I asked myself.
The woman poured the two shots into a cup and handed it over to him. Ade threw all into his throat at once followed by a squeezed face.
"Yes! Yes!!! I am set for today's work," he removed his cap with his left hand and placed it back.
"Ojo," he turned and called me. "Our work is not approached with an ordinary eye. You need to charge up your system."
"What do you mean by ordinary eye and charging up of the system?" I asked for clarification.
"The work of a commercial driver is a difficult one," he explained. "We transport different kinds of people, some very crazy. You need to charge up your system so that you can match their craziness with higher craziness."
"Is that why you are taking alcohol? Don't you think that you can get intoxicated and become a threat to yourself and other road users?"
"Imam Ojo, enter the bus, let's go," he taunted me by referring to me as a religious leader.
To him, I was already preaching unnecessarily.
We entered the bus and we loaded the passengers going our route. It took me a few hours to understand the nature of the job. Some passengers were trying to outsmart me to avoid paying the normal amount for the fares. It became clear to me what he meant by craziness. "Regardless, this doesn't call for taking gin,"
At the end of the day's work, we returned to the park to treat ourselves to some nice meals. We counted the money realized and I was stunned at the huge amount made that day.
"You guys are making money on this job. You need to teach me how to drive quickly so that I can be in charge of a bus like this."
Ade looked at me and laughed. "Are you leaving school for this dirty job?" He asked.
"This job brings money more than most salary jobs around."
My experience that day spurred my interest in commercial driving. In the following weeks, going out to work with Ade became more regular. I made sure I went back to the farm every weekend to reassure my grandfather that my education was progressing smoothly.
"Please, don't do things that would make your mother regret sending you to come and assist me. Face your studies and be of good character." My grandfather never forgot to repeat these words every Sunday evening when I was returning to town. Little did he know that schooling wasn't my priority anymore.
"We are going to school to get a job and make money after graduation. If I work now and get my bus after two years, I will be on a faster path to making it in life." These were the self-assuring words that I gave myself.
On a fateful day, Ade and I arrived at the park as usual. We were at the shop of the woman selling paraga. At this point, I had been initiated into everything that had to do with the job. I was gulping the bitter shots when a man greeted us.
"Good afternoon, gentlemen."
"Good afternoon, Sir," I responded.
"My name is Sam. I am here to have a word with you,"
"They have come again. We don't have anything to give you this morning," Ade responded rudely and left us. He went to the bus.
He had complained severally about mobile preachers coming to preach the gospel and at the end would request that the listeners donate to the work of God. I also frowned at the way some of them behaved but it was never in my nature to be rude to them.
"Pardon my friend, Sir," I apologize to Sam.
"What do you have to tell us?" I asked him
"Why are you not in school?" He asked me straight away.
"How is that a problem, Sir?" I responded.
"My brother, I am here to talk to you because I was once like you. I worked with a bus inside this town to raise money to go to school. If you are here because you have no choice, I understand. I am interested in your story. Why are you not in school?"
I was moved to engage him calmly. I explained to him how I saw quicker success in the trajectory that I was taking than going to school.
"There is no alternative to education. I am rushing to get somewhere. Come and have my card. Call me at your leisure time and let's discuss," he took me to the spot where his Mercedes Benz was parked. He dipped his hand into the save on the dashboard and fetched his card and some were of Naira notes.
"My parting question for you is this," he turned to face me.
"Have you met a commercial driver driving this class of car privately? Pounder on that."
My jaws dropped as I watched him drive away. I checked the card an
The encounter was what made me turn a new leaf. "Someone did this to sponsor himself to school. I am now leaving school to do the same thing. I need to return to school," I told myself.
I kept in touch with Sam for years. The encouragement I got from him was top-notch.
"Whatever it takes to acquire education, do it. You will look back at today and thank God you took this decision," he told me on the phone.
Up till this moment, I am glad that I met Sam who was instrumental to me turning a new leaf and embracing education.
