While rummaging through old stuff in our store room as the tradition has been in the family every end of the year. We bring out stuff we don't need again and give it away to people who might need it and set the ones not needed ablaze. I felt my hands brush through a metal object in the big Ghana must go bag hidden in the corner.
Intrigued at what it might be, I carefully unpacked the bag, leaned in and pulled out the old, rusty makeshift lamp Papa had made for me years ago. The wires were rusted and the bulb broken, but the memories it held were still intact.
I looked up to Papa from my end of the room and asked.
"Papa, do you remember this lamp?"
He turned, and when his eyes caught the old monument, he smiled. "Ahhh, your lamp. You were always scared of the dark*.
I nodded my head and laughed while repeating after him "I was always scared of the dark. How time flies". I paused, the makeshift lamp still nestled in my hands. "But you found a way to make me feel safer," I retorted.
"I had to. You were barely sleeping at night." Papa mumbled from his end.
With the lamp in hand, I found an old chair in the room and sat on it. Memories of my life as a kid who was always scared of the dark flooded my mind. Then, I can't sleep with the lights off. To me, they had to be monsters under my bed and behind my curtains that would attack me in the darkness and swallow me whole.
I smiled as I remembered that night I had woken up in a dark room. The power company had cut off the light while I slept. I could still hear my tiny voice screaming at that odd hour of the night.
"Papa! Papa!" I screamed, my tiny voice echoing in the dark
In a flash, I heard Papa's footsteps running down the hallway to my room. His flashlight in one hand and his Ankara wrapper wrapped across his waist held tight with the other hand.
"Marriott, what is it? Are you okay?" He asked.
'I can't see anything. The monsters will attack me" I cried, throwing myself into his arms.
Papa took a deep breath, then he held me back and said, "Darkness is just the absence of light. There are no monsters", he said, flashing his light around the room to prove that to me.
My eyes followed his light confirming what he said to be true, yet I wasn't satisfied with it. "Please sleep in my room this night." I pleaded, holding him tight.
I watched as Papa contemplated a little before sitting at the edge of my bed. "Alright," he said, then proceeded to lay beside me in my tiny bed. I held him tightly and buried my face in his body. I felt safer that way. Papa's presence made me feel safe.
Few days later, I walked into Papa handcrafting a metal lamp in our backyard. It was an almost rusted metal with two batteries attached to it. It looked weird but caught my attention.
"What are you doing Papa?" I found my innocent self asking while I tugged at Papa's feet. My curiosity spiked.
"Building a lamp", Papa replied with a smile.
"For who? Us?"
Papa still had that smile on his face. "For you," he replied, looking down at me.
He flicked a switch and a dim golden light flickered to life.
I stared at it with so much interest "It's beautiful", I said.
"It is meant to keep you safe?" Papa replied, tightening the last knob on it.
"From the darkness monsters?" I asked. I've always been that inquisitive kid.
"Yes. So you don't have to fear anymore." He added.
I hugged his legs tightly. "Thank you, Papa", I said and jogged my way out of the backyard into the house. I was going to tell Mum and my siblings of my newest acquisition. Thanks to Papa.
That lamp became my most prized treasure. It never left my side at night and I made sure to flick it on whenever the lights went out and the darkness came. Although it twitched at times, knowing that it was specially made by Papa to keep off the dark monsters made me feel safe.
I was brought back to reality by Papa's voice asking me to help him carry a bag outside.
I looked from the tiny lamp in my hands to Papa then I walked towards him.
"But did you really have to go through that stress to make this lamp?" I asked.
"My duty as a father is to keep you safe". He grunted as we picked up the bag from the floor together. "Didn't you feel safe then?" He asked. Then we quickly carried the bag towards the door.
"I did. In fact, knowing it was specially made by you was everything I needed to be safe".
He smiled at me "I hope one day you'll do the same for your kids"
I nodded. "I will. I sure will" I replied.
