Frank had been my friend for a very long time. The fact that he was way older than me wasn't a hindrance to our friendship. He said, he admired the way i was so keen to learn and also acknowledge ignorance and the zeal to learn when i didn't know.
"A peculiar trait lacking in most guys of your age". He said.
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The fact that my mind was really open and I always had ideas on matters that were way beyond my reach marveled him at times. When guys in his age bracket mocked him that he was hanging out with a boy young enough to be his son (sarcastically speaking), he always replied, "You guys are only older than Ben in age but in intelligence, he is old enough to be your grandfather."
I must confess as much as i felt really uncomfortable with his response, because it won't help his relationship with others, I couldn't help but admire how highly he thought of me.
This was the fifth time Frank had tried writing Jamb, he always passed though but admissions were never given to him, for reasons only the admission office would know.
I could remember how heartbroken he was that day, the look he wore on his face.
"So, i guess Jamb would be expecting you next year? I asked. At this rate, they should just reserve a seat for you."
That was a low blow from me though. Frank would have laughed at it on a normal day but the wound was still fresh and I just added salt to it. I have always been the sarcastic one. He found it funny other days and wondered how i thought about those weird remarks. But, this particular day, the look he gave me, I won't be so quick to forget it.
His eyes so red like one who had been scratching his eyes. The gaze was so intense that i could feel the hole in bore through me.
He stood up and walked out. For six days, he didn't speak to me. I apologized over and over again but he ignored me.
The day he finally spoke to me, he told me that I should go hang out with guys my age. I pleaded with him, but my pleas fell on deaf ears. I was heart broken because he was the only friend I had.
A year passed and he wrote Jamb again. I always knew what he was up to because his younger sister who was my age mate kept updating me about it.
As weird as it sounds, his sister and I became friends. Funny right?
Frank wasn't around to see it because a month after his previous admission attempt, he moved out of town to his uncle's house.
He finally came back and two weeks after his arrival he got an admission into the university. His sister came to my house as soon as she heard the news. Everyone was so happy for him. I saw him two days after and I congratulated him.
He was so happy that day like he heard the news five minutes ago.
"I know how happy you must be now and I understand how much this means to you"
"No Ben, you can't understand until you walk a mile in my shoes"
That day, like old times we hung out together. I knew deep down something had changed between us. A year apart created a rift between us.
I wasn't pained at all, because I got a better friend. Miriam was one to get angry and right there she would tell you her discomfort and try to resolve it there. Like her brother, she also loved it whenever i got sarcastic. This time though, I knew when to use it and when not to use it.
Frank was right. How happy he was that day, wouldn't be understood by anyone that hadn't walked a mile in his shoes. I finally understood it when i tried Jamb, I was given admission but the course i put in wasn't granted to me.
I tried the next year and the same thing repeated itself. I wasn't like Frank. He was adamant. He kept trying year after year till he got the course he wanted. I couldn't wait that long, two was enough for me.
There are some challenges no one would understand fully until they walk a mile in your shoes.
