Greetings!
I can remember it clearly; it was around 11 a.m. on one of the days in the middle of last month (July 2024). I had just finished washing and hanging the clothes on the line in the compound. I was in the bathroom having my bath when I heard a woman shouting and crying, "Success oooh! Success ooooh! My son ooh!" The voice was familiar—it was Mummy Success, a neighbor who has a small shop close to us. I kept imagining what could have happened because I was outside not too long ago. I quickly finished my shower, put on my clothes, and rushed outside to meet her.
She was crying and rolling on the floor, and some children, including her own, were around her, wanting to join in her crying.
"What happened?" I asked.
"Success ooooh! I just received a call that he had an accident and he's been admitted to the hospital," she responded, her voice a mix of cries and shouts. Upon hearing that, I was very shocked because the 17years old boy in question was outside washing the bike when I was washing clothes outside, and I couldn't imagine such a thing happening in such a short time.
As you might expect, she intensified her cries and shouts, because, according to her, the way the doctor explained it, Success was in a critical condition—and hey, this woman is pregnant. She didn't know what to do, or perhaps she knew and that was crying and shouting like her son was dead already. Lol
"Mummy Success, calm down. They only called to say he's admitted to the hospital, not that he's dead. So calm down, and let me find a way to reach out."
By then, other people had gathered, so I pleaded with them to stay with her while I went to the hospital to find out what was going on. There was no way I would have allowed her to go; she's pregnant, and anything could happen.
I rushed to the hospital and found Success sitting on the bed. Funny enough, he wasn't even on a drip. The nurses were busy stitching the wounds on his shoulder and cleaning the bruises on his forehead.
All I could say when I got there was, "Thank God!" because I had really thought the situation was as severe as it had been described. I quickly called Mummy Success to calm her down and told her that Success had only sustained minor injuries and that the person who collided with him had taken him to the hospital, which was why he was already receiving treatment. On the call, I could still hear her crying, which told me she didn't believe me. I had to go back and tell her myself. And guess what? By then, her husband, who was far away in another state, was already on his way, having started the journey because his wife had called him earlier.
Things like this happen—sometimes even more serious cases—but what matters is the manner of approach. Maybe I didn't handle it well enough, but I don't know what would have happened if I had allowed her to continue crying and shouting, or worse, if I had let her travel to the hospital in her condition, considering her 'heavy' state.
Thanks for reading.
This is my response to the #thoughtfulthursday prompt
Photo used is mine