Before yesterday, I hadn’t done anything that brought me regret this year, and the feeling of unrest I was having in the last 24 hours was quite overwhelming.
So I was called to come to work earlier than the normal time I usually report. You can just imagine how that made me feel. I woke up earlier than usual, hoping to finish early and beat traffic. And for me, beating traffic is a big deal because the drive to the workplace is about 10 minutes. But with traffic, I would have to spend about 35 minutes.
And I know someone would refer me to something I said sometime ago about liking to be in vehicles. Well, this is different. I do like being in vehicles, but it should be in motion. See the difference?
So yeah, I finished getting ready for work on time and then set off. Right before stopping a commercial car, I heard someone trying to call me. It started like “sssssss,” and I hate to hear such sounds from people because it’s mostly done by men trying to approach women. And I believe as a human being with manners, whether female or male, you can just approach someone politely and talk to them rather than just doing that.
So I didn’t really mind the person, but after some seconds, I saw a little girl behind me and realized she was the one doing it. Don’t forget, I was already angry at this point. I looked at her, and she went like, “Sister, please, can I ask you a question?” Without thinking twice, I just said no. I didn’t even say no; I shook my head.
And then a commercial car stopped right in front of me, so I entered. In that moment, I didn’t think about what had happened, but after some minutes, I began feeling guilty of my action. I thought of all the questions she probably wanted to ask me. Was she in danger? Did she need help? What did she want to know? She was in a school uniform, so did she need help going to school?
So many questions. Many questions. That was when I started regretting what I had done. Maybe I should have just listened to her. Maybe she really needed an answer. I thought for so long and decided to just say a word of prayer for her. I asked God to let someone give her the help or answers she needs since I obviously failed to do that.
I think this is definitely something I’ll remember and regret for a long time. And to be honest, I’m glad it happened because now I know to always give people, especially kids, a listening ear no matter how angry I am.
Dear little girl, I don’t know who you are or where you are from, but I’m sorry I couldn’t be there for you. But I hope my prayer got answered and you got whatever help you were looking for. I promise never to repeat such a thing ever again. Grow beautifully.
Images are mine