The Hope of Ancestors
The
pregnant clouds outside kept out the sunlight. The morning was bleak and the
sky overcast. It was not surprising when the clouds gave birth to heavy
droplets of water which hit against the rusty zinc. Clink! Clink! The weather
outside opposed my mood, yet I was happy. It was the morning my ancestors and
my generation had waited for. I was the one. I was to recover lost hope
although the weather demanded laziness; I was in the mood to work. I was
joyful, hopeful and felt the strength that would enable me to move mountains.
Generations had fought before the fight I was to fight to bring back respect
and hope to my family. “Honey, will I pass?” I asked my wife, who was
still half asleep on the bed beside me. “Yes, of course you must,”
she replied. It was one of those precocious flairs. I had developed as a result
of my humble beginning: I could weather the weather whatever it was, whether I liked
it or not. Could I do it this morning?
I arrived
at the examination centre early that morning. I sat and watched my
“opponents.” The examination began. Everything was anxious except me
– I was confident. I knew that I should pass; I must. Throughout the five hours
that the exam lasted everyone looked into the eye of whomever they could. In
those eyes was the look of dare. Those examinations decided your destiny, your
fate. So in that room friends became enemies. Only one person would get through
to study law; one of about seventy persons. I fought the battle with the
papers. I demanded that post. Duty demanded it. It was like salvation to the
sinner. It was like food to the starving man. Poverty was nothing anyone
desired. You could be free yet incarcerated because of poverty. That exam was
the verdict. The post was for the person who wanted it the most.
Ting-a-ling-a-ling! The bell signaled the end of the battle. I had fought it
well.
Two months later, I sat in my living room.
The result would be communicated via the telephone. It was the day of
reckoning. Who wanted it more? I sat with the phone in my hand. My heart was
beating: thump! I thought my wife could hear it. My children sat with my wife
and I on the bed. The phone was to ring anytime now. There was a deafening
silence. We were all nervous. Instead of rain today however, the sun blazed in
the blue skies above. It was element weather. Was it signifying success or was
it failure? I did not know, we did not know. All they knew and I know was that
our life depended on it. I suddenly remembered the vows I had made on my
wedding day. If I failed, would we have to get a divorce?” For better or
worse…! I was nervous. Ring! Ring! The phone rang once. It rang again. That was
it.