Echoes of my youth

Chapter seven

Fredrick Wilson. that's my name. Am a man in his middle age, getting to forty in six months time. And for the past twenty years since I ran away from home, I haven't fathom a way forward, I didn't even know what happened to my parents, or my siblings.

Last time I heard my father suffered a stroke due to excessive blood pressure and he died.i didn't even have the chance to say goodbye. I know he always wanted to see me grow, but I failed him, he died looking for me.

Nobody knows where I am. My world went crumbling the day I was expelled from seminary school. I stayed in one of the neighboring town, serving as a house boy or car washer to various rich people.

After that incident, my mum's attitude totally changed, it was either I was given separate food from my siblings, or I was maltreated. My father was hurt, I understood that. but he always called me to his side when ever he returned from work. I could tell, he was sad when I ran away from home. He truly loved me.

The day I ran away was just like other days, my mum had invited a certain pastor, a white garment prophet if I may say, That day she didn't go to work, and she never informed my father of the man's visit, I think she didn't. All my siblings had all left for school.

"Fredrick, come outside here immediately " my mum commanded

I was always scared because she would beat me to stupor due at every slight chance.

I came out immediately to see my mum with the prophet and his band of prayer warriors.

Immediately he laid his eyes on me, he screamed on the top of his voice

"Kill him, kill him "

I was so scared that I went back into my hiding place.

My mum in her wicked state of mind, grabbed me out and gave me a heavy knock.

"Do you think a witch is suppose to live" she said to me immediately.

I was immediately circled by the prophet and his prayer warriors and they started chanting some crazy prayers that I could take in.

My mum just stood there watching me, the prayers took one hour if am not mistaken. then they stripped me of my clothes and took me outside, and started pouring Holy water, if it was truly a Holy water. During this exercise, they kept on cursing me with death curses.

"You will die"

"You're supposed to die"

"You foul spirit of the kingdom of darkness "

When I try to run away from the circle, I would be kicked back, The embarrassment was bad. it gathered crowd and I wasn't ready for the shame.

"Is Daddy aware of this?" I asked myself

"He wouldn't allow such thing to happen to me"

Am just a victim, Why can't my mum help me.

After that so call cleansing, Two of the male prayer warriors lifted me up and turned me upside down and the prophet brought out a cane and started wiping me mercilessly. My voice could be heard from Miles away.

What took me back was that my mum partake in the beating, she was always laying curses on me, calling me a bastard, telling the crowd that I was a witch.

After the exercise, they left me helpless on the ground.

Do you know that my mom left me and went to work, I took it as a sign that I was disowned. She locked the house and I was starving, because I had to stay outside till an odd hour.

The wounds I had were on my back which was so deep, my face due to heavy handling from my mum, prophet and his bands.

The crowd had reduced immediately my mum left for work.

"why's she heartless "

"is she really his mother"

"what's wrong with this woman, she couldn't even nurse his wounds, is he the only witch before "

"that's so cruel of her"

"The Bible said suffer not a witch to live, he shouldn't be living"

Those were the words I could hear from passersby, one of our neighbors, A dry cleaner, with his wife took me in and nurse my wounds, gave me food and washed my dirty cloth.

They also offered me kind words of encouragement, am sorry but I wasn't myself.

The five people who I accused wrongly had resumed their schooling activities. while here I was a school dropout. The little child that I always saw in my dreams had stopped showing up, Guess he's aware of the chaos on ground.

When those wonderful couple had given me food and I ate, They prayed for me asking God for his mercy on my soul. Guess that was enough for me. My father would be so furious if he heard of what happened to me.

I had told the couples that I was going to get something at the store, that was a perfect time to escape. GOD that day was a day I want to forget entirely.