serendipity

".....sometimes the greatest discoveries are made in the most unexpected places and situations. All over the sciences, things have been discovered by people who weren't even necessarily looking for them. Take Newton for instance. All he did was sit under an apple tree. I'm pretty sure that was not his first time sitting under that tree. He must have picked the fruits underneath its branches before. But on that fateful day, a falling apple changed the course of his life and science forever. Or what about Archimedes who discovered that the mass of an object can be determined by the amount of liquid it displaces when partially immersed in that liquid. He found this out by just sitting in a bathtub. That wasn't his first bath, oh no! He must have had hundreds of bathes before that. But out of all the times he soaked, only one birthed the Eureka moment. There are many people throughout history who found answers in the least expected places. Men and women who discovered solutions where they were not looking. And there are those who while looking for one thing discovered something even more spectacular. One of such people is the man we will discuss in our next class; W.C Röntgen, the father of the X-ray. Why am I telling you all these things? I just want to encourage you today. You're scientists; remain curious, pry, think, ask questions, inquiry and who knows, someday might just be your eureka moment." The man who spoke was Mr. Maximillian; a teacher of Biology and Introductory Advanced Sciences in the popular Claymore Grammar School, CGS. CGS is a school whose reputation precedes it. Located in the heart of Knightsbridge, a city in Westminster London, the orange brick walls of that building was the alma mater of many. This was where the rich and influential; the ministers, members of parliament, captains of industries all brought their children to. Famous for its rich British-International curriculum, CGS was highly sought after and in fact became some kind of status symbol. From the snobbish kids, to the large sport facilities, CGS had all the ingredients for high school drama; drama that Mr. Maximillian had no interest in. "Do you have any questions?" Mr. Maximillian asked. "Finally..." muttered a student sitting at the backseat of the class Mr. Maximillian was teaching. "Ya, can you like…leave?" Said another student from the back of the class as a response to Mr. Maximillian's earlier question. At hearing the comment, there was an eruption of laughter amongst the students. Everyone seemed to find it funny except Mr. Maximillian and the few actually interested students in the front seats. You know, those students; the goody two shoes, teacher's pet types. The glasses wearing, question asking ones....yeah, those students. It is not that you hate them, it's just the fact that they can get a little too enthusiastic sometimes. These are the kind of students that remind the teacher about homework even when he did not ask. "Who said that?" Mr. Maximillian asked with his eyes staring in the direction from whence the voice came. The laughter ceased. There was a sudden silence in the class and an intense look in his eyes. So intense, it was palpable behind his glasses. Mr. Max was not the most strict teacher. He was easy going and rarely lashed out. Little wonder the shock in the face of the students at this sudden switch. This man did not even bother. In fact, most times he was unenthusiastic. It showed all over his face. The only time his countenance really lit up was when he was explaining some sciency stuff that really fascinated him. At these moments, his arms move wide in gesticulation, his voice increases in its pitch and his eyes light up with a spark. He was having one of such moments a few minutes ago when he told the Eureka story. Except for such moments, his poker face was what he wore all day. He was not always like this though. When he first came to Claymore Grammar School, he was so zealous. A fresh graduate of the prestigious Sardauna University, eager and ready to make an impact. He had this zest in his step and this spark in his eyes. But that was then; three years ago when there was still a little hope left in him. Unfortunately, the tax system of this country has a way of dashing hopes and killing dreams. "Well, let such nonsense not repeat itself. Am I clear?" Mr. Maximillian said with a sterness in his voice while still keeping the intensity of that stare. "Yes sir." The students responded in unison. "Now, any questions?" One of the serious students seated in front raised her hand. "Yes.." "What is the term used for this phenomenon?" "What phenomenon?" Mr. Maximillian asked with a splash of confusion on his face. "Finding what you are not looking for." "Oh, that…. Well, you can call it a coincidence. One might say fortuity or even a beautiful accident. I think I like the last one best. What do you think?" Mr. Maximillian said with a smirk on his face. He liked things like this. Students that actually care about learning. It reminds him about his student days, his earlier days when he still had that zest, that gusto for academia. The student smiled back then proceeded take her seat. Her name was Hauwa Shababa. She was one of the toppers in the class. Hauwa has always been a star student. From the moment she gained admission into CGS, she took the place by storm. She was a member of the chess club, the junior rotary team and one of the best students in her class. She was quiet and rarely spoke unless spoken to and on the few occasions when she did talk, her speech was eloquent and her diction superb. There was a way she spoke; the enunciation of her words that made you know she came from affluence. I mean, it's CGS, most of the kids here were practically born with silver spoons in their mouths. But there was something about Hauwa that made her stand out and no, it was not the fact that she did not have blue eyes and blonde hair like most of the other girls, it was not the chocolate-ness of her skin or the fact that she had her head wrapped in a scarf all day. It was something else; something less conspicuous, an aura you could say. There was just something about her that made her standout. "Any more questions?" Mr. Maximillian asked again but this time with a more relaxed look. His gaze moved from left to right like a periscope as he searched for raised hands, there were none. "In the absence of more questions, this brings us to the end of the class. As you know, you are now big boys and big girls and soon, I mean in less than no time at all, you will be taking your externals. I want you to take every single one of our classes seriously. Turn in your assignments on time and make sure you study the past questions. These things are not hard. Many have written it before you and many more will write it after you graduate. You can make it if you just put your mind to….." While Mr. Maximillian was still speaking, the bell went off; it was lunch break. The rowdiness returned. The class was filled with noise from the dragging of chairs against the floor, the continuation of gist that this lecture truncated and just that whole lunch break rush. The old Mr. Maximillian will have shushed them and continued with the advice but just like most of the final year students, a nonchalance has gripped this man. He took his glasses off his face and using the little, square, lilac piece of cloth that lay in the case, he cleaned both lenses before folding the arms and putting the glasses away. He closed the book that was laying on the table and put the eyeglass casing in the inner pocket of his suit. It was a Monday and the dress code of CGS demanded that all teachers dressed formally on the first work day of the week. As he prepared to leave the class, he looked up for a minute and caught a glimpse of the students. The boys sitting on desks with their feet on the chairs chatting about movies and girls, the girls with their cliques serving premium gossip and then there are the likes of Hauwa; the ones who keep to themselves. Looking at the quiet girl, Mr. Maximillian smirked lightly as he was reminded of his own days in high school. Just like her, he was a smart, serious student but unlike her he had friends and was a tad more outspoken. "Serendipity." A soft spoken voice said. At the sound of this word, Mr. Maximillian was brought back from his reminiscence. He turned towards the direction of the voice and there he saw the most wonderful thing. The lips that spoke were as beautiful as the speaker; jet-black hair made into braids that lay ever so gracefully on her left shoulder, smooth caramel skin and beautiful white eyes with light brown pupils. This woman was fine. "What do you…who?" Mr. Maximillian mumbled. "That's the word you were looking for." Replied the woman. "Oh, thank you. I will do well to add it to the list." Mr. Maximillian finally replied after a moment of awkward silence. In that brief moment of quietness, he used the opportunity to soak in the effulgence of beauty emanating from her face. The lady smiled as a reply to his witty response. They stood there in silence still looking at each other's faces. "Excuse me sir." Said a student who was trying to exit the door Mr. Maximillian was standing in front of. The student's permission seeking was the ice breaker the awkward duo needed. "Oh, of course, you're well excused. I think it's high time I left the class." Mr. Maximillian said with a light chuckle. "I am headed to the teachers' lounge." "Same here." "OK, let's go then." Mr. Maximillian replied even more awkwardly. The both of them walked side by side. During the first few steps the silence continued and then Mr. Maximillian finally garnered the courage to ask a question that had been on his mind since. "Sorry, but who are you?" "Oh, forgive my manners. I never introduced myself. My name is Ms. Vashti Ekubor and I'm the new Economics teacher." "Ahhh…welcome to Claymore Grammar School Ms Ekubor." Mr. Maximillian said with an exaggerated bow. "Why, thank you." Vashti responded with a slightly less exaggerated curtsy. They both laughed as they continued their walk to the teachers' lounge. "Ekubor, you're from Edo state right?" Mr. Maximillian asked. "Finally someone got the pronunciation right. I have heard all sorts of things today. Yes, yes I am; Auchi to be precise." "Ah, nice. I had a primary school from Auchi. The people there are predominantly Muslim." "Yes, there are. Danfodio somehow brought his jihad that far south." Vashti responded with a laugh; Mr. Maximillian laughed too. "So, I am guessing you're also Nigerian. What about you? What part of the country are you from?" She asked. "Me? Well, I'm a real Nigerian. I've got a bit of everything in my genes. My dad is Nupe from Niger state, mumsi is Igbo, her own mum is from Lebanon and from my dad's side, his daddy is actually fulani. The man just settled in Bida and somehow became Mai Angwa." Mr. Maximillian said with a light chuckle. "Wow, a real compatriot. At this rate, your face should be on a Naira note." Vashti responded. They both laughed. Whenever Mr. Maximillian explains his complicated family tree, he is always met with surprise and a reasonable one at that. Irrespective of the fact that Nigeria is praised as an epitome of peace and unity on the African continent, interethnic marriages are not very popular. The people of this nation are united under a common flag and currency but they are very far away from being "One people". With over 250 ethnic groups and 500 indigenous languages, most citizens of Nigeria are known for being very tribalistic. People still hold on very strongly to their ancestral lineages and cultures. Many are even of the opinion that the country should have never been created as it is simply an agglutination of many ancient kingdoms and empires many of which had fought battles in the past. The differences and divisions are just too much to handle. So, it is always very shocking when interethnic marriages occur, especially the kind in Mr. Maximillian's family. "You didn't tell me your name." "Oh, my bad. I'm Mr. Maximillian Okafor. I teach Biology and Introductory Advanced Sciences." "OK, cool. Its nice to meet your Mr. Maximillian. Wow, you have such an eccentric name." "So says the woman who was named after the rebellious queen in the book of Esther." "Touché." Vashti said smiling. "But I'm curious though. How did your parents come up with the name?" She asked. "Well, all I can say is, I grew up in the Catholic Church." Mr. Maximillian responded. "It can be a mouth full, I know. You can call me Mr. Max. That's what most students call me anyway." "Mr. Max, the science teacher. Has a nice ring to it. It feels like there should be some anti hero backstory to the name." "What do you mean?" Mr. Maximillian asked. "All I'm saying is that Mr. Max sounds like a comic book character; teacher by day; mad vigilante scientist by night. You probably use the robotics lab to create your advanced weaponry or suit." "What?!" Mr. Maximillian bursted out in laughter. "Come on, why are you laughing?" She asked, turning her head to look at his face as they walked side by side. "It sounds like a cool character." "Oh really, is that what you think?" Mr. Maximillian asked with a sarcastic undertone. He did not look at her as often as she did him. While she tried to keep eye contact, he only stole glances, looking at her face and looking straight ahead or at the tiles of the floor they walked upon. "Yes, I think it's a cool character and if an actual comic series was made about it, Mr. Max, the vigilante scientist, will be an instant hit." She said smiling. "It's a horrible idea." Mr. Maximillian said in uncontrollable laughter. "I feel you should stick to teaching economics and leave the superhero story telling to the guys at Marvel." "Ahhh" She gasped dramatically, spreading her right palm over her chest. "First off, that's an amazing character I just came up with and secondly, everybody knows DC makes the best superhero comics." "Excuse you!" Mr. Maximillian said, stopping and turning to look down at Vashti. She was about five feet eight inches, so his six one frame could easily tower over her. "I will have yyou know that Stan Lee is one of the greatest comic books created to have ever worked this earth. No one can compare.". "Are you kidding me?" Vashti asked. " You are going to pick Spider-man over the Caped Crusader and the Man of Steel?" "Yes, yes I will and with my full chest. For your information, Marvel is more than just Spider-man and your Kryptonian is overpowered and buried in plot armour. Don't even get me started on that unrealistic billionaire detective." "Unrealistic? I can't believe it. A Marvel fanboy calling DC characters unrealistic. Your characters don't even wear oxygen masks in space." Vashti said laughing. Mr. Maximillian was going to say something but instead he just stared at her and joined in the laughter. This was the most profound conversation he had had in a long time. Nothing work related or forced, just natural flowing back and forth banter. The day that had begun like every other boring, soul sucking one seemed to be something much more; a beginning of something beautiful perhaps? These were the thoughts that ran through Mr. Maximillian's mind as the duo continued their journey to the teachers' lounge.