ATURDAY NIGHTS WITH SPARKS
DIARY OF AN EKAETTE IN LAGOS (PART 002)
It’s your favourite girl….EKAETTE 1 of SHEFFA!!!!!!!!! And that is how a keke driver would have disgraced me!!! *deep sigh* Iyammi!!! Keke!!!!!!!
So I left home…as early as 6:30am…I know in your eyes…that is quite late, but I’m still adjusting mehn!! I carried myself, clutched my handbag firmly, wore my wig (yes wig!!!!!!!!!) and deep purple lipstick…guys pls stop drooling!!!!
I crossed halfway to the other side of the road, and stood on the middle convert waiting to cross over completely. Ahhhh!!!! Almost 5 minutes and I could not move an inch. It was almost like my village people told Lagosians that Formula 1 is taking place on my street. By this time, another lady had joined in my dilemma….naso we stand ooooo.
Out of nowhere, one guy just parked his keke in the middle of the road and jumped out, stopped the traffic and started moving towards us like a warrior. See, my spirit left my body to heaven. I kept repeating in my heart…”my case is different”. You know people had put so much fear in my heart about Lagos, so everybody on the road is a suspect to me.
In my heart I was saying….”Uncle please forget the packaging, if you turn me upside down, it’s my sterling diary and pen that will fall out…plus spare slippers…please don’t be deceived”. The guy was still coming like a giant. Then he started calling out bus stops for his keke…that is when it dawned on me that he was trying to help, not harm me. He took a crazy and different approach. He stopped traffic completely on our behalf and helped us crossover….all in a bid to enter his own keke.
The NORMAL approach for keke drivers is to park by the side of the road and patiently wait for us to cross over…….or better still, join a line of keke drivers at the beginning of the street to “load” passengers, but NO!! He took INITIATIVE…broke protocol…adopted the AGILE way of life…to offer efficient service. This was enough to make me join his keke.
I was thrilled beyond my imagination. Lagos is not bad after all.
As a Chemical Engineering graduate, former Immigration Officer and present day banker…..and most importantly, a foodie, I hide behind my pen…….therein lies my strength. I hope to pursue a career in writing and explore the world of poetry. So help me God.