Quarantine episodes
On days when Godwin was feeling copacetic, he allowed his serving boy Jude sit in the living room along with him and his guests. On bad days, Jude's face was buried behind dirty dishes and transparent glass cups that always managed to allow sticking alcohol lines in them. Somedays, he weeded the garden behind the house. The grass were nasty creatures and always sprang forth longer necks hours after Jude finished cutting them. Initially, Jude thought he was an inexperienced slayer of grass. Later, he assumed a diabolical diagnosis and concluded that the grass were filled with life and refuse to be subjected to the prowess of man. With time, he believed they would one day fall and go their own way.
On days when Jude sat in the living room, he was privy to the discussion between Godwin and his friends. In the years to come, when time was merciful enough to open the gates of memory to Jude, he would confess that these were the best moments of his life. In this happiness, he swore that time stooped and concentrated on them. These were the beautiful memories of 2020. He relished the moment when Godwin spike. A man with a fat voice that accommodated many books of the white men and politics. He often wondered why Godwin had not tried to take a chief tancy title. He was by far smarted in the ways of the world than the old chiefs in the village who had no standard three knowledge. Godwin was a learned man. He was the only person In Jude's family who spoke English differently. Jude will later come to learn that this was a variety of accent that the English language was capable of. When his mother introduced him to his Uncle Godwin, who wanted to take him to Lagos to resume school again. He wore a wrapper of scowl on his face that was buttoned by indifference and aggression. But after Godwin spoke a few words in English, Jude’s taut legs relaxed and his lips began to drag themselves close to his ears in an attempt to smile. After cash notes was given and pocketed, Jude left with Godwin to the city of Lagos. That was many years ago. Now he knew the stretch marks of civilisation and read books in Jude library even though they were wider and deeper than his standard three knowledge.
Jude did not leave his room whenever Ruth, Goodwin’s girlfriend was around. He didn’t hate her and he didn’t like her either. She was like a tree in the middle of a path that he knew existed but refused to acknowledge. In the past, Ruth had attempted to make a bridge between both their worlds but when she noticed that his palm kernel refused to break amidst her fervent knocks, she let things be. Ruth was religious and this prompted many arguments between her and Jude that resulted in broken tumblers and dislodged hinges on doors. Jude wished they would fight it out like men and establish a truce in the heat of the long breath taken after a fight. But instead, it was loud voices and louder sobs. This words crept into Jude's dreams and he dreamt about a tree in the middle of the forest that kept on dancing towards him.
Jude did not feel that he was old enough to be bothered about religion. He was fifteen and had a long life ahead of him. And so when Ruth suspected that Goodwin’s indifference was rubbing off on Jude, she tricked Jude into accompanying her to church. Ruth was catholic and attended a St.Peter’s Catholic Church in Ikeja. The church had a very large compound for people who rode cars and wanted to park them. Ruth and Jude had taken the BRT Transport and had walked only a few miles. When they got inside, Jude forgot to close his mouth as he stood amazed at the painting on the ceiling of the walls. Brush strokes of different colours of a man in red surrounded by twelve people who were all looking at him. Jude knew they respected this man just the way he respected Godwin. They were food on their plates but no one was bothered about the bread. Jude pondered about it and decided that no one was worth an empty stomach.
"They could have eaten and listened. Who knew if it was going to be their last supper?" He said.
He allowed his eyes to search other parts of the roof, the altars and the exorbitant clothing that the priest wore, the pews and even the floors. He saw something written on the pews and was murmuring to himself when Ruth read it aloud. That was the moment that he realized that she had been watching him, taking in his excitement and bemused at his amazement. The priest spoke in Latin and most of his words were inaudible. Jude found a hard time following Ruth as she stood up, knelt down, stood up again and went on her knees, rolled the rosary and recited a reply to everything the priest said. After the service, Ruth asked “So, How was it?”
“Uh"
“The service. How was it?”
“Nice. I enjoyed it" Jude lied. That was the last time he accompanied her to the church. Years later, he confessed to himself that indeed Godwin played a huge role on why he didn’t accept the holy communion of religion and swallow it whole. As awkward as that was, those were days when everyone lived without fear and sought confidence. And though it felt like Nigeria was crumbling down with terrorism, hunger and corruption, in the chambers of the discussion between Godwin and his friends, Jude felt invincible. The troubles of the world like were a flying eagle. Too high to hurt him. Far away. Far away or so it seemed.
Stars started breaking from the skies and falling in the sitting room in the months to come. No one accounted for this catastrophe and the repercussions exploded in every part of the home leaving behind shrapnel of regret and sadness. Jude was younger then but he knew that it was because of a sickness. At first, Jude was unconcerned because he knew that there was no sickness that Dibia Ogbuefi Nduka in his little village couldn’t send back with herbs and soil. And so one day, while Ruth and Jude were preparing dinner, Ruth attempted to rebuild a bridge again by telling Jude of how scared the virus made her and her worries about her family in the abroad.
“I think I should go to America. There are talks of the Government closing down airports and roads. Better safe than sorry”
Jude listened even though he understand only half of what she was saying. He whispered a silent prayer, cleared his throat vehemently and began “Aunt Ruth. There is a certain man in my village. Ogbuefi Nduka. He is a Dibia. You can meet him for production.” When he saw the still gaze of Ruth, he interpreted it as interest and continued in colourful enthusiasm. “There was a time that a crippled man was passing through our turn. Ogbuefi Nduka pitied him and gave him some herbs to chew. Two market days later, he returned to our town with two legs. He danced too" Jude, lost in nostalgia, forgot himself and did three steps before he stumbled to attention and kept on picking the uziza leaves. Ruth heaved a sign of pity and negation. She thought of throwing in a sermon of God, the devil and demonic powers. Instead she said “It is well. Thank you Jude".
The virus was spreading fast and still Jude couldn’t pronounce it till the day he heard Godwin say it to someone on the phone. Corona Virus. Ruth later travelled to America. They said her mother had the virus. In those days, Godwin spent more time in his study. He only spoke whenever Jude brought in tea. Even then. His English lacked flavour. Dull and bitter. The tension in the room rubbed itself against the dry curtains and sweaty conversations whenever Godwin's friends came around.
“I am sure this is politics. I do not disregard the fact that there are cases of corona virus in Nigeria. But I can bet my life that this stupid government people are politicising numbers. The cases are absurd" Melvin spoke with a thin but angry voice. He was always the clown of the conversation but today, he was no joker. He had just been laid off at work with a meagre salary of thirty thousand which he had spent mostly on Vodka.
Friday, the police officer spoke next. He was the only one in the group who spoke English slowly and quickly tuned to Igbo when his nuances were too deep for English to catch. “Why? Why do you think they will lie about the numbers when it will affect lives and security?”
“Why else? Because of Money. Money of course! More corona virus victims means more funds for your state. They have shared the palliative money amongst their greedy selves. The so called poor of the poor are still struggling. This is why I said that the Government is to blame for the robberies and not the people.” He drank his drink quickly and eyed Godwin. His eyes were daring Godwin to talk but his heart hoped Godwin would maintain the brood state that he had been all day. Weeks ago, when they were multiple robberies in Lagos and ogun state. Godwin and Melvin had gotten into a heated argument on who was to blame. Godwin said that people who had evil intentions were just looking for opportunities to utilize their barbaric and inhumane skills. This was no Robin Hood grievance. Melvin held his ground and affirmed that the government’s corruption resulted into corruption and unemployment which in turn caused people to take arms and rob. The other people in the room took no sides. They enjoying their sips and the different point of view. But today, only Melvin spoke. He was infected with something greater than the virus, fear of the future and hunger. More dangerous than any virus.
Minutes later, Godwin broke the spell of silence “Let us ask the doctor in our midst to remember the question mark from our answers"
Doctor Onyebuchi fickled with his glasses and drank the rest of his vodka in one swoop. He had been quiet during the whole conversation. He leaned in forward and peered through the glass to look at everyone in the room.
“What I must say now must not leave this room" He eyes everyone and buried his gaze on Jude. Godwin noticed and spoke hurriedly “I trust Jude. He is my boy"
“Okay" Doc said and drank a shot again “It is true what Melvin has said. There are lies in the numbers. A hundred is fifty and a thousand is five hundred.”
Melvin’s glass dropped and Jude hurried over to pack up the pieces. No one paid him any attention. Everyone’s attention was in Doc’s deep pocket of Government conspiracy theory.
“On Monday, they brought 35 people to my hospital. Some had corona. Some were mere cases of malaria. We were asked to treat them accordingly and promised huge allowances for secrecy. At night, I saw 81 cases instead of Perhaps 20 or 22.”
“Someone has to do something “Melvin whispered and regretted his foolishness immediately. “How much were you paid Doc?"
“Does it matter? I have been bought my brother. This is Nigeria.” With that, he filled his glass cup and drank another full glass of Vodka in one swoop.
Another star fell from the skies and landed right in the middle of the men. It exploded silently and left everyone quiet. Goodwin’s friends stopped visiting regularly and came once in two weeks. Not all of them came. They said Melvin had travelled to his hometown to join his father’s farming business.
The wold became flat in the weeks to come and when Godwin drank too many, Jude feared that he would stagger and slip off the face of the earth. It felt like the world had turned upside down and the buildings that once stood familiar now ran strange. When Godwin was sober, he took Ruth’s place in the kitchen and in the little chores. Perhaps he felt reconnected to her in experiencing the little things that she used to do. Godwin would break into an unscripted monologue frequently while he was alone in the living room. Stars fell mercilessly from the heavens. Each burn left longer scars that were difficult to forget. Jude had grown used to watching Godwin’s mouth flutter in a rhythm of endless and uninterrupted knowledge. He had once thought that knowledge gave one an invincibility cloak against anything, but the burden that the knowledge seemed to etch on Goodwin’s back left a burning dilemma in him. He watched the news highlight behind Godwin as he tracked cases and recoveries. And moved to call Ruth’s father to ask about Ruth’s condition and how fast she was recovering. Jude would stare at the white CNN newsman, with black hair who spoke too quickly for him to understand and too powerful that he commanded Goodwin’s state of mind. In the early days of May 2020, Ruth died of corona virus infection. Weeks later, Jude's mother came to Lagos to pick her crying child and take him back home as she pocketed the huge envelope that Godwin had given her.