Usually Hoffers Greenfield was the last soul to leave the restaurant; most times he would be the first to leave after he must have balanced the financial records with the account department.Gratefully, I brazed myself for running down to the restaurant fast enough. And once I saw his black Rolls Royce still elegantly parked at the garage I gave an appreciative nod confirming his presence; the run was worth.I was in his office now, squatting, gasping and catching my breath after running more than two hundred meters.“What is it, Brian Patrick? What are you still doing here? I thought you have left for home? What happened?” he hounded me with tons of questions as I shut my eyes still catching my breath.“Boss…Boss…” my voice broke out and then I sucked back my breath to speak yet further, “Boss my family is in deep mess,” I intoned finally and wiped mu sweating face, “I just returned now to see my father and our property outside and the house locked by our landlord.”Hoffers raised a
When I paced down to father, I met him snoring and lying carelessly on the cold ground with a sizeable bag serving as pillow. Through the flash of lightning I could see his teary face and I could tell the baldy had dried up his tears gland with weeping and gnashing of teeth.I controlled my wailing as I wept under my breath, daring not to arouse his sorrowful countenance again. Spring wasn’t friendly. The cold misty wind often blew at us with the shivering effect really scary. I gazed upon father and our property and wondered how much of such ruins would befall us.I thought I wasn’t going to stay up all night but as soon as my eyes became heavy, a striking, clapping sound of thundering broke out and without gross hesitation a heavy down pour ensued. I flinched and father did same but with at a quicker pace.“It is raining!” I murmured and lost in my gloom; whether to tend to my father or our property. I glanced around and there was no shelter at eyeshot. We were stranded in the dark
The wedding ceremony between Melissa Fanny and Zion Don, son to the world richest man, Saint Don was an embodiment of wealth showcase. Rio Hondo was on total shut down, as all the billionaires and tycoons from all walks of life honored the invitation in a remarkably flamboyant manner.On our side, as the Food Vendors that would host the refreshment, Chairman Hoffers Greenfield made a tailor-made jumpsuit for all his staffers. Earlier in the week, when I was piling and unloading the packs of food I would deliver to residents, I had seen the POS slip of money credited to Hoffers Food for the intercontinental recipe that would be served at the wedding ground.Ten million dollars worth of English intercontinental refreshment!The POS was bearing Saint Don as the creditor.Saint Don! Indeed he was the world richest man and countless times I had wondered how fortunate Zion Don was to be the heir to the Saint Don Group. Zion Don had enormous wealth at his disposal and this was the reason th
The wedding ceremony between Melissa Fanny and Zion Don gathered so many guests that its resultant effect was the tons of packaged food waiting to be delivered at various destinations. My broken heart couldn’t let me focus on my duty throughout the reception.Whereas other staff manned their duty post and rendered services, I was outside, tucked away behind a large fig tree and sobbed to the last tone in my breath. I couldn’t stand my wife being taken as bride. That was gross. This was the height of it!By the time the wedding ceremony had come to an end and staff whose duty were perfectly rendered dispersed, I was faced with this tons of deliverables that must get to various homes today.“This is the reason I never wanted to employ you as my delivery boy,” Chairman Hoffers Greenfield chirped as he gazed upon this offensive tons of packaged food to be delivered, “What were you doing during the wedding? Were you asleep when this packs of food piled up to this height? The guests have be
Pamela Patrick, a Sister, a Friend, a Mother, 1956-2023:I couldn’t stop reading those lettering engraved on her grave as I stood motionless with a bouquet of flower firmly held in my hand and my gaze lowered on her beautiful picture. Quickly I wept from the lag of my heart. I was guilty of this sin. With trembling hands I dropped the flower and returned to the recess of my broken heart. Would I ever forgive myself for being unable to provide her medical bills?Each time I dared to speak, I choked on my words and I ended up sobbing and wiping endless warm tears that burnt my cheeks. The death of my mother had opined in me that I was indeed an embodiment of poverty. I had only one option; provide the hospital bills and she would live for me yet I could. I had only come to agree with my fate in that if her bills were to be a thousand dollars I would have also disappointed her.Just then he appeared by my side and interrupted my thought- father. He had wept so bitterly that his eyes were
The chilly wind of spring flushed across my body in the middle of the night and I wouldn’t have noticed the misfortune that had befallen father if I hadn’t heard the deep-throated noise of father throwing up by the corner. He was throwing profusely.My lip curled.At the time my eyes burnt with unsatisfied sleep as I rubbed my eyes to confirm my sight. It was actually father, even when I dared to doubt the figure throwing up in the dark a contrary voice said otherwise.“Father! Father!” I called as I peered at him while I advanced to the corner. “Father! Are you there?” Horror hung over me as I wondered if he was going to spew out his intestines; the throwing up couldn’t stop and didn’t seem like something that would stop soon.It was still late and the entire dark silent street churned my imagination. It was obvious father had caught the flu. For more than two months we had slept out in the cold; the spring and rain fell on us; the dew had our frail, skin as its destination. I stare
I couldn’t believe I just lost my job at Hoffers Foods some minutes ago. I went to source for loan but I got a sack letter instead. Ill-luck? Father had told me I was full of ruins failure and ill-luck. Now I just confirmed it. I was a bloody disaster that was about to happen.This could be the reason nobody wanted to associate with me. It was conspicuous in my life that I was an embodiment of failure and poverty. Father was dying; I had lost the panache to return to the ruins I created. How would I behold my father with my eyes while he died like a kitten? I sniffed dropped on the floor and felt like taking my life.Jaded!What was I living for? Of what use was this worthless world to me without the three lovely people in my life? The only job that put food on our table had been taken from me like hawk stealing away the chick from its mother hen. And with the flu that had engulfed father, I argued if there would ever be a light at the end of the tunnel.I had lost the enthusiasm to r
Rio Hondo Bridge would be the perfect site for suicide. I had heard of Rio Hondos that committed quietly suicide on the bride and never survived the strokes. It was the tallest bridge in the southeast Rio.Measuring over fifty thousand meters vertically and running into the depth of the ocean with over fifty thousand meters, it would take the expertise of talented divers to find the corpse of anyone that fell therein. And that was the perfect site for me. I didn’t want anyone to discover my corpse. I wondered who would be interested in the corpse of a poor delivery jaded boy that breathed misery.No one knew my intention. Once father’s corpse was deposited at the morgue, I quietly sneaked out and started making towards the Rio Hondo Bridge. I wasn’t scared of death, and I didn’t think any of us were scared of death; we were only scared of the strokes of death.These strokes of suicide were going to be peaceful, gentle, hidden and unmemorable. I wasn’t a good swimmer so falling over a