The night I checked my NYSC posting, I felt the unmistakable bubbling of fear in my chest. Sokoto. Eighteen hours away from home. I’d always read Sagittarius was the zodiac sign of travelers, but as I stared at my phone screen, the weight of that distance sank deep into my stomach. The farthest I’d ever been from home was a four-hour school trip to Ibadan. And now, here I was, tasked with traveling alone to the far northern edge of the country.
My parents were speechless when I broke the news. We sat together in tense silence, the reality setting in. The roads to Sokoto were notorious, stories of kidnappings and armed robberies played in the back of our minds. Even if I left at dawn, I’d still arrive in the dead of night. The thought alone was terrifying. But once NYSC calls, you either answer or risk forfeiting your service year, and no one knew what penalties that might attract.
We devised a plan: split the journey. Akure to Abuja—six hours. I’d spend the night at a friend's, then head to Sokoto the next morning for the final 12-hour stretch. Simple enough, right? Except, nothing about Nigerian travel is ever simple.
The first leg was smooth, Akure-Abuja. I stayed at my friend's place for the night, woke up before dawn, and got to the park by 5 a.m., ready to leave early. But the driver had other ideas. By 8 a.m., after countless delays, we finally left Abuja; myself and a group of other freshly recruited corp members headed to camp as well. I clenched my teeth, realizing my “no night travel” rule had already been tossed out the window.
Two hours in, the bus broke down. Thankfully, we weren’t stranded in the middle of nowhere, but frustration brewed as the driver silently took off all the way back to Abuja to fetch a mechanic. Four hours gone. My stomach churned as I recalculated: we’d arrive at midnight. And just when I thought it couldn’t get worse, someone mentioned Zamfara’s 6 p.m. curfew. My heart sank.
We entered Zamfara at 5:55 p.m. Relief was short-lived. Instead of heading toward the state capital, the driver veered off course. My fingers tightened around my phone as I tracked our route on the map. “Maybe it’s a shortcut,” I told myself. But it wasn’t. Summoning my courage, I called him out. He turned back without explanation, but my mind raced with dark possibilities. why would he do that? Did he have an ulterior motive? Anyway, we never found out or bothered to interrogate him because we were soon faced with another challenge.
We got to a military checkpoint, the soldiers stopped us. “Park here for the night,” one of them ordered. My stomach dropped. We alighted, stretching stiff limbs and trying to lighten the tension with small talk when the unmistakable crack of gunfire shattered the night.
Instinct kicked in, I dropped to the ground. My dad’s advice rang in my ears: “Lie flat when you hear gunshots.” Trembling, I pressed myself into the dirt. Soldiers rushed over, instructing us to turn off every light and stay in the bus. That night, sleep was a foreign concept. We sat in darkness, praying the terror would pass.
When dawn broke, the nightmare continued. The car wouldn’t start. Another mechanic. Another delay. By the time I reached camp, I was a shadow of myself, spending three days recuperating in the camp clinic.
Fast forward to my most recent ordeal—a trip back to Plateau state, where I’d relocated. A 12-hour journey turned into a 24-hour saga, complete with yet another vehicle breakdown at 2 a.m. Imagine pushing a bus in the middle of nowhere, AT 2 A.M!!! Every nerve in my body screamed, “Why me?”
You see, fear has a way of humbling you, making you grateful for life’s fragility. And honestly, traveling has taken more than just time from me. It’s drained my energy, tested my sanity, and forced me to confront fears I never knew I had. But despite the horrors of these journeys, I hold onto gratitude—for life, for health, for journey mercies and for sanity coz, I almost craze! Lol. One thing I definitely realized is that, others haven’t been as fortunate, and that thought alone keeps me grounded.
And to answer the question, if there’s one thing that would make this year truly beautiful for me, it would be finding balance in my life—physically, emotionally, and mentally. After enduring the chaos of these journeys, I crave stability.
That’s why, in 2025, my focus will be on cultivating a life of gratitude and taking deliberate steps to avoid long-distance travel ever again. Honestly, I’ve had enough—I no dey do again!
Thank you for reading.
All images in this article are mine
NAIJA GLOSSARY
Sokoto- a state in Nigeria
Ibadan- capital city of Oyo state in Nigeria
NYSC- a mandatory service year for all Nigerian youths
Akure- capital city of Ondo State in Nigeria
Abuja- capital city of FCT in Nigeria
Zamfara- a state in Nigeria
Plateau- a state in Nigeria
craze- go crazy
I no dey do again- I'm done
Posted Using INLEO
