"Look at Tega studying so hard even when his father did not have money to send him to school," Bayo said with a teasing smile on his face to his gossip partner Chris as they walked towards Tega, who was sitting outside their house on a bench studying one of the science textbooks given to him by Corper Shina.
Corper Shina is a male corper posted to Tega's village for his one-year youth service. He had been of great help to Tega since he came to the village, as Tega made known to him his intention to further his education but had to stop due to the incapability of his parents.
"Scholar Tega, well done, the doctor himself," Chris said jokingly.
Bayo and Chris were Tega's childhood friends and classmates during junior secondary school. They were privileged to further their education in senior secondary school while Tega wasn't, which made them exclude themselves from being Tega's friends, and they always make fun of him whenever they see him reading. Tega once discussed his dream of being a well-known surgeon in the country and all over the world with them when they were still together as friends.
"Good afternoon, and thanks for the compliment. How may I help you?" Tega answered politely.
"Help us as if you are the one that needs help now, or do we look like we need help? From the look of things, you are in need of help more than we do," Bayo replied rudely.
"We are now in SS2, we will be graduating from senior secondary school next year and will be furthering into the university, so can you see you needed the help more because you've not even started SS1 yet? You still have a long way to go," Bayo concluded.
"I know, and thanks for reminding me. Can you please leave now? As you can see, I am studying, and you both are disturbing my reading," Tega said calmly.
"Okay, scholar, we will be on our way; keep dreaming," Chris said as he laughed hysterically with Bayo as they left.
Everything Bayo and Chris said got to Tega, and he was disheartened to hear his so-called friends talk down on him. He closed his book and went inside. Throughout that evening, he wasn't himself, as everything his friends said to him was playing vividly in his head. His mother noticed the change in his mood but decided to let him maybe snap out of it. Dinner was served, but Tega couldn't eat; rather, he went into his room silently.
Tega's father is a commercial driver who is working under someone as an employee, while his mother is a petty trader who makes her earnings from the little provisions she sells. After dinner, Tega's mom went to his room and met him in tears, crying profusely. His mother was shocked to meet him in that condition; at first, she thought he didn't like the food that was being prepared.
"Tega, my dear son, what happened? What could be the reason behind your tears? Talk to me, my son," Tega's mom said, patting him on the back.
"Mom, I can see my dream getting washed away into the drain right in front of me. When will my dream come to reality?" Tega said, still in tears.
"My dear son, I understand you perfectly; it's about your schooling, right? I'm trying my best to raise money, and so is your father; we are not relenting, my dear," Tega's mom said, wiping Tega's tears with her palm.
"Bayo and Chris made fun of me earlier today because I couldn't further my education. They talked down on me, mom; that got to me badly. I am losing hope, mom; I am," Tega further explained to his mother.
"Don't see it that way, my dear; see it as they are reminding God to speed up the process; don't lose hope, please." Tega's mother encouraged him and pacified him to come eat his food, which he did and later went to bed.
Later that night, Tega's mother explained to her husband that he felt bad that his son had to go through that because of his inability to sponsor his education. And that night, Tega's parents decided to do whatever it takes legally to send Tega back to school to further his education.
The next morning, Tega's father called Tega and told him to worry less and that he would forward his education and be whoever he wanted to be. This made Tega happy, and that encouraged him to study harder. Tega always visits Corper Shina in the afternoon for coaching on physics, chemistry, biology, mathematics, and the English language. Corper Shina was doing this for Tega selflessly, as he saw Tega's passion for education.
"I will have to speak with your parents about your education; what are they doing about putting you back in school?" Corper Shina asked Tega after the day's teaching.
"They assured me that I would go back to school soon; my dad told me that this morning," Tega said happily.
"I'm glad to hear that, but all the same, I want to have a one-on-one conversation with them, and that is in your favor because you are too brilliant to be wasting away like this. Are you done? Let's go to your house," Corper Shina said to Tega.
On getting to Tega's house, the house was empty; his mother is not back from the market yet, as his father has come home a bit late.
"I will have to come back next time, but till then, make sure to study harder than ever before. Don't relent, okay, and very soon you will be back in school," Corper Shina said to Tega as he took his leave.
Tega sat outside as usual, going through what he was thinking today when he was lost in his own thoughts, imagining himself as a renowned surgeon with his name all over everyone's lips. He was smiling until his mom hit him with the little stick in her hand, as she had been watching him smile for a while.
"Oh, mom, welcome, ma," Tega said as he prostrated and collected the bag his mother was holding.
"I have been standing here for a while; you didn't notice because you were busy smiling. What were you imagining?" Tega's mom asked him.
"I saw myself where I've always dreamt to be, with my name on everybody's lips. Mom, I can't wait for that time to come," Tega said happily.
"It will surely come to pass. Let me prepare dinner before your dad returns; if not, this house will be hot tonight. That man loves food more than anything," Tega's mom said jokingly.
"Mom, Corper Shina came home with me today to see you and dad, but you weren't around, though he said he would come back later," Tega explained to his mom.
"I hope there's no problem; I hope you've not misbehaved with him," Tega's mom asked, slightly worried.
"You should trust your son; I don't cause trouble," Tega replied to his mom.
Tega continued his coaching with Corper Shina, unaware to him that his mother had taken up several jobs aside from her petty trading to gather enough money together with her husband's quota to put Tega back in school.
Corper Shina advised Tega's parents to enroll him in Jamb and SSCE (senior secondary certificate examination) coaching so that he could write his secondary school leaving certificate examination and pursue his dream, which they did. Luckily for Tega, he wrote his joint admission matriculation board examination (jamb) and secondary school final examination the following year with Chris and Bayo. They were surprised to learn about Tega's new development because they had written him off completely.
Tega's result for the examination came out beautifully, and this time Corper Shina was about to round up his one-year program. While waiting for admission to a higher institution, Tega also took up some jobs that he was doing pending that time so that he could support himself and his parents. Yet, Chris and Bayo were making fun of him because they knew it would be a bit difficult for him to gain admission into the higher institution due to the expenses. In the midst of this, Tega didn't lose faith; he kept on believing and working harder every day to gather enough money to further his education. Just when Chris and Bayo thought it wouldn't be possible for Tega, he got admission to the federal university.
With the help of Tega's parents and the new friends he made in school with Corper Shina, who had become more or less like Tega's elder brother, Tega was able to pull through the hard times he faced in school in his journey to pursue his dream as a surgeon. He studied medicine at the university and wishes to further his career by specializing as a surgeon. His dream is on the verge of fulfillment, and that was because he didn't give up even when everything seemed like it wasn't going to work out as expected.
Thanks for your time, and your comments will be appreciated.
