Living Souls: A Teenager’s Pursuit for Glory

By Eugy Enoch

In 'Living Souls', Enoch writes a brilliant story of Daniel, a young Nigerian boy, who relentlessly pursues glory, but at what cost?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Publiseer Publishing
• Release date: Aug 23, 2017

Book preview

AUTHOR

DEDICATION

To all who aspire to rise above what it is. To all who gave me a helping hand. Gain for pain and Glory for nuts; I therefore present this timeless dedication to those that aspire to win in the chase for glory.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I would sincerely like to thank all who gave me unflinching support towards the development of this piece; financiers and all. Sincerely, this project was born by an author who has tried to relay a true-life inspired story in this wonderful teen piece.

PROLOGUE

‘Daniel has had a fair share of life’s problems.

First, he lost his parents same day in an auto accident at the tender age of Nine his uncle came to pick him up from school that day instead of his mother who did that more often and taken to his house instead of his own father’s house.

‘The news of his parents’ death was told him three days after.

Daniel watched as his parents were buried the same day and he was as helpless as he could be. His age did not help matters too. Daniel had problems in elementary school which nearly tore him apart. He performed poorly and had a problem identifying color sets perfectly and had a false ulcer history, all these with the death of his parents in one day in an auto accident and being the only child of his parents was a burden on his neck.

Daniel could feel he had a big burden on his neck. His only succor was his talent of fine and applied arts and his succor in people he found in his uncle’s family; his new foster family and his friend in elementary school — Alfred.

He and Alfred grew up as friends and although Alfred gained admission into the university before Daniel due to his having to repeat a class in elementary school due to poor performance after the death of his parents which he got over with the help of his uncle’s family.

Daniel and one of his uncle’s son Lucas gained admission into the same university with Alfred. He and Alfred got admission to read Fine and Applied Arts as well, and Lucas to study computer science.

Daniel is happy and a bit surprised that the room he is posted to in the school hostel is Alfred’s’ room. The two continue their friendship in the school. Things go on smoothly in the hostel until Martina a hostel mate is shot and killed by some group of assailants who belong to a notorious cult group in the school and who are also students in the school. The police swing in. Not deterred, though, Daniel looks forward to setting up a foundation that will cater for single parents and orphans in the society.

Daniel attends an event organized on National Holiday, where he meets Michelle, a damsel that created another spring of emotions within him. And more importantly, Sir Pisa, one of the renowned artists in town who puts him through the path of fame and who sets him on the path to realizing his dream; to help people who are  in his kind of past, connect with his kind of future.

1. EARLY CHILDHOOD DAYS IN RETROSPECT

Hurry up Daniel! Daniel’s mother yells softly from the living room where she had gone to pick up a file she had left on the dining table after she fell asleep when treating them the previous night. She had been preparing the budget for her department, the sales department at Buck & Fins Ltd, a stationery manufacturing company situated at about 3km from the flat she shared with her husband and only child, Daniel, when she fell asleep and left the papers on the table to come back to finish work on them early in the morning.

Daniel! She yells again and walks up to Daniel’s room, and says to him you don’t want to keep me and your father waiting for long, we have to drop you off at school and then your father would drop me off at work today, and he will still have his work to meet up with. She looks on at Daniel who appears moody and not yet ready for school and says to him with disappointment in her eyes what is it, sweetheart? You cannot keep your father and me waiting for long. If you don’t get dressed soon, you would be late for school and your father and I would be late for work and it will be all because of you and you don’t want that to happen! Hmm? I don’t want to go to school today mom, replies Daniel looking rather discouraged.

What is it, sweetheart? Talk to mom.

My class teacher told me I cannot come out of high school with a nice grade. She says my spelling is poor and I have problems identifying color, she says I cannot compete with the other boys in the class, mom, am I that poor? Daniel questioned with his young and innocent eyes gazing into his mother’s eyes as though trying to find the answers to his question right in her eyes written somewhere. Oh! No dear Daniels mom replied, you are not that poor you know what? Your class teacher is only saying what she feels to encourage you to try harder,  Daniel’s mother adds and makes to continue speaking when Daniel interrupted she says I would have a low IQ if checked; do I have a low IQ mom? Daniel asks,

No you don’t Daniel’s mother answered him looking very affirmative. "You see Daniel, your father and I, after going through your school reports the last term, decided that we will employ the services of a private tutor while we also will always do what we as your parents would do to see that you improve in your academics.

I am not saying you are poor in academics, no, you are not, but you see Daniel, you are not performing up to the standard obtainable in this modern day and age. But, we cannot have this discussion now. Get ready, get dressed, your father is waiting for us to come down to take you to school so we can go to work Daniels mother encourages him, helps him get dressed, packs his bag and off they race to meet their husband and father. Hi Daniel, I can see you are set to go to school, now let’s take you to school," Daniel’s father says with a smile that seems to lift off a burden off Daniel’s shoulder, as his mother noticed.  And off they went, out of the house, into the walkway, into the car and off to school.

At school, Daniel alights from the car bids his parent’s farewell and enters the school compound, straight for his classroom, waiting to hear what next his class teacher Mrs. Maroon would say to him about his performance in school. That day was the last he would ever see his parents as they were lost in a car accident before they even got to work.

They had dropped Daniel off at school and had made their way to work when they got to the red light and stopped.

Soon it was the orange light and then the green light, which at the same time sent the red light on the road at the right-hand side on. Daniel’s parent’s ignited their car, however, a big truck conveying frozen fish, which already was driving at high speed, drove past the red light at the other and rammed into the private car of Daniel’s parents Mr. Marcque Job and Mrs. Shellina Job, which was the first car in their lane. And it resulted into an emergency which resulted in Mr. and Mrs. Job being rushed by an ambulance to a hospital, where they were pronounced dead two hours later, as a result of the brain hemorrhage and shock they had suffered due to the accident which was rated fatal.  That day after school, Daniel waited to see his parent’s car drive into the school compound and his parents alight from the car and he running into the waiting and outstretched arms of his parents and looking straight into the eyes of his father; a tall soft-spoken and gentle and also into the eyes of his mother; a slim (for she had shed some l2pounds 2years after giving birth to Daniel), caring and a strong spoken woman after about 40 minutes of waiting the school compound now nearly empty with only very few students and teachers still left: ‘the students all still waiting for their parents or guardians to come for them. The teachers still having some reports to fill in are left in the school compound.

Suddenly a black jeep pulls into the school compound; it is different from the green SUV that Daniel’s parent’s cruises in. Daniel takes a second look on the car and he recognizes the car, its Uncle Mathews car; ‘it has the resemblance of Uncle Mathew’s car;’ he murmured to himself.

He had had the chance of visiting Uncle Mathew with his father and mother, a couple of times in the past and the car that had just moved into the school compound looked every inking like Uncle Mathews. 

The car door opens and a tall innocent looking man steps out of the car and wounds his head round slowly within the school compound as though looking for someone. That’s Uncle Mathew; I wonder what he is doing here. He must be here to see me; maybe mom and dad sent him to pick me up Daniel muttered to himself and he hastily makes way to meet him; Hi Uncle Mathew! Daniel waved to him good afternoon Daniel greets him Okay; Laddy I have to take you home right away he said opening the door for Daniel. Daniel asked about his father and mother and why they had not come over to pick him up. 

You see uncle, I was already considering picking a bus home, and still have some money left.

Well, you see Daniel, said Uncle Mathew, you need to get home, freshen up and have a nap and oh! Sorry, I was late to pick you up, but I think the time is right and now is the time for you to grow into a man.

I don’t understand, Daniel slowly and calmly interrupts. Well then let’s get to the house and I will tell you what I mean. When they got home and alighted, Daniel asked with surprise in his eyes But uncle this is not my house, this is your house. Oh  Daniel, I have been asked to bring you to my house" Mr. Mathew quickly replies and moves straight in with Daniel following, satisfied with the reply from Mr. Mathew and straight into the waiting arms of his wife, Mr. Mathew embraces his wife and asks Daniel to make himself comfortable in the house: Of course, Daniel knows he can always be comfortable whenever he is in Mr. Mathew’s house.

He remembers having to run to and even pass the night at Mr. Mathew’s house which is not far from his whenever he runs away from his own house after breaking a rule. At night shortly before bedtime,  Mr. Mathew and his wife Mrs. Helen came into Daniel’s bedroom and told him the news of the death of his parents.

Daniel could not believe his ears after they told everything that happened. He cried and murmured many words to himself; he counted his fingers, bit his fingernails and did all sorts of movements on the bed. Mr. Mathew and his wife consoled him, asked him to be calm, and that he can live with them as their son. They had two