The next morning, as usual, I took my training kit back, headed to the gym I crossed the forest. While I was walking in the forest, I heard a bitter scream, I froze, and I saw two guys beating a young girl who was about the age of 12.

Oh God, what am I going to do, I thought. I thought of running back to my home to ask for help, and then I noticed those two guys were dragging the girl one of them removing the girl’s clothes.

After seeing that I just knew I had to do something. I knew exactly what was going on, so I quickly ran and rushed to the guys, “Hey you morons, leave her alone!”

One of the guys told me, “Boy stay away from this.”

I then quickly picked up a stick from the ground. I hit one of the guys and he fell and another guy left. The girl quickly came to me, I then hit the other guy with stick again and I told the girl to go and ask for help. I didn’t even finish my sentence as I felt a heavy hit against my head. I fell to the ground. The guys started beating me up, when they saw the bag I was carrying, they began to beat my right leg until I could not feel it and then they ran.

After few hours the girl came back with my coach and her mother and other two men from the village. At that time my head was very dizzy.

“Carry him to the car, we have to rush him to the hospital.”

After that I passed out, I woke in the hospital ward.

“Hurry him to the theatre, we are losing him, he is bleeding internally,” I heard one of the doctors say.

I then felt a kiss on my forehead and then I passed out again. I woke up the next day, there was my football coach, my mother, the girl, and doctor.

The doctor said, “Son, I have some good news and bad news for you,” he continued, “Firstly, we managed to save your life, son.”

“Thank you, very much, sir,” I said.

“Secondly, son, your leg has some damaged tissue you can never play the game of football ever again.”

“No! No doctor you don’t understand, I am only 8 games away from achieving my goals what do you mean I can never play again?” I said crying.

“Son you will be in this hospital for the next two months.”

After one week, I was ready to come out of hospital. The doctors told me I broke a record of such a speedy recovery.

I will never allow a circumstance to define my life. What helped me the most is to realise that the girl I helped was the daughter of my coach. After two weeks my leg was healed and then after a month I was back on training, although the season had ended. My chances of securing a contract with Kaiser Chiefs was torn apart or put on hold. I still believe in the future, I will overcome all my obstacles. My coach and I have a good relationship and I believe in the future, he will sport another opportunity for me.

In life nothing will come easy, there will be a moment in life where you will feel like nothing good is coming your way. There will be a time where you will get embarrassed, but you must keep on moving forward. As long as you are still breathing, you still have a chance to change something not just change it, evolve it.

This piece is based on my true story.

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