It was reasonable for them to accuse him: the company was known to be the most secured, therefore it was never easy for thieves to rob it. Even the bosses believed it was Chitani who had the connections with the thieves. The fact that the thieves broke in when he was off duty made things worse. Since he was one of the guards, they believed that he was amongst the theives leading the way. He felt bad.

He had a headache so he asked for leave. “I’m begging you, my ancestors, show them that I am righteous,” he murmured to himself, with tears falling down his cheeks. Unfairness of fate. This time he wanted to hang himself but was stopped by his wife who came home unexpectedly. Chitani didn’t expect life to pay him troubles out of all he gave. With hard work, he longed and hoped for a great future ahead.

He was tired of facing troubles, so he thought and trusted suicide as a guaranteed success. He did whatever he had to make a good life, but fate was dominating. Every time he applied for a vacancy, the job would turn him down. Now he was about to go to prison. He knew, though he had words to defend himself, there was the need for a lawyer, but lawyers needed money. This feeling made him hopeless and helpless.

“What are you trying to do here?” his wife Maureen asked him furiously. She couldn’t believe what she was seeing. She couldn’t believe her husband would easily give up fighting with life. The fact that she was pregnant made her even angrier.

“Answer me, Chitani! Is this what you want to give me?” she said, with tears. Indeed, you will never know what moves in people’s minds. He was a determined man. At this time, he never had a face to say a word to his wife. He was playing with the rope, which was in his hand. Suddenly regrets struck him. He remembered what his English teacher in high school used to tell them.

He remembered Miss Naomi Kambuwa’s words: “Never give up. You won’t meet a problem you can’t overcome in life. Stay positive and never allow your emotions to rule your life. The weakest people on earth are those who cannot control their feelings and emotions. They end up living complicated lives. Stand up and fight any oppressive situation you face with all your efforts. As long as you put in all of yourself, you will succeed and live satisfied. Have faith and trust those abilities God invested in you. Never settle until you overcome, you all have the natural power to overcome. It’s known that you won’t know something unless you fight with it, so every trouble you experience is there to teach you a lesson. Be grateful for what seems bad sometimes.”

As he remembered, tears were flowing down like water in the river. Miss Kambuwa was his favorite teacher. She used to motivate him so much. He felt like he had betrayed her. He too felt like he had betrayed his parents. He remembered all the promises he had made to them to be a pillar for others. He couldn’t believe he was about to hang himself. Indeed, the devil uses fear to ruin lives.

After a long time of silence, his in-laws knocked on the door. Maureen quickly answered them and asked them to come inside. They came to listen to Chitani about the robbery and see what he knew. He explained everything to them and his wife agreed to what her husband explained. They promised the couple to try to get a lawyer for Chitani. On the day of court hearing, the judge found him guilty. He wasn’t good at defending himself.

***

Tell us: What are your feelings about how bad things are getting for Chitani?