LADY IN WHITE

10 years after………………she invades my memory still.

I have always hated the dark. Right from my formative years, I had this misconception that ‘lights out’, equals demons in. By demons, I meant the creatures in the Nigerian movies I always watched; the celestial, white-clad, long nailed, blood-stained draculan teeth whose images eroded my dreams. These demons escaping the reality of any dreams and existing in the darkness of my awaken state, and left me frightened for life every second of the night I watched a Nigerian scary movie, and I was forced to watch the clock , anxiously waiting for the call to prayer bell rings by the Islamic clerics.

The night before, we were all gathered at the living room, to watch sins of the father, during the fortunate era of family appreciation. I could vividly remember my mother’s voice “Ola, a lot of people have seen this movie, and they all said it was a scary one. Are you sure you want to watch it? As much as I wanted to leave the living room, at that very moment, I didn’t want to be jeered at by my younger sister, who unlike me, derived joy in watching horror movies.” No mum, I’m fine” I replied. Sometimes I felt I had to embark on a major research to ascertain what made siblings thick and adorable. Having had a sibling for twenty of my twenty –five years on earth, I was as clueless as ever. A good number of people I knew, had tales of selfless siblings, who could not be traded, for anything in the world. On the other hand, I was stuck with an annoying sister, who always looked for the slightest opportunity to siphon the free –given air, I was entitled to. Sometimes I blamed Mom for punishing me with one sibling. At least if I had another, I would always send sister dearest to Coventry, without a return ticket. However, I couldn’t blame her for the untimely demise of my father.

The movie had started, and half way into the movie, the electricity went off. There and then, I knew there was no way I would sleep alone that night. At least, not after the gory image I last saw of a man in white, gorging the eyes of his very victim, in a very happy state. I shuddered at the imaginations of my subsequent nightmare. At that very moment, all I think of was white stripes, white and red; demons and blood. I knew I was next……………

……….Or so I thought, as I scrambled down the stairs, in my bid to outrun my sister, who in the dark, sought ways to frighten me more. The ruffles and tumbles played out for ten minutes, where cries for mum where futile, as she had long headed to the store-room to get some fuel for the generator. Finally, I was in a sty, cum dump yard, also known as Lotachi and Ola’s room. The fact that the plate Lotachi ate with three days ago, was fast  becoming an accessory to our bed sheets, or the stench of my damp clothes that oozed the room, did not faze me or get me worried, as I had long realized that the justification of God joining two unalike individuals as siblings, is their addiction for dump and dirt. My thoughts were filled with the images of the pleading victim on TV, and THE MAN. From the blues, I was engulfed with a feeling that I would be unlucky that night. To make matters worse, the fuel in the house had finished, and it was already 10.00 pm.,

……..And I saw her. It was barely three hours into my sleep, when she came. Certainly, I knew I would be visited by my dreamland creatures and by the events of the previous night, I only waited for the evil smile of Mr. Man, but the image I was confronted with, was not in the plot. Here was this beautiful extremely beautiful lady. If she was an earthly creature, she was most likely to win the Most Beautiful Girl in the World, year after year. In my mother’s era, she would be described as an “asampete”, in mine, the riverbank where beauties were stolen from. Dressed in an immaculate-white gown, that had stars, crystal and diadem as embodiments, she defined elegance. Her hair was thick, black and very full, flowing beautifully, like I would proudly wave my Barcelona flag at the games. Her thin lips were crimson red, likewise the side corners of her head. Her cheeks were in the mix of puffy and slim, the kind you were not disgusted about, yet not questionable as to whether they belonged to a human being or a skeleton; they were carved right. I had to think” my fair lady” was written specially for her, was she fair!  Her skin shone, like it was a combination of vanilla essence, mixed with pears baby oil, and cocoa butter, like it would melt away when the sun was out. Talk about a flawless belle, devoid of any make-up or enhancer. Her eyelashes perfectly stood out, like they were perfectly selected and they were nicely shaped, revealing perfect strands. It was almost as if I was a sleeping open eye, I was dead asleep to the world, but I found life and wake with this woman.  Her gown was adorned with little precious stones like diamonds, and as it swept the floor, it shimmered at every air breath. In my bid to assimilate her beauty, I beheld her face.

 Only the second glance at this almost- heavenly face, made me realize the reason for her presence. Her eyes were teary-like, as though a torrent was about to make a mighty downpour. Corroborating her sadness was a pair of appealing, straight lips, without happiness or cheer. How her hollow eyes pierced mine could not be explained, but when it did, the awaited tear dropped. She had an unspoken message for me. She had to warn me, because she loved me……..thereafter, she vanished…she was gone.  In my daze, I was oblivious that I was drenched in Ola’s pool of pee and soaked, a reminder that I was of planet earth. For the five minutes of my mirage, I belonged to her world and we were the only occupants. As I changed to another nightie, memories of every second of my encounter flooded my brain, like a sudden whirlwind in stillness. So mesmerizing was this event, that I forgot my phobia for the dark. I had to see her again; I had to ask her what she was afraid about. Suddenly I heard her call my name” Ola, Ola.....................

“Ola, are you angry I peed on you? Please don’t tell mummy. I promise I won’t tease you about Nigerian movies.” Totally unlike her. Totally unlike me too, as I hugged her and gave her a new pair of sheets to spread on the bed. Wasn’t this my long awaited chance, to capitalise on the hot spot i had gotten her in and use it to my advantage?  However, I had more pressings on my mind. For once, I looked forward to a dream. As I forced myself to sleep, I awaited her comeback, creating images of the prettiest faces in my sub conscious. Sadly, none of these faces came close to hers .Thereafter; I knew she wasn’t coming back...........................to be continued