A Journal For Nkechi (1)

Dear Soldier,

I know that as you hear the bullets whiz past your ears, all you can think about is Nkechi your love and Emeka your 2months old miracle baby. You wonder if you'll ever get to see them again and if you'll recognize your boy. 

You think of how much you've missed your wife's cooking and her sweet loving. You hope that you're able to keep your promise to her. A promise made before God and your loved ones. The promise to keep her happy and well taken care of. Life can be cruel to widows as you've seen from your mother.

Looking back now, you realize, what choice did you really have? It was either get recruited OR starve with your family. Nkechi, oh the ever understanding Nkechi. Never complains, never frowns, always believes that everything will work out fine. But that only made it worse didn't it? Because it made you feel like less of a man not being able to provide all she deserved and she deserved the very best!! She left those "well to do people" that her family was trying to arrange for her and CHOSE to stay with you, broke ass and all. Now, you sometimes think that she'd have been better off with them. You were going to ensure that she got the best! Even if you died trying...

So now, on this battle ground, you fight not just for your life or country. You fight for Nkechi, for Emeka the miracle that had come after several years of waiting and you fight for the dreams of growing old with your Nkem ❤.

You fight and you pray to the God who has kept you so far to keep me for 1 more week because after that, you're done with this and you can return home for good. 

You've finally figured out a plan to be done with this life. Voluntary Retirement. It doesn't matter that you'll lose your benefit.  You've saved enough and you have a business already in the works.  It'll be hard for the first year or a year and half, but better that than the nightmares that constantly plague your every living moment. 

You know that you'll return to Nkechi broken (physically and mentally) but  you believe that you'll do everything to be as put together as you can be...  For Nkechi 

But you cannot afford to be distracted with those thoughts now. For now, you'll concentrate on crawling to the battalion for a reload because these bandits seem to be zombies...

This is a tribute to members of  the armed forces. Those we've lost, those who are still out there still fighting. 

You truly are heroes and we appreciate your sacrifice.