"The loose lips of a dear friend,
Can cause pain only time will mend"
This is a true life story.
This is a story of two secondary students who were friends and close. James was a smart and brilliant student who lived the life of Christ and his friend lateef was a Muslim who worship and believe in Allah.
James and lateef were so close that they tell each other their thoughts and wear each other things. They were two students who unknowingly were vying for the position of Head boy.
This is a tale that happened in the 80's when being an head boy comes with various benefits and popularity.
They were so close that their friendship was known throughout the whole school. Lateef was an influential students in the school . he usually helps some of his teachers to record the scripts of examination. When it was time for the election of a new boy, he was confident that he will be the next head boy of the school, because he has been informed by his closest teachers that he was the elected candidate. He didn’t tell his friend about the news or his ambition to become the next head boy.
On the day of the election, lateef dressed corporately. His school uniform sparkled as the early rays of the sun shone on it, even his shoe glinted with light, you could see your reflection in it if you could move close enough. James was surprised, but didn’t think more about it.
The various protocols to be followed was taken step by step, the anthems and pledges was loudly voiced out by the students of the school.
The moment lateef has been waiting for came soon after, faster than he was expecting and this made him anxious and on the ball of his toes.
The principal of the school proudly mounted the podium and addressed the students. He asked after their weekend days, how it was spent and told them a short story, bringing out the lessons from it after its short ending.
He began speaking again “And the time has come for what you have all been waiting for, I am proud to announce the name of the young man who will be given the mantle of Head Boy to handle, His name is James Gabriel”
The noise was deafening, but the peculiar scene was that immediately his best friend name was called, he fainted and had to be brought back to the present moment by sprinkling cold water on his pallid face.
He was given the day off to recuperate his strength at home or treat himself and this made James to spend the day all alone in school without the reassuring presence of his best friend.
On his return back to school, lateef was good natured and it seems nothing was amiss, but only the owner of one’s mind knows his/her intentions. He was good to his friend for he wore a dove’s skin on his wolf’s attire.
The period for their first term examination came suddenly and they both started reading profusely for the upcoming examination. The exam came and they wrote it, believing and confident in their performances.
The result of their examination came out and they were all respectfully given the scripts they individually used for the exam. James saw that he scored 98 in mathematics and was extremely glad, but unknowing to him, lateef who recorded the marks in the broadsheet recorded 48 instead of 98, making him a failure in mathematics. So, it came as a surprise to him when he saw his result and how woeful it is, especially now that he was the Head boy of the school and was supposed to be leading by example.
It was only discovered later that lateef was the one who recorded the subjects that James had poor performances in.
A young classmate of theirs gave his life to Christ, after listening to the Word of God, who was once the right-hand man of lateef and his favorite sidekick.
He was moved by the Holy Spirit to tell the truth, he was ready to confess about the act in front of witnesses and this was how James who has been suspended for disgracing the school management got to know about the author and finisher of his present predicament.
He was surprised that his best friend could do this to him, the friend whom he had told about the error made in his result, whom he had trusted to always watch his back. He forgave him and pray that God will help his friend. Lateef was ashamed and tried his best to avoid James in school and at home.
Time, who doesn’t respect any mortal continued his immortal cycle and the moment came for them to write their Waec Examination.
On the day they were writing mathematics, James and lateef was sitting beside each other, James was an expert in mathematics, but lateef knows little of arithmetic. He just sat down, staring into space after he saw the questions he was supposed to answer.
James noticed, after some minutes into the exam that his friend lateef was not writing anything. He collected lateef script and started writing the solutions of the various questions that was supposed to be answered. Lateef was surprised, but could do little more than just to watch the friend he has betrayed in countless ways prove his honesty and integrity to him again.
After the examination, James approached lateef outside the exam hall, hugged him and whispered in his ears that he has forgiven him for all the wrong acts he might done against him.
Through this selfless action of his friend, lateef gave his life to Christ, converted his friends and family also.
When their results came out, Lateef had A1 in mathematics while James had C4 in mathematics, because he spent most the time allocated for the paper to write the solution for Lateef.
I hope we all learn something.
Drop your lesson in the comment box.
In Gods’s love,
Okunola peace.
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