What A Man…What A Mighty Good Man

“Nzogbu Enyimba enyi
Nzogbu, nzogbu
Enyinmba enyi”

We chanted the war song loudly as we made our way into Olive Park slightly after dusk. The crowd was large but I made sure to follow closely behind my boss, the comrade. I attempted to introduce another war song.

“We no go gree o
We no gree!”

The crowd caught on to the song quickly and I was happy but I made sure my voice remained the loudest, very close to my boss’ right ear. This was my biggest opportunity to impress him and I was not going to let it pass. I needed that promotion so badly.

We got to the middle of the park and began to look for them. They always moved as a group, like a flock of sheep. I whispered to my boss to suggest we move towards the hill. My boss agreed and motioned to the crowd to follow him. I smiled to myself as I had nailed it once again but the smile was short-lived because one of my colleagues, Kaz changed the song. I rolled my eyes and sucked my teeth.

Then I spotted them afar off. They were very difficult to tell apart but we needed only one of them. It was time to launch Operation KR3X. I shouted on top of my lungs, “There they are!” I had to, before someone else beat me to it and ruined my chances with my boss. The crowd gave a loud cheer as we leaped forward towards them. When we got to the bottom of the hill, we drew out our weapons but stayed about five feet away. The truth was we did not know who we came for but there was no way we were going to show it. I whispered to my boss to confirm it was time to launch Operation KR3X. He gave a nod and I signaled to our inside man.

While our inside man made his way to the front, I tried to guess who we were looking for. They were just four but one of them looked very confident and calm. He could not be the one, because if he had any idea what was coming for him, he would not be that calm. I looked at the other three, one of them looked vaguely familiar. Where was it I knew him from? Were we from the same hometown? Just when I figured where I knew him from, our inside man kissed the calm-looking one. Well, I did not see that coming but there was no time to waste. I was going to singlehandedly cuff him.

I grabbed him and clipped his two hands to his back with one of my hands, while holding on to my weapon with my other hand. Dang, I couldn’t do this alone. I raised my head to call out to Kaz to join me and that was when I saw it coming towards me. In one split second, I saw the glistening edge of a sword, with the face of the one I knew from the seafood market in the background. It was coming for me and it was too late.

Warning: Graphic Image

“Ahhhhhhh!” I dropped everything I was holding. What was going on? Where did this much blood come from? Everything was hazy. I had to lean on the hill for support. Wait, was that my right ear in my bloody hand? Oh my goodness! The bastard had cut my ear off. I was crying, not so much because of the pain but because I was scared by how much blood I was losing.

Almost immediately, the calm one I was going to cuff started speaking. I could not make sense of what he was saying. I panicked again. Had I lost my sense of hearing? I think he was scolding the bastard who cut me. Then I heard him say “Allow me”. It still did not make sense but it confirmed to me that I could still hear. He looked at me and I knew he was the ONE. Our inside man had not failed us. Indeed it was he. We had heard so much about him. He was the one my formerly leprous cousin had written about in his last message. He had mentioned his eyes but now I saw it firsthand. Eyes so beautifully filled with compassion. What a man? He looked at me intently and reached out his left hand to pick up my right ear. He put it on the right side of my face, as though to glue it back. His hands were cold. It was different from when I touched him. Very cold, like that of a dead man. Did he know what we were here for? Was he crazy? Did he know I was not on his side? Did he forget I was there to arrest him? What a man?!

First, the gushing blood stopped. Then with so much hesitation, because this felt like a dream, I touched the right side of my face. Oh my goodness! It was back! My right ear…it was back! Was this all a dream? No, the blood all over my body reminded me this was for real. This man had fixed my ear. What a man?! I didn’t know what to say so I looked at him in awe, hoping my eyes would do the talking and just like that, as though nothing had happened, he turned back to the crowd and started speaking to my boss with the same calmness he had been wearing all night long.

I stood up slowly, trying to regain my composure. My life stood before me. I had a boss to obey but this man had touched me. Still I could not go with him. He had just surrendered himself to be arrested. I looked around and his men were nowhere to be found, not even the one from the seafood market. I would not forget this man but I picked up my sword.

“Nzogbu, nzogbu

Enyimba enyi”

Matthew 26:47-56, Mark 14:43-52 , Luke 22:47-53 , John 18:1-11.