On My Missing Wallet. [Part 2]

Click HERE for Part 1.

Did you notice the change in title? It’s intentional.

It happened on Thursday [or was it Friday.] I was in Health Sciences Lecture Theatre receiving a lecture when my phone started vibrating. I checked. It was an incoming call from a strange number. So I do what I do when someone is calling when I’m in class. I cut the call and send the message; ‘In class. Send a message.’

After the class, I checked my small white phone, I had received no message. After lectures that day, I checked again, no message. Throughout the day, no message from Mr. Strange Number.

Night.

Sometime around 11:30pm, White phone vibrated. It was not a message. It was a call. Strange number.

‘Hello,’

‘Hello, is this Michael Oladele?’

‘Yes. Who’s this, please?’

The speaker ignored my question and continued.

‘Is this Michael Oladele? I have been calling your Etisalat number. What is wrong with you? I want to talk to you about your missing purse…your missing purse.’

Did he just say ‘missing purse’ ? I cannot explain what was going on in my mind.

Immediately,things changed.

‘Yes sir! Yes sir! This is Michael Oladele sir! Where can I come and collect it sir?’

‘Are you stupid? Do you think I am a student? Call me tomorrow by 9am!’

The time was almost 12am. This stranger just called me at this hour of the night to tell about my wallet! I know I must have sounded too forward about collecting it. But, have you ever experienced this type of thing before? Like when you have lost all hope and then the sun starts to shine again? If you have, then you’ll understand my lack of control. It’s like walking in a desert with no hope for tomorrow and you suddenly see an oasis smiling at you, calling you to come and take a gulp. At such moments, you don’t even care about anything again. You just want to drink and drink and drink and even carry the oasis along with you as you journey. That was how I felt that night.

Morning.

9am.

I call this stranger and he tells me to meet him in the school library. I rush there immediately. Turns out, I was talking to a library staff yesterday night. He asks for evidence that the wallet is mine. I mention all the things in that small treasure chest of mine. At first, he plays ‘Aro’ with me and tells me he found the wallet empty of any cash. But later, he smiled and handed me my brown wallet, with everything intact. My ID cards intact. My One Thousand Naira notes intact. My ATM card. Everything!

The joy! The happiness! The.. The…the…I don’t even know! I thanked him and thanked him and kept on thanking this man as he told me how one of the students of this great campus came to drop the wallet with him, claiming that he found it in the library on one of the shelves. This is a story I am still trying to comprehend. So I thank this man again for taking the time to call me again and again even when my Etisalat line wasn’t going through because of the blackout we experienced some days ago. Thank you very much sir. God bless.

So now, I am looking at this wallet as I type this. And I am asking him; ‘Why did you run away?’ He looks down in shame and cannot answer. Now, this is your punishment. I will no longer use ‘it‘ for you. I will now use ‘he.’ For you to have developed wings and flown away, you deserve that. And I will give you a name. Before you were bearing Levis. Now, I will start calling you Jonah. Don’t ask me why. I don’t know. So, Jonah, as from today on, be a good boy.

I am happy. Extremely happy. And I want to say Thank You. To the soul that dropped that wallet for me, I don’t know how you got it. I don’t know how it got to the library shelves. I don’t even know you, but I say  Thank you. I know you may see this post. Abi, how long does it take a post to go viral. If Bolu likes this post and Bobo comments and Banjo shares and then Bimpe shares too. And Bayo and Bakare and Bode do the same, haven’t we succeeded in making it known to the guy/girl who returned the wallet that we love him or her?

Anyways, this post is dedicated to you, dear Wallet Returner. I love you more than I love Yam and Fried Pepper. Nangi loves you too. White Phone loves you. I’m not sure Jonah loves you. But I’m sure we all love you. The Clique here loves you too. [Can you express your love, guys?]

Thank you being good. Continue being good. One day, the God of Good will check on you.

Peace, Love and Sunflowers.