The Scar: The Kids Are Watching
(episode 8)
Wisdom is profitable to lead and direct. When you are aware and informed about something, it becomes easy for you to handle the situation better. The dream Naya had that night revealed to her the things her mere eyes couldn’t see. At that moment, it’s safe to say that she now had a glimpse and idea of the major reason behind her husband’s devilish character. Never for once did she care to ask her
husband’s only surviving grand parent about his upbringing and childhood because if she did, she would have heard one or two things that could have given her a clue of what she was dealing with. It’s quite sad that Naya was comfortable enough to live with a man she barely knew anything about. If only she was a little investigative, she could have been aware of some little secrets Derrick hid from her; secrets like how his parents died.
It would interest you to know that all these while, Naya didn’t really know the true story behind Derrick’s parents death. She knew they were late and also knew that they died in an accident; but what she didn’t really know was how the whole incident went down. The naive lady wasn’t aware that Derrick’s mum killed his dad and was knocked down by a motorcycle on her way to escape the scene. There were so many things untold that Naya wasn’t aware of; little wonder she never saw the subtle handwriting on the wall which screamed “Help Me!”.
Derrick was drowning and needed someone to save him but no one ever saw that he needed help. It takes a discerning spirit to see through someone’s smiles and tell that they are dying within. It takes an awakened mind to detect the hidden messages in a casual sentence or action. It takes an alert spirit to know when there’s more to a person’s actions than what mere eyes believed triggered them to act that way.
There’s more to life than mere eyes can see or touch so it’s always good to ask God for a discerning spirit. It’s a thing of relief to know that Naya was one step close to discovering a lot about her soon-to-be divorced husband. Hopefully, the couple might fix their dying marriage and reunite together again for better this time around. It isn’t certain that Naya would give Derrick a second chance, so all we can do is pray for things to go according to God’s will.
That night was an eye opener for Naya. Due to the numerous questions in her head, she made up her mind to seek for answers sooner and also find out the meaning of the dream she had. The curious lady didn’t want to waste any time in her findings so she decided to visit Derrick’s grand mum the following day.
At close of work the next day, Naya drove down to another part of town to pay Derrick’s grand mum a visit. She hadn’t seen the old woman since after their wedding few months ago so it was such a good reunion.
“My daughter, this one you remembered me today, I hope all is well?” grandma happily said and Naya blushed. “Mama, I am sorry for not checking up on you like I should but it isn’t intentional because I have been tied down with work of late” Naya respectfully explained. They further exchanged pleasantries before finally settling down. Food was offered and they both ate together happily.
After they were done eating, Naya gradually began to unfold why she came visiting. “Mama, I have so much to tell you but don’t know where to start. Firstly, your grandson and I are getting a divorce. I know this is very sudden and unexpected but I have to do it to save my life because Derrick has made my life a living hell since we got married. I love him but can’t continue to live in denial and unhappy. He has done a lot to me that I might not be able to say all to you because of reasons known to me. I wish things were different but they aren’t” Naya soberly said.
When Naya was done talking, tears clouded her eyes and grandma wiped the tears away with her hands. Naya drew closer and gave her a tight hug as she burst out crying. Derrick’s grand mum patted her back and gently whispered “It’s OK my child, I knew it would be hard for him to give love after all that happened to him” grandma revealed.
Immediately Naya heard that, she sat up and urged Derrick’s grand mum to fully explain what happened to him. Naya told her about the dream and begged the old woman to reveal anything that could be wrong with Derrick. After a little moment of silence, the old woman began to narrate everything that happened to Derrick since he was a little boy. She also told Naya how his parents died tragically in one day.
As grandma spoke, Naya held her chest and opened her mouth wide open. Never in a thousand years did she believe that Derrick went through something as tragic as that. Everything now began to make sense to the young lady as to why her husband acted the way he did.
Before Derrick’s grandma was done talking, Naya broke down in tears and cried bitterly. Grandma joined her too in crying because she remembered her daughter
‘Lizzy’. It was such an emotional day for both women but help was now on it’s way for deranged Derrick.
After several hours at grandma’s house, Naya sadly took her leave. They bid each other goodbye as they parted ways. Instead of heading home that evening, Naya changed her destination and headed straight to her matrimonial home to see Derrick. When she arrived, everywhere was dark but she managed to open the back door with her own key.
Immediately Naya entered inside the living room, she caught sight of Derrick lying on the couch with his arms covering his eyes. She was slightly nervous but tried her best to look confident.
Feeling slightly tensed, Naya sat beside Derrick. Before she could voice out his name, he gently said “I know you are here, I felt it when you walked in. Did you come for the divorce papers?”.
At that moment, Naya felt highly emotional and didn’t know how best to express how she felt. She took a deep breath and gently touched his arms. “I am so sorry for everything you had to go through in your lifetime. It breaks my heart to know that I have lived with you for months but couldn’t tell that you were fighting battles that were beyond your power. How could I not know that behind those aggression, was a lonely boy singing ‘Twinkle Little Star’ under the bed crying, while his parents fought. How could I not know that you were struggling to give love because you didn’t have it to give. How could I not see through your battered and shattered soul, even though you never spoke about it. I know I might be too late to change anything that happened in your past but I believe I am not too late to influence and correct your future. Derrick look at me” She gently said and he sat up and looked into her eyes; “You are not the cause of your parents death. I repeat, you are not the cause of what happened to them. Your existence didn’t make your parents fight all the time. It isn’t about you and it was never about you so stop feeling guilty for something you couldn’t control. They were adults and had their misunderstandings which I believe had nothing to do with you. Forgive your past and move on to the beautiful further ahead of you. I love you so much and just want the lovely boy I saw under that bed back as my husband. I believe that kind and happy side of you is in there somewhere’ she soberly said as tears fell off her eyes.
Derrick was mesmerised at that moment and didn’t know what to do. Before he knew it, tears began to fall off his eyes. When Naya saw him crying, she cried even more because she had never seen a tear in her husband’s eyes since she knew him.
With a heavy heart, Derrick showed a rare side of him no-one has ever seen before. He knelt down in front of Naya and soberly said “Please pray for me, I want to be a better person and husband. I want you to go on this healing and deliverance journey with me babe. I want to be a better person and I know I can be a better version of myself. Please Naya, help me!”.
At that moment, Naya felt as though she was dreaming because everything felt too good to be true. She knelt down with Derrick, wiped the tears on his eyes and soberly said “I am with you on this babe!”
End of episode 8
Written by Sonia Okehie