Men Needed – Click to Apply…

Men,

…this comes from the bottom of my heart, that bottomless pit which we fear jumping in, and where we assume our manhood goes to die.

I write this on the eve of Men’s day, but you’ll only see it after. After all, we cannot be celebrated in a day. And just so you know, this is not a celebration but an intervention.

Speaking of Men’s Day, ever wondered why it was curiously paired with Toilet day? Because now more than ever, we’ve been dumping on our dreams and flushed our dignity away. I mean, whatever happened to candor, valor and godly chivalry? A wise old lady once said that the world is in need of Men. But it seems that they decided to be boys. And we know boys will always be boys. I digress…

These past few days I have been characterized by the shift from manly Signs and wonders to boyish sighs and blunders with the ceaseless stories of heartbreaks and premium tears that my brethren are dishing out out here. There must have been a memo that was sent around, calling all male-kind, young and small, free and bond to release the reigns of tears and make them flow like a waterfall.

There used to be an inflexion point in the curve of charm that made men be the right kind of bad to just make them chivalrous and mysterious. But it seemed that we went over that curve to just be plain old bad. The nasty kind of bad if you didn’t get it right the first time.

Story time…

*****

She loved him deeply. All her thoughts were between her wedding, that great white dress with a chanderlier veil and a train that trailed her as she made her way over the rose petals, up the aisle that seemed to trail to forever, to her soon to be betrothed.

She didn’t have much lest for faith, hope and love. A violent mixture of emotions, that made her heart palpitate the more as she looked towards the day with earnest admiration. I mean, he was a charmer. Sweet talker, always knowing the right kind of words to make her soul leap and heart melt.

“It is only you”, he’d say, whispering sweet nothings into her ear.

And when all was said and done, they’d lay there, in savoury salient silence with EDEX’s You playing in the background. it was only him for her. The first man she had ever known, and hopefully the only one she’d ever.

The sex was great in many ways. Great with pleasure, release and guilt. She had purposed to keep herself pure for the marital bed. But he needed it. He’d die if he didn’t have her. And after all, they were in love. How better to seal the bond than lay it all bare? Be the good girlfriend and hopefully, one day the best ever wife to the most loving man on the planet, and perhaps this corner of the Milky way.

He’d knock her once in a while but she figured that he’d had a bad day and she was only getting in the way. Or maybe she’d done something wrong. But after all he loved her and love conquers everything, doesn’t it? So black eye after black eye, lie after lie, she learnt to develop a reflexive blindspot to him. A good christian man was he, wasn’t it? Church elder, Bible beater, sin chastiser, tithe payer, solo chorister with the voice of the angels. Dreams against reality.

One day, while having her pleasant daydreams in her fairly unkempt cot on the seventh floor of a nondescript building in Eastlands, a knock on the door. She opened it, hoping it was her lover…

On the other side was a visibly exasperated middle-aged woman. Sweaty and panting. She held a child up in her right hand, and another one tugged at her dress in timid fashion. And yes, another was on the way.

For a minute, she thought who was this woman at her door, and even more, how did she make it up those flights of stairs in her condition. But that did not matter as what happened next were rapid fire.

A thunderous slap, tug by the hair and a sudden jolt followed in quick succession.

“Leave my husband alone! This is the first and only warning, or the consequences will be severe. And oh, get tested, it would be sad seeing a silly young woman who knows no better losing her life for a man such as my husband. But remember – HE IS MINE.” Her words.

This phantom’s cryptic retort while it was strange, it was enough for her to know what she needed to do. A talk with her lover, however it would go…

*****

Enough of stories, your guess is as good as mine on how it ended. Is it a real story? That doesn’t really matter, anyone could have been the victim, the girl who had been lied to, the ‘callous’ wife, the clueless children, the tormented man. In the end, a man was needed to do the right thing. But he didn’t, being the captain of a capsizing ship that was his life and his crew’s.

And while all these would be happening, good men would be bashed, thrashed and walloped in these streets being seen as bonfied members of the ‘scum of the earth’ community. Men being dogs but all in all, every dog has its day.

So men;

It doesn’t hurt to make mistakes, more so admit them. I mean, you won’t die! So next time, when your worst nature gets the best of you, unbuckle your belt and drink some water. Perhaps it is just pressure and literal thirst, not the other one people know.

Also, when ladies pray for a husband, they actually mean single men – not literal husbands.

And if you are still going strong as the only good man you know, keep on holding strong and keeping the faith. The best as the say, it’s yet to come.

Until then, Men are still needed. If you are one of them, click to apply.

Feel like punching through a wall with similar stories? Check out this post by the talented Law & Life blogger