It was this kind of sleep where you do not dream about anything. When I woke up, it was completely dark. For a moment, I did not know where I was, and then reality hit me. I was running away from home.
It was then that I realised that I was busy with something stupid. So I decided to go back home. This moment in my life signalled a turning point. I knew running away was not the answer to my problems. So I decided to go back and face them.
I started running the way I came, and I soon realised how far I ran. It was dark and cold. I couldn’t see much in front of me, and I wasn’t dressed for the cold. I also realise that anything could happen to me, so I just kept running and praying.
I do not know how far I ran before I was too tired to run any further. I stopped in a ditch in the road and decided that I will rest there for a bit. I remember I bought matches before I took the road, so I decided to make a fire. I was so scared and cold.
I went through a broken fence of one of the farms to look for some firewood. But it was so dark I had to light a match to see what was around me. I eventually got some sticks together to make a fire but struggled to light it. After a while, I got it going.
I cleaned an area around the fire. My plan was to sleep next to the fire until the next morning. I fell asleep, but it was not long before I was awake again. The air was cold and misty. I realised the fire burned out, and I had to look for more firewood again.
Again with great struggle, I started a new one, and as my body was heated by the fire, I drifted off to sleep. Just to wake up again because it started drizzling. So I decided to make the fire bigger. A bigger fire helped, but I could not fell asleep again.
I kept wondering what would happen to me when I return home. Even though I was scared, I knew I had to go back home. Later the skies cleared, and I saw it was a full moon. The full moon lit up the road and everything around me. So I killed the fire and started walking back home. It was a long walk.
To be continued …
JACOB CLOETE 