THE DREAMER

I háte dreams. That's because, any time I dream, something êvil happens.

As a matter of fact, I don't sleep anymore. Even if I happen to sleep, I don't do it peacefully, because my fear of the worst will haunt me like démöns.

The first time it happened was on my 18th birthday. There was a drastic change in my dreaming capacity; my dreams became so real and crystal clear. Sometimes it appeared as though they were not dreams but visions.

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On that fateful birthday, I lost my youngest brother. His name was Nnanna. We lost Nnanna to a very violent case of convulsion.

I had returned from extramural classes that evening and decided to take a nap. In my dream, I saw Mum and some neighbors crying over a dead body under the mango tree in our compound.

When I went close, I saw my brother's lifeless body. That same evening, Nnanna suffered shortness of breath and an asthmatic attack which ended in his déath.

The other time it happened, was when father had a terrible accident that led to both his legs being amputated. I dreamt about him the previous night prior to the tragic incident.

Even though I was so scared and told Mum about it, Mum said I should go back to bed, that it was signs of malaria. I muttered some prayers under my breath, and went to sleep.

But when things became unbearable, Mum took me to her Pastor who prayed for me and gave us bible passages to read. We prayed and fasted for 7 days.

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However, on 7th day, I dreamt that the Pastor had a family crisis that caused his wife to leave him. After a few days, the wife divorced him on the grounds of cheating. This almost ruined the pastor because a lot of his church members left the church. He became depressed, and couldn't continue with us.

Yesterday, I dreamt about Uncle Jide. In that dream, Uncle Jide was knocked to déath by a lorry carrying cement. He had died on the spot.

Jide was my father's elder brother who we share fences with. He and father were not exactly in good terms, actually. For years, there had been some family squabbles over landed property ownership rights between them, so they were just brothers in ceremonial basis.

At some point, father had told us to be careful how we relate with their family, because his brother had the tendency to get dangerous. So I and my siblings hardly go there.

That afternoon, however, immediately I woke up from the dream, I hurriedly left the house on my way to Uncle Jide's. I don't even know what I was thinking. I must have be reckless!

As I stepped into the sitting room, Uncle was standing at the middle of the room already. I raised my head, and he was looking directly into my eyes. That creeped me out, because it was as though he knew I was going to come.

"What did you dream about this time around, modern world Joseph?" he asked. I was thrown into a bottomless pit of confusion. What???

"Yes, you've come to tell me about one of your useless dreams, haven't you?" he said again. His eyes were spelling unfriendliness and distraught.

"You will dié," I said. After saying those words, I was wondering if I was the one who said it. Because I could not tell how I mustered the courage.

"No, I won't díe. You will," he said.

"Excuse me?"

"Yes, you are the one who is going to díe, because all the evils you've dreamt about before they happened, I caused them all. Yes, I am responsible!" he laughed a dry, hysterical laugh.

"So, it was you, Uncle Jide?" I asked. Hot tears dripped down my left eye.

"Yes. I was always going to kílll you," he said again. He sounded so confident and determined. "I don't know where you got that useless gift of stúpíd dreams from. You annóying little thing, spoiling my revenge mission, how dare you!?"

"It's over, Uncle Jide," I said. "Just give up!"

"Not before I strá.ngle you to deáth right here and now, and hide you away forever! No one will ever know I did it!" The pupil part of his eyes turned completely red. He started coming at me. He was obviously intent on destróying me.

Uncle Jide came at me with a pressing iron to hít me, but I doged him swiftly. He fell, hit his forehead on the television set, and fainted.

I quickly ran home, my heart in my mouth.

I didn't tell anyone what happened. I thought Uncle Jide had diéd.

This evening, Mummy came with the news. She said Uncle Jide was dead. But he didn't dié in his house. His wife saw him unconscious in the sitting room, and rushed him to the hospital. But on their way, there was an accident involving collision with a lorry carrying cement.

Only Uncle Jide died in that accident. His wife was without a single scratch.