Ego: The Downfall of Many..........

Pride indeed goes before a fall so it's no wonder so many people and the country as a whole are falling apart right before our very eyes. The average Nigerian is low down cocky and proud on top nothing o, and finds apologizing for their wrongdoings a burden and a most difficult task. As a matter of fact, rather than apologize and let sleeping dogs lie, some people would fly into a fit of ego-driven rage regardless of the damning consequences it would incur.

I witnessed a frightening scene last week that could have turned out very gruesome if I hadn't stepped in at the very right time (I simply cannot understand why life throws dramas at me all the time, sigh). As soon as hubby dropped me off, I stopped to greet a driver washing his car in front of my office. Suddenly, a biker double-crossed a motorist right beside me smack-bang in the middle of the road. The biker got off his back, visibly shaken and furious and literally shaking with rage.He rummaged inside a compartment on his bike for something, while the other man in the vehicle stayed in his vehicle shouting him down. Now, not knowing whether he was about to pull out a gun or dagger, rather than my instinct to propel me into fleeing from the very angry scene, I felt deeply moved to interfere and I did. Sigh.

Biker man pulled out a phone and was furiously stabbing in digits into the poor touch-screen phone. Vehicle man stayed inside his car screaming at biker man and daring him to call anybody. Without knowing what exactly had gone down with those two men, I immediately started to plead and appeal to furious biker man because he looked very aggrieved and I sort of had an idea of what could have made him so mad. Suddenly, vehicle man reversed and drove into the compound in front of us and as he drove through the gates he screamed at the guards not to let biker man in. At that point, I knew it was going to be a long intervention mission. Biker man gave chase and almost drove into vehicle man and the entourage of men he came out of the gates with.

At this stage, it was vehicle man that was doing all the yelling and screaming, Biker man still hadn't uttered  a word. He was that miffed. All he could do was show us his ruined boots, bruised feet and damaged bike. Suddenly, he rummaged through a bag on his bike and we all held his hands to stop him from pulling out whatever weapon he had and then some men took him away from where vehicle man was. Vehicle man explained that Biker man had been revving annoyingly and flashing for him to get out of the way on the road around Ojota whilst there was a huge truck beside him. He signaled to biker man to fly over his car if he couldn't wait and next thing he knew, biker man cut across the front of his vehicle and with a looming honking truck threatening to crush them both, he chose to swerve and thus knocked biker man down onto the road. He did not stop nor stay to check if biker man was hurt or even dead. He felt he did the right thing.

Sigh.

I tried to make him see reason that NO MATTER WHAT, YOU CANNOT KNOCK A PERSON DOWN AND FLEE THE SCENE. Hit and run is a criminal offense, I believe. He was still so adamant so I left him and went after biker man around the corner where he had been led to. I met biker man in tears. :( He wasn't crying, he was weeping profusely because he felt so cheated and bewildered at the callousness of what vehicle man had done. It was like the realization and enormity of the fact that he could have died suddenly dawned on him and we (intervention/good Samaritans committee) wouldn't let him get at the villain. He explained that he did flash at vehicle man to let other road users through since he was taking his pretty time on the road and that as soon as he saw an opening, he rode through only to have vehicle man knock him down from behind and flee the scene. I pleaded with him in the name of God to let it go and reminded him that karma was still very much alive and kicking asses. I left the scene because it was too much for me to see a grown man break down like that. Before going to my office, I told vehicle man's colleagues to ensure he went to apologize to biker man, regardless.

A few minutes later, my security guy called me to say biker man wanted to see me. I obliged and when I got out he had calmed down some and actually prostrated to thank me for helping him out. I felt really bad for him and at the same time happy for him because he not only survived the accident, he also manged to rise above the situation. I could tell he was a very humble man who got angry because of the injustice meted out to him. He eventually told me just before I left him that he wasn't pulling out a gun nor dagger but he had a fetish/jazzed ring in his pouch with which he intended to hit vehicle man with. o.O

I took off!!!

Shortly after biker man left, I was told vehicle man was around to see me. I watched him swag up to me and even the person I was conversing with at the time said something like "this is an egoistical person". He gave a half-assed little thanks as a matter of introduction before going on a self-gratifying explanation of what happened and why he didn't feel the need to apologize. I was like this (-_-). I let him ramble on and by the time I was through schooling him on how an apology costs nothing if you can set your ego aside, but will always save your face and hide in tough situations, he sobered up real quick.

Look, letting your ego get in the way of rational and common sense is really very unbecoming of. An apology never takes a strand of hair off your head, rather it helps smoothen things out and disarms the aggrieved thereby giving them a chance to really listen to your side of the story. So, swallow your pride and do the needful whenever the occasion arises.