We all matter

I had been asked by mother to go and sell bags of sachet water for a customer. The sun had fallen and now the evening breeze cool like harmattan mornings. I was busy watching the evening program that I so Loved. Mother had already conversed with the buyer on phone, stating that she had enough cold water and hot water. I knew she was about to end the call and immediately I felt a lurch in my stomach. She turned towards me from where she was seated on the ground, "kunie! Go and sell water for papa!" She said in very high tones as usual. I stared at her and gave out a weak sigh. I staggered towards the shelf on which the factory keys were kept and took a stack of packing Bags so that I wouldn't have to come back to the house until I was done. I couldn't explain what I felt, I wasn't ready to leave my TV program and I certainly didn't want to sell bags of water at the moment. Not now. Immediately my legs began to tremble. I realized soonest that I wasn't good at counting bags of water stacked up in rows and columns. I hated the look on the faces of customers when I took longer than expected to count the bags of water. I didn't want to look bad with numbers. I wished there was a way to avoid running this errand today but obviously I couldn't.
As I walked out of the living room to the veranda, he was standing outside waiting patiently. He looked like he was in a hurry and definitely wasn't ready for my slow pace. " Good evening sah" I began to feel tiny pinches in my armpit, I was beginning to sweat. When we got to the factory, he had already packed his white van in front of the entrance. There were bags of water arrainged in a sraight line and I assumed it would fit the number of bags papa wanted. I tried as much as possible to look calm and assure myself that it wasn't a big deal. Started counting and multiplying while he opened the boot of his van to arrange it. He wanted 165 bags and there was 144 bags lined outside the factory, meaning I needed to add 21 bags from the inner room in the factory. I was beginning to find peace now because I had weathered the storm. I sat down and starred while he jacked the bags with full force like a hungry lion jabbing bush meat. He was sweating greatly, his shirt was drenched in sweat and the air was becoming contaminated. It was unpleasant, very unpleasant. I started to notice things that I didn't see earlier because I was unhappy that mother had pried into my program. He had patches of grey hair amongst the usual black ones. His hands were wrinkled from yesrs of hard work, his legs looked tired from whatever he had been doing all through the day. The air was clogged up with his unpleasant smell but I realized that his struggles and desire to provide a good life for his family brought about this unpleasant smell. He didn't mind offending my nose, anything for his future and that of his family. This smell brought about everything he owns and will ever own. It didn't matter anymore who he was, where he came from or whether he interrupted my TV program. What mattered most was that this man was human and had blood flowing in his vains like me. He deserved better but life seemed cruel to him. I Left the factory elated unlike the other days I sold water. A mindset was corrected. He mattered too!