Who are you scared of?

Today evening, I was out for a walk with my music and the wonderful breeze. As I walked along the familiar road, I had beautiful songs playing in my ears and in my heart. On this road, I could have even walked with my eyes closed as I know every nook, bend and bump like the back of my hand.

As I crossed a dark patch of road, hidden secretly between two ill placed streetlights, I was suddenly taken aback by the sound of feet running towards me. In front of me, I could make out shadows growing rapidly closer to me, approaching me from behind. I was no doubt scared, my heart skipped a beat and my brain instantly started to build up defenses preparing for the confrontation.

I stepped on the side of the road as the shadows came upon me. Up close, I could now see clearly the intruders who had ruined my peace. They were three of them, huddled together, heavy bags on their backs and desperate look on their faces. They drew close to me, their eyes imploring.

I tried to see the reason why three children on the way back from tuition would be so scared. Clearly they were looking at me to protect them from whatever it was that had  shaken them out of their wits.

In no time, my fear had turned to confusion and my eyes scanned the darkness trying to catch a glimpse of  this new unknown enemy. As the children hid behind me, the enemy approached, running, skipping and darting off as quickly as it could into the night. It was a poor dog so frightened by the sight of four of us that it could not waste a moment trying to decipher what had scared us. 

As soon as he disappeared, the children heaved a sigh and quickly scuttled off into the darkness, without any nod or thank you, obviously relieved but in no mood to be gracious.

Alone again in the darkness, I couldn’t help but wonder and replay the last 10 seconds in my mind. What had seemingly scared me in the first place was actually seeking my help from something that it had managed to scare. How amusing life can be!