December 10, 2005: Mike's Struggle...

My husband said to me,

“Ije, if it is true that Kechi is alive, if she survives this…”

I cut him off and said to him that the fact that Kechi was alive meant that she was going to be okay.

One of the rescuers kept calling me to ask if I was at the hospital yet. Port Harcourt is known for traffic jams but that day was truly horrible. We were barely moving and were getting very frustrated. I was praying ceaselessly with Mike concurring. I made a vow to God that because He had saved Kechi's life, my family and I would serve him forever. Mike said a big “Amen” to that.

The next time the rescuer called he was impatient. 'Madam, you are not there yet? Your daughter is calling for you. Please rush.”

Mike called his sisters who lived in Port Harcourt, and his friends, and told them where Kechi had been taken. Kate, my sister-in-law called us and told us to hurry. She had been to the hospital and had seen Kechi and was not sure she would be alive for much longer. I had seen the bodies at the airport and knew what to expect.

At this time, I also got several text messages that I now know were from one of the parents telling me to rush to the hospital. Mike said then, “Maybe Kechi is just hanging on to see you one last time; you know how close she is to you”.

I rejected that at once, in the name of Jesus, and told Mike that the God I served would not keep Kechi alive only to take her away. The  traffic  became  so  bad  that  Mike  asked  me  to  take  a commercial bike to the hospital because they were able to weave in between cars and would get me there faster. This was a mode of transportation he usually forbade us to take for safety reasons.

This was not a normal day.

To be continued...