The little Boy smashed

(Inspired by a real event)
Rolling down the street
Trying to get across
Is this little boy trying to make a run


What a sound I heard
The little boy smashed
By a bike running ahead.
Poor boy,trying to run across
Now in the pool of Blood,

The crowds are here
Wailing here and there
Let us cease the bike
Let us cease the man
And put him on the pike

But right behind my ears
I hear the voice that says
Who will take me up
Can we go to the clinic
So that I can go for picnic
Says the little boy smashed.

Story Behind The Poem

This poem is inspired by a real life event. One fateful night on the road, as we saw an accident scene. It was a little boy who had been smashed down by a bike.

I didn’t see how the accident happened but what inspired me with this poem is the actions of men that surrounded the boy.

As I observe, I can only but concluded that one of the bad character that has
plagued humanity is misplace of priority.

Humanity most times focus on the minor while we leave the major thing untouched, or we can sometimes be found channelling less energy into the crucial things and more energy to trivials.

Yes, the cry to punish the bike man for his reckless is a good one. But the good of it cannot be equated to saving a life.

A little boy has just been smashed down and immediate medical attention is needed how then do they all judged what comes first as jailing the bike man.

I believe strongly that the boy should be attended to firstly, first aid administered by volunteers and the boy taken to the hospital.

But what I saw was different, the boy sitting down on the tarred road, crowded by the onlookers, bruised and bleeding, from one side of the head, and everyone was busy ranting and pouncing on the bike man.

Priority comes first. This Kid is not dead now and this could even worsen the matter.

Making sure that the bike man is held responsible for his action is noble, but not at the negligence of the little boy’s well being.

Then, I saw the little boy staggering as he attempted to get back to his feet, and that was when someone from the crowd supported him.

Looking at the boy, I could tell he wanted help, he wanted attention, he wanted to be taken care of but he was just surrounded by people with misplaced priority.

After he stood on his feet, no one still took the boy out of the scene to the nearest hospital; the boy was being kept on his feet while the majority of the onlookers were busy reprimanding the bike man. It was almost turning to lynching

Implications of misplaced priority in his incident

Firstly the boy was injured and could be treated. But with the misplaced priority of the people. The condition of the boy might be worsen or even lead to the demise of the child.

Also, if they eventually lynched the bike man; that means we will have two dead or one dead, one injured; either way, the situation have only become worse.

Misplaced of priority will only worsen he matter. We can be better off by making sure that we prioritise our actions do things according to the level of importancy in this incident, saving life is more important than demanding it.

It might not be an accident, it might be something else, whatever it is, the effect of misplaced priority is the same and it will always worsen the matter.

Can we ask the crowd who want to put the bike man’s head on the pike at the expense of the health of the little boy smashed if they would rather have a life saved or to have it dead?

✍️By Oyewole Ishola

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