Thread by @IjeomaOgud

My mum told me the most harrowing story yesterday, about how a favourite customer of hers came to visit her here in Lagos, 3 weeks after he died in the east.

He visited not just her, but a neighbour he's friend with, down the road. Same day.

I'm still shook men.

So I went to see my mum yesterday and my dad was saying, "won't you tell her of the dead man who came to visit you?"

Me I was just wait, what's going on?

Na so mumsie started her story. A regular of hers, who she hadn't seen in a few months, came to eat fist week of December.

My mum has this thing where she knows what her regulars like, no matter how long ago they came to eat.

So after greeting this man, Chris, she served him his regular food. My elder brother, who lives across the road from her shop, and also knows the man, came around.

She said the man stayed with them for a good 2 hours. That my elder brother and the man were even arguing about football and the argument even got heated. And that Chris told them he was going to the east to bury his brother, who died and left behind a wife and young children.

My mum said she commiserated with him on the death of his brother.

And then after he left my mum's shop, he went to visit a family down the road, who were also his friends. He met the friend's wife, who was also happy to see him and spent time with him.

Then a few days ago, my mum happened to see the friend of his wife who he had gone to visit. After they greeted each other, the lady apologized to Mumsie, that she was a little distracted.

She now started explaining to mumsie that she just got some news that was mind blowing.

She started describing Chris, saying she suspects my mum might know hiim as well. That he came to her house a week ago. Mum said, of course I know him. He came to my shop the same day he came to your house.

"Mummy, do you know Chris was dead before he came to visit us?"

So apparently after Chris came to visit her and left, her husband came back and said he had met someone who gave him the bad news; that Chris had died.

This woman was in shock. Which Chris? Are you saying he died after he left here?

Her husband was confused:

The person who told him that Chris had died didn't say it happened today.

That's how they picked up the phone and called Chris' wife, who was in the east. Lagos Woman's husband greeted Chris' wife, said he had tried Chris' number a few times in the last month and it rang out.

And that he hadn't heard from Chris in a while so he wanted to touch base with him.

That's when Chris' wife dropped the bombshell; her husband died on the 11th of November. In the East.

Yet he was in Lagos visiting people first week of December.

My mum was in shock. She said, wait, that's not possible. He was here. I saw him. I spoke to him. I gave him food. He sat here and argued with my son. I even told the waitress not to give him water while he's eating because he doesn't drink water while eating.

And he thanked me for remembering.

How are you saying he had been dead a full month before he came to visit me?

Mumsie said even the friend's wife was shaken. Because she said she didn't even know she wasn't the only who saw him that day.

She had been trying to rationalize it

Hearing that he also visited Mumsie, meaning that she wasn't the only who saw him that day.

Friends, if it was that this was someone Mumsie didn't know, and maybe she saw him in a crowd or something, I would have said maybe she mistook him for someone else.

But he sat with her and my elder brother. They talked. He ate food and told them about his dead brother.

Turns out his brother didn't die. he was the one who died. His body is in the mortuary.

Me I'm a creature of logic and reason, but man... I don't understand this one.

I know we've all heard stories of things like this happening, but me I've always poohooed it. I always felt there was some science behind it.

But this one, I have no explanation.

My dad was trying to rationalize, saying maybe the wife wasn't sure of the date her husband died. Mumsie said, how can a woman not know the date her husband died? If she wasn't sure of the exact date, it was in November. He came to visit us in December.

How do you explain that?

My mum was jus like, see, I've heard of these things before, and you know we all take it with a pinch of salt.

But this one ehn...

She just chalked it down to one of the mysteries of life.

Maybe the man wanted to visit his favourite people before leaving.

Eat at his favourite buka...

See his favourite friends...

I beg anyone who has an explanation, I'd be happy to hear it.

My mum kept saying, "this was where he sat with your brother and was arguing. I can still see his face and hear his voice. And it wasn't in passing."

Me I was just standing there like...

I pity my poor mother who has to forever live with this mystery.