IT'S IN MY MOUTH

 

PROLOGUE
In my mouth lies the power of life and death
In my mouth lies the past and the future
In my mouth lies that which cannot be tamed
In my mouth lies the TONGUE.

That was an attempt at poetry, don't worry i'll get there one day *smiles*

 DISCLAIMER: yes, I'm here again. I would like to state here that the story you are about to read is fictitious and is in no way associated with anybody. The names used are only a figment of the writers imagination.


CASE STUDY
You must have met Cynthia at one point or the other in your life. I'm so sure you know her, that lady that always has something bad to say about herself. Everyday she walks into the room telling us the same story "Nobody likes me, I'm ugly, I'm too fat, I just can't understand anything..... gosh; I'm so stupid, i can't do anything right......".blah, blah, blah and more blah.After ranting she calms herself and then asks me "am i fat? am i that ugly?? why is it that i'm so dumb??? why Stella?? Why??!... She looks at me for answers and i give her a blank stare because really what should i say??. To me, its more like an ironic question because she has pretty much answered the question herself, before asking  me.

Donald is my classmate in School . He's just so fresh and cool that you can't help but notice him each time he walks by. The major reason why he's always the cynosure of many eyes is because he always has something to say. His level of sarcasm is out of this world. Whenever he makes certain jokes about some things, people who know him laugh and forget about it. Those who are not familiar with him may take offense at such statements. Well Cynthia was having her lunch in the cafeteria one day and Donald decides to join her on her table. They exchange pleasantries and before you know it, Cynthia begins to share her "lamentations". she asks Donald "do you think i'm ugly?".... Donald in his usual sarcastic manner answers "nah....i don't think, i KNOW you are ugly".. and then he laughed. Cynthia gets up and runs out of the cafeteria crying. Next thing we heard, Cynthia was in the hospital. The doctors were trying to save her life after she overdosed herself.

Eugene is your average school girl. She tries her best to read all the time so that when its time for test or exam she doesn’t have to "crash read". In this past week, she had been feeling very lazy to read. Well as fate would have it, there was an impromptu test on Monday. She didn’t know what to write because she had not read her notes in a while. She managed to write a few things down while saying to herself "i can't fail this test, i just can't...my only option is to pass" She kept on saying those words to herself until the results were released. On her way to check the result on the board, she had all sorts of doubt in her head but she said to herself " I've passed already". She got to the board and voila!....she passed.


THE PROBLEM
Cynthia, Donald and Eugene have a common problem. While Cynthia doesn't know what to say, Donald knows what to say but doesn't know when to say it. As for Eugene, she knows what to say and when to say it. Cynthia is already used to saying bad things about herself and she has programmed her lifestyle in such a negative fashion. In Donald’s  case, sarcasm might be his own way of making new friends, little did he know that he would meet someone like Cynthia that  can’t take a joke. Eugene’s problem???... I don’t think so.


THE SOLUTION
Like they say “A problem shared is a problem half-solved”. There you go, we’ve solved the problem half-way by just talking about it. Let me just add a few words;
FERME LA BOUCHE! ……..yeah, know when to KEEP QUIET!.
Do you know how many lives have been saved by this method? Do you know how many destiny’s have been changed for the better by just knowing how to apply this rule?. Wisdom is key in applying this golden rule. Someone once said “it is better for people to assume that you are stupid than for you to open your mouth and confirm it”….hmmm, how true it is.
If you use your tongue to curse yourself and build boundaries around your success, how do you expect things to work out for you?. Its bad enough things are not going well for you, why would you want to compound issues by saying negative things??.
As a child, I was told that for everything  we say (good or bad) there is an angel waiting to say Amen. Even if it’s not true, at least it has helped in building my mind positively.


EPILOGUE
A book I read sometime ago says you are what you eat. Lets scrap that, I say YOU ARE WHAT YOU SAY YOU ARE. Instead of looking at the half glass of water as half-empty (the pessimist) why don’t you look at it as half-full (the optimist).
Even the holy book says it too. Your words are life, you say something and it is done.

SPEAK LIFE!!!

Gracias.                                            

DO YOU KNOW WHO I AM?!

Like they do in movies….let me just state this here.

“DISCLAIMER; This post is in no way affiliated with the previous post.“….. (lol, I’ve always wanted to say that) 

“Its time to vote again and everyone is out on the streets looking for their various voting centers. There is little or no vehicular movement because of the ongoing elections. There are people of all ages here (from 18 and above).  People have been sitting here since morning and there is no sign of the electoral officers. Everyone is stressed out and the  sun is blazing hot. People are now gathering in groups to discuss various issues concerning the country…..and voila!.. the electoral officers arrive. Now everyone is trying to get in line so that they can vote and go home. You can hear those at the back of the line screaming “no chancing…..no chancing”… everyone is tired. Now voting has not started because the officers have to set up their equipments, meanwhile people are still on the line, under the hot sun.

Voting has started and people can’t wait to register their vote and go. While on the line, a big black jeep pulls up at the voting centre followed by an entourage of other exquisite cars. A man dressed in suit wearing dark shades, comes down from the car and goes to open the passenger door. Just like they do in movies, the first thing we saw was a pair of brown shiny shoes. We were all  looking at the “side attraction” still taking note of our positions on the line. The owner of the shoe came out and  it was a big chubby man(cool way of calling an obese person) in his early forty’s. it was obvious he came to vote so everyone turned back to their primary assignment-voting. The man took one look at the line and walked all the way to the front adjusting his agbada as he went. He got to the front and stretched out his hand and said “I want to vote”. People on the line started screaming and shouting “no o, no o…ogbeni, fly to the back o….just dey go the back as we dey look you so”. The man acting surprised opened his mouth and with all his strength, he shouted…”DO YOU KNOW WHO I AM ???””…….you can already guess what happened to him, looool, with their anger and frustration from the voting exercise….the voters pounced on him and were ruffling him up…he was saved by his bodyguards.

A lot of people have been in this kind of situation where you are having an argument with someone and the person begins to shout “do you know who I am??”.  Most times when I’m confronted by such people I say to myself “really, who cares???”. These ‘proud’ people are always walking around with their heads held high [just like the peacock] trying to intimidate people with their ‘achievements’, for all we know most of them are self-acclaimed local champions from their various villages. You see them almost everywhere you go, really they just can’t be hidden. We see them at big events----yeah they show up when the occasion has gone halfway and walk all the way to the front row waving and showing their dentition to all who care to look. They are very prominent at the supermarket----oh yeah they see a queue at the counter and instead of lining up like normal people do, they walk all the way to the front like they have some magic potion in their mouth that will work wonders. Lets come down to the school arena, that’s right we have them in our classes too. Maybe its because they used to come 1^st in their various high schools et all [I really don’t care] they now feel like ”champions” {local ones of course}. They like to make sure they are heard, always arguing in class about certain facts even when they are wrong!...*sigh* I could go on and on.

 This question, as harmless as it sounds has been/is the cause of disputes amongst many people. Sometimes, the persons actions might not really annoy you but once that question pops up, you ask yourself…who do these people think they are. Although it works for some people i.e when they ask “do you know who I am?”,  the person they are talking to may be scared and run off.  Well it doesn’t   work for everyone though…in some cases you might just end up like that man from the election day. Sad thing is that you might not be lucky enough to escape.. My free advice to you…Thread with caution.

QUESTION; do you know who I am???

ANSWER; I ----- I

                 A -----AM

               M ---  MEEEE!!!

         

             GRACIAS.

25 THINGS THAT “I AM”

1. I am the maker of the heavens.
2. I am the bright and morning star.
3. I am the breadth of all creation.
4. I am the one who walked on water.
5. I am the one who calmed the seas.
 6. I am the miracles and wonder.
7. I am the fount of living water.
8. I am the risen son of man.
9. I am the healer of the broken.
 10. I am your savior and redeemer.
11. I am the one who bore the sins of man.
12. I am the author and perfecter.
13. I am the beginning and the end.
14. I am the spirit deep inside you.
15. I am the word upon your heart.
 16. I am the one who even knew you before your birth, before you were.
17. I am throughout the earth.

 18. I am the universe.
19. I am in every heart.
20. I am where you are.
21. I am the lord of lords.
 22. I am the king of kings.
23. I am the holy lamb. 2
4. I am above all things.
25. I am the mighty God your father

THUS SAITH THE LORD.

BEAUTIFUL!!!

Hello ladies and gents.....
I saw this story and i could not resist the urge to share it with you all

Twin girls, Brielle and Kyrie, were born 12 weeks ahead of their due date. Needing intensive care, they were placed in separate incubators.

Kyrie began to gain weight and her health stabilized. But Brielle, born only 2 lbs, had trouble breathing, heart problems and other complications. She was not expected to live.

Their nurse did everything she could to make Brielle’s health better, but nothing she did was helping her. With nothing else to do, their nurse went against hospital policy and decided to place both babies in the same incubator.

She left the twin girls to sleep and when when she returned she found a sight she could not believe. She called all the nurses and doctors and this is what they saw (refer to the picture above).

As Brielle got closer to her sister, Kyrie put her small little arm around her, as if to hug and support her sister. From that moment on, Brielle’s breathing and heart rate stabilized and her health became normal.

From then on, they decided to keep both babies together, because when they were together they kept each other alive.

WOW!....  Now is this beautiful or is this BEAUTIFUL...

YET A LITTLE WHILE, YET A LITTLE SLUMBER...

                            

RIDDLE; I am something when you have a lot of me you loose a lot of time and opportunity, when you have little or none of me, u are in disarray…..what am I?

ANSWER; SLEEP.

 Situation 1;            

Christine just had a fabulous weekend with her friends. She had to enjoy the weekend because she had a busy Monday ahead. She got back home on Sunday evening and did her best to get prepared for Monday, by ironing her cloths, arranging her books et all. She had to leave the house very early in the morning. She told her mum to wake her up on time and even set an alarm for 5.30 am. She went to bed with a mindset of waking up early (uh…hmm). To cut the story short she woke up by 9:15 in the morning (hahaha)

SITUATION 2;

Richard, a university undergraduate had just had a fun weekend and even forgot that he had a test in school on Tuesday. He got back to school on Monday and saw his mates reading. The library was packed with people and  even the class was full. Then it hit him…he had not looked at his books. He ran to the hostel, picked his books and ran to the class. On his way to class, he kept murmuring to himself “I will not sleep this night, ehn when I’ve not read anything…I must do overnight!” He read till the early hours of the morning and only went to the hostel to have his bath and take his identity card. He entered the exam all and all he could write on his answer sheet was his name and matriculation number. Needless to say what he scored in the test.

We have all had this kind of experience at one time or the other in our lives. As funny as It sounds, not a few of us have been in such quagmire. We like to relax, rest and sleep. Sleeping isn’t a bad thing, its something that is a norm in our lives. As good and refreshing as it is, when it is taken to the extreme it becomes a problem. A lot of times we really want to wake up early et all but sleep just draws us back. Sometimes we even set alarms but by morning when the alarm is ringing we wake up, put it off and go back to sleep….funny isn’t it, like they say the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.  Back in high school, my mates and I  were preparing for our final exams and so each time we were feeling sleepy we would tell our friends to wake us up in 15 minutes that even if we don’t want  to answer them, they should pour us water and beat us (all these were done, just so we could read..lol). I remember one time,  the 15 minutes was over and it was time to wake them up. The so-called ‘friend’ would try to wake her friend to read but she would not wake-up and so she poured the water on her and that’s when the fight started. The friend screamed and cursed her friend for trying to disturb her sleep…hahaha, I couldn’t hide my laughter. Some of us just sleep not because we want to but because we can’t control it which may really be a sign of laziness. Some even sugar coat it by saying ‘I’m not sleeping I just like staring at my eyelids when they are covered’…YEAH RIGHT!

In the same manner not having enough sleep can be pretty depressing. You can hardly focus on anything when you are in a state like that. It’s just a case of jack of all trades but master of none. In this age people brag about insomnia like it’s a good thing…..do you know that research has proven that insomnia serves as the basis of certain diseases that affect us in this present age??? Well now you know.  An adult is supposed to have between 6-8 hrs of sleep but these days with traffic and other activities people sleep by 12 and wake up by 3 just so they can make it early to their place of work. I can imagine how stressful that is.

If you are like Christine and you like to sleep a lot, well maybe you should try to discipline yourself and learn to beat sleep at its own game. Try to understand yourself and regulate your sleeping pattern.  If symptoms persist beyond your ability, see a doctor. It might just be that your body is trying to tell you something. Like a part in proverbs that says ‘take a cue from the ants, as small as they are they work so hard just so they can earn their daily bread’. While you are sleeping, people are working.

If you are a Richard in the making, It’s of no use really to work so hard and end up in the grave before your time is due neither is it fulfilling to achieve nothing with the time you have on earth. Try to get enough sleep so that your body can rest. Imagine your body was a machine and it does so much work without being serviced once in a while, it would just pack up one day. There should be a balance because health is wealth.

Dear Reader, I hope I have been able to convince you and not confuse you on both the good side and bad side of sleep. Examine yourself today!

GRACIAS!

P.S: part of the inspiration for this post came from a friend of mine…..lol. xoxo

RESOLUTIONS; I WILL NO LONGER......

    It is the end of another day, the end of another week and definitely the end of another month. Wow! Six months gone already this year. It may sound cliché to say “time flies” but really it does (especially when you are actually doing something with it). I remember those Passover services we normally have on the 31s of December every year. Every year it’s the same tale in church…… “I will no longer do this, I will no longer do that”….blah, blah, blah. You would see a lot of people confessing their wrong doings and prophesying into the New Year (yes, we are all guilty).

At such services, you hear confessions like these:

From someone who drinks a lot: I will no longer drink again, I will never look at alcohol again……..

From someone who smokes; I will not buy a stick of cigarette this year. This year I will not smoke, if I smoke let me…..

From a lady who sleeps around with different men; I will no longer sleep with men again, this year I will keep myself till I get married……

From a gossip who talks about what did and didn’t happen; this year, I will mind my business. I wil no longer gossip….

From an armed robber; I will never steal again. I will never carry a gun again. This year, I will not rob again…..

Let’s not even go far, lets come down to the level of a university student who procrastinates in almost everything that he does. He postpones the reading of his class notes, doing of assignments….e.t.c.   Towards the end of the year, he looks back at what he has achieved and he is not impressed. There and then, he draws out a list of things he wants to achieve in the coming year and says to himself “I will no longer procrastinate, I will do things at the right time……..”

…..yeah right. ‘yimu’ as my warri friends will say. I’m not going to say the popular sayings like-à it’s easier said than done, action speaks louder than words, talk is cheap and the rest (oops I said it……loool). Alright, we are all guilty (including yours truly) but isn’t it funny how we plan things the way we want them to go and in the end they go another way sometimes even worse than we planned it to???...pretty sad. When we were coming into this year, a lot of people had mapped out strategies with which they will use to succeed this year but now half way into the year, there has been little or no progress. Some are even regressing. It’s bad enough that some people are not where they expected to be but the pressure around, from peers and family is even more depressing. For every cloud, there is a silver lining. It’s never too late to start afresh as long as you still have breath in you. Concerning the resolutions, a lot of people went back to their old ways even on the third day of the year. Needless to say, their resolutions flew out the window. There are some that tried (and are still trying) to keep their resolutions and its been working for them.

It’s never too late to start afresh, we still have six months to the end of the year and anything is possible. You just have to re-strategize. Here are a few points;

-write out some positive messages/inscriptions or what you hope to achieve on a piece of paper or cardboard and hang it in your room, or even paste it on the wall by your bedside. This way, it is the first thing you see every morning.

-set reminders or even an alarm on your phone for specific times/ activities . This way you are reminded of what you ought to do even if you drift away.

-most importantly, you should have a friend and a confidant (preferably GOD) who can set you back on the right track if you are going off track.

Tomorrow 1/7/2012 marks the beginning of the remaining half of the year. You might say you ‘I have done it before, it did not work’ well maybe something was missing then. Try again, but this time with faith (belief in what you hope for) and I tell you…the year will end on a fabulous note for you. My fear now is that after reading this, some People will still make the same mistake again…*sigh*. Well don’t disappoint me (yeah I’m talking to you too STEHLLAR!) LOL.

GRACIAS!!!

CIVILIZATION; Before & after

I was alone at home one evening watching a movie and i was really enjoying myself because I was tired after the day’s work. I must confess I was a bit shocked when I got home and discovered there was light (knowing the kind of country we live in, this is a luxury) …but hey, I felt it was my lucky day.

As I was enjoying myself, PHCN struck!

People in the neighboring compounds rushed off to put on their generators, plants et all. I was about to do the same and then I started thinking and asked myself…what if there was no electricity in the first place?? What if we were not civilized????

 Civilization according to the English dictionary, is defined as an advanced stage of social development. Note the key words ‘advanced’ and ‘development’.

BEFORE CIVILIZATION

This was the era our fore-fathers lived in. It is also known as the ‘old school’ era. In this era, electricity, technology, media, health-care,   machines, mobile phones et all were nowhere in sight. As children, the boys learnt how to work on the farm, plant and harvest crops e.t.c. In those days setting animal traps, climbing trees and firing catapults were some of the things they did for fun. The girls learnt how to plait hair, wash clothes and fetch water from the stream. In the night, the children would gather at the village square under the full moon and listen to folk tales from their grandfather or an elderly man in the village.

During this time there was nothing like sickness, illness or disease (at least that's what they were made to believe). People lived till their 90's or  even if they died as children, they were termed 'outcasts'

To make money, the man would have to farm and set animal traps and sell his produce at the market so he can feed his family. The women in this era had no other duty than to cook, clean, wash and raise the children. Each time the children did something bad, the man when reporting them to his wife would refer to them as ‘her children’… Here, the women cooked with firewood and stored drinking water in clay pots. One important feature you should know about the people of this era is that they were not poor….there was just no CIVILIZATION!

…..Slowly, this era began to fade.

AFTER CIVILIZATION

Hmmm… Say hi to the ’new school’. This is the era we now live in.

 This era has brought in a lot of advantages and it has come to stay. We now have electricity, internet, media, laptops, smart phones, medicine, machines and all sorts of gadgets. The children no longer play outside anymore, its all about play-stations and Barbie dolls. Parents now read bedtime stories to their children (as opposed to folk tales of mbe the tortoise and okoro the hunter that were told in the past). With civilization, came 'Ground breaking' diseases like cancer, H.I.V, tuberculosis...e.t.c Now, there are different ways of making money because of all the technology and media we are exposed to. People now do businesses online(e-business), play football and do other stuff and at the end of the day, they smile to the bank. Who would have thought that people actually get paid for talking(i.e commentators and mc’s) ???...the wonders of civilization…lol

The women no longer sit at home and raise children….they work. They also go out to seek daily bead for their family just like the husbands do. With all the advantages we see, there are also disadvantages. People are now getting lazy, addicted to smartphones, media et all (most of us are guilty #lol). Lets not forget the harm the fumes from generators, cars e.t.c  is causing to our environment.

I sat on my chair in the balcony thinking about all these as I was enjoying the cool breeze. I felt like a free being as I stared at the sky and saw how beautiful the moon and stars are. I was still enjoying the serenity of the evening when I heard a knock on the door…my parents were back. I came back to reality and put on the generator…I didn’t want them walking in the dark.

I have lived a great part of my life in the city and I have had the chance to visit the village (during the holidays) and I can actually say both places are cool. The former has a lot of gadgets and technology but it also has a lot of noise and congestion while the latter has no technology but in most cases there is peace and serenity. I’m still not sure of the one I prefer.

The world as we know…is a global village. Which do you prefer?? Civilization or un-civilization??

GRACIAS!

It is a CODE-ed world

I was surfing the Internet a while back when I came across this term >>>>>>> “THE GUY CODE”.

It’s not a new term to me because I have heard about it in some movies. I thought it was just an ordinary term used by guys to “feel among” till I used GOOGLE (like they say Google is your friend). My search proved to me that the guy code really EXISTS!!!

The Guy code is a like a Law book, guiding the ‘”brothers” way of life. It has sections, sub-sections, codes, rules et all. It has the features of a constitution and believe me, it is a pretty long list. Here are some funny ones that caught my fancy (N.B Girls are not meant to read/see it…. *sips coke*)

1. If you've known a guy for more than 24 hours, his sister is off limits forever! Unless you actually marry her.

2. When questioned by a friend's girlfriend, you need not and should not provide any information as to his whereabouts. You are even permitted to deny his very existence.

3. Under no circumstances may two men share an umbrella.

4. Women who claim they "love to watch sports" must be treated as spies until they demonstrate knowledge of the game and the ability to pick a Buffalo wing clean.

5. If a man’s zipper is down, that’s his problem, you didn’t see anything!

6. No man shall spend more than 2 minutes in front of a mirror. If more time is required, a three minute waiting period must be allowed before returning to the mirror.

7. Any dispute lasting any longer than 3 minutes will and must be settled by rock, paper, scissors. There is no argument too important for this determining method.

8. No man should EVER sit on another man's lap.

* with every set of laws, there are appropriate punishments. If any man shall happen to break any one of these codes, he will be found guilty, and will, for 24 hours from the time of the violation, be considered NOT A MAN. During this time he will not be referred to in any masculine way, and he shall bear the name Princess.  

I really laughed hard after reading the rules, because some of them are really funny. My best rule is “No 7”because I have observed that trait in guys… most of  them hardly keep malice with each other and that is a good trait.





Whatever is good for the goose is certainly good for the gander…. I went in search of THE GIRL CODE.

I had to search thoroughly and even read some books so I could have my facts about the girl code.

The girl code is a set of rules guiding the female race. It gives ideas and methods about how a Girl (lady) should act/behave. Here are a few of them (with my opinion attached).

1.      Never choose a guy over your friend:- welcome to nollywood where a girl discovers that her fiancé is cheating on her and she begins to attack the girl in question and then a fight ensures between the two of them while the guy in question smiles in one corner watching the drama…*smh*

                                                                                               

2.      A girl can declare a perfume her own if she started wearing it first:- when I used my own money to buy perfume, you’ll now tell me I can’t wear it because you got it first???... stop dreaming.

                                                          

3.      A lady never says or does things that make others feel small:- wait till you see the ladies of  “Timbre and Caliber” ..lol

4.      A lady does not smack her gum at the office:- have you been to a police station here or even some banks? Some things are best felt when experienced first hand…lol

                                                                                     

5.      When a lady’s car breaks down on the highway, she does not attempt to flag down a passing motorist. She waits for a law enforcement officer to arrive:- In this country??? NO COMMENT.

6.      A lady stands up for herself and is never a doormat:- try that in this part of the world and you are tagged “A FEMINIST”…sad.

                                                                                  

7.      A lady does not correct another persons grammer:- Huh?!... try making a grammatical error here in Lagos and believe me, you will trend…lol

8.      A lady does not buy clothes a size too small in hopes that someday she’ll be able to wear them:- some women actually think that wearing undersized clothes shrinks their weight/size by 2…yeah right.

9.      In a case where a friend spreads a horrible rumour about a friend and then apologizes, they are to be given the cold shudder for at least three days:- this is so true. Can you compare this rule to the No 7 rule of the guy code???...my thoughts exactly.

10.  Steer clear off men in relationships:- word of advice to the ladies- what goes around comes back around. Thank me later, Karma is real.

                                      

11.  Every girl must wait at least a day and a half before calling a guy whose number she has retrieved:- this is a fair deal but just have it in mind that there are many fishes in the sea, time waits for no one.

                                                      

12.  A lady offers to split the dinner tab with a gentleman:- HAHAHA….Guys/brothers what do you think????...lol

*THE PENEALTY FOR EXPOSING A SECRET TO AN UN-AUTHORIZED PARTY SHALL BE EXILE FROM GIRL-VILLE  (Seriously???)

Phew!....in  my (final) opinion, if you live by/subscribe to all the rules you have no use breathing, you should be a ROBOT (*laughs*).

            There a much simpler rule book. Its easy, cool and understandable. It is also stress-free. >>>>>>>>>>> PROVERBS 31: 10-31….. Se finir!

THANKS FOR READING. PLEASE SHARE | COMMENT….gracias!

IT IS A CYCLE

It really is a cycle. This is how it all starts;

‘a  wife came back from work early one day. She was very happy and so she could not wail to tell her husband, the good news. Her husband returned and they had the following conversation.

Wife:            darling, guess what

Husband:     what dear?

Wife:             guess now, just try

Husband:     *laughs* what is it? You know I’m not good at guessing.

Wife:            we are having a baby!!!!!!!           

                                                                             

….. and so it begins. The couple are overjoyed and are anxiously waiting for the arrival of their baby. The  mother tries her best to make sure she does not do anything to hurt the baby. She struggles and carries the baby for 9 months and the delievery day comes. She screams and shouts (she may even curse and insult her husband)  because of the kind of pain she is going through. The baby is delievered safely and when she sees the baby, she forgets all the pain, anguish and suffering she passed through and gladly embraces her joy (the baby)…. And so the journey begins.

The parents try so hard to make sure the child lacks nothing like wisdom, knowledge of God, discipline e.t.c. They watch him(her) take his first step, say his first word, make his first friend, pass his first test, et all. Then the child becomes a Teenager. He begins to keep a lot of things from his parents and is resentful towards them. He tends to go out more and enjoy life. He writes a lot of exams and gets into the higher institution. By this time, whatever mum/dad says is “old school”…..then he clocks 21.

They begin to round up their programs in school and become more independent, depending less on their parents. They begin to take ground breaking decisions themselves. Most times they have a “success-driven” mindset. By this time they want to be successful against all odds. Then they make it in life i.e get good jobs, cars and have a nice house. Then it’s “marriage time”

Parents are back again asking for their grand children. You search till you find the special one and then GBAM!...you are married. Then you and your spouse start having kids. Now, the real work begins. You work, work and work just so you can have enough to take care of the family. Sometimes, the money is not enough but you still strive just to make everyone around you happy. Your  own kids grow and act the same way you did when you were their age (sometimes, they act differently and you wonder is this my blood????). You  try your best to make sure they are successful. Then  you retire and sit back while they take care of you (not in all cases though) by this time, the “will” has been written.

Then, that once agile, strong and energetic body can hardly move. Special senses like sight, hearing and all begin to diminish. Then you begin to say nothing, see nothing, and hear nothing. You start blessin the people around you as you lay in that bed waiting for your maker to call you home. Just as you are about to go, your whole lif flashes before your eyes and voila!... is all over. Then it starts again (this time with your kids)

‘a  wife came back from work early one day. She was very happy and so she could not wail to tell her husband, the good news. Her husband returned and they had the following conversation.

Wife:            darling, guess what

Husband:     what dear?

Wife:             guess now, just try

Husband:     *laughs* what is it? You know I’m not good at guessing.

Wife:            we are having a baby!!!!!!!           

Did I hear you ask “what cycle is she  talking about???”

LIFE is a cycle.

Someone once said "the supreme irony of life is that no one makes it out alive."

it is well (even in the well)

THANKS FOR READING…COMMENTS AND CRITICISMS WOULD BE APPRECIATED.

A DAY IN LAGOS

                                                 

I woke up early today (saturday) because I had somewhere to be by 9.00am and it wasn’t around my area. By 7.30am I had left the house. While leaving the compound, I saw people washing cars(which is a normal routine in most homes.) I greeted the people I met on my way out and I headed for the streets. While walking down the road, I saw some cute people (in the ajebo sense) doing their early morning exercises, some were walking others were jogging…anything to strengthen their muscles so they can keep fit. I know a lot of people who don’t even know that exercise is good for the body ,they just feel it’s a lot of stress. I smiled at them (like I was happy for them) and I headed to the bus-stop. I got to the bus-stop and luckily for me, the bus arrived almost immediately like it had been waiting for me. I got into the bus hoping the driver would move fast so I could get to my destination on time but oh no, It’s like someone told him I was in a hurry and he decided to delay me(at least thats the way I see it.) I noticed that each time we got to a bus-stop , he would stop so he could get more passengers. That is not a crime but there were about 4 other bus conductors all screaming the same route, as if that is not bad enough there was no passenger in sight!  Well I got to my bus-stop in time though and it was time for me to jump a bike (a.k.a okada). I told the bike man where I was going to and when he told me the amount I had to “PRICE” it (call me an ijebu woman if you like…I don’t care). After our little argument, we reached a mutual amount. The way he was riding(I think it was anger) I just had to put my life in God’s hands. After all this, I reached my destination and on time too…YAY!!!!. I did my business and was out by 11:45a.m.

                I was back to my “pricing” tactics because I had to jump a bike,,,again. We did not argue too much this time so, I got on the bike. This time the ride was okay, and I reached my bus-stop safely. I looked for my next bus, I saw it and I boarded it. It took a long time for the bus to full and I could not help but notice all the people that surrounded the bus. We had people selling their wares which included toothbrushes, herbal medicines, books, e.t.c. and at cheap prices too. Also we had beggars around and  each one had his/her problem. They kept on asking for money and some people gave them but they still remained there till our bus moved. The road was a bit free so I enjoyed the ride. Lagos really is a beautiful place (if you live on the island though), I marveled at the paved and smooth roads as I remembered the “former” Lagos. In the past if an accident doesn’t claim your car, then the roads will because with the kind of potholes on the road then, your tyres were history. Time went by and the next thing I knew, I had reached the bus-stop.

 I had to get another bus that would take me to my house. While the conductor was calling passengers to board the bus, I was looking around because traffic had started to build. There was this bus driver who dropped his passengers in front of the road and even started calling a new set of passengers! He stopped the people plying that route just so he could get passengers. The vehicle he was obstructing had to horn for a very long time before the driver could move(pretty sad). We started moving and I was happy. The man sitting next to me in the bus just killed my joy (literally). The seat was meant for three people but “my guy” didn’t see it that way. He sat and spread his legs (like he had some shares in the bus) thereby making me uncomfortable. I had to move to another seat. The bus moved on slowly because of the traffic and so, I had to feed my eyes. The lady sitting in front of me had the most flawless make up ever. it was a bit heavy but She looked pretty. I could not help but wonder how she would maintain it with the heat and all the sweat *sigh*.

Next up were two ladies I saw at the bus-stop. They had the same material of clothing  and then I remembered the  OWAMBE which is very synonymous with Lagos. You really can’t separate one from the other. As the journey continued I saw more of them , mostly in groups with their gele (head gear), iro (blouse) and buba (wrapper). I even had one of them in the bus with me. She tried to stay away from the window because she didn’t want the wind to spoil her gele. She wasn’t even sure about the wedding venue because she had to call someone in the bus to direct her. All that was important to her was that she would attend the wedding come rain, come sun.

I couldn’t see stuff anymore because I had reached my bus-stop. I reached home and had my well deserved siesta. After looking back at all I had gone through today, I have nothing to say except……… EKO O NI BAJE!!