Forgive and Forget

What was the Christmas about for you? For me, this Christmas was all about forgiveness! After all the merriment and eating that came with Christmas, I lay in bed thinking before I called it a night. I took the time out to reassess the outgoing year; I took a few days to assess all that had happened in the past year. It is the 29^th of December now and so I have just two days to leave 2012 in 2012.

It has been an eventful year for me, a lot happened in this one year. I had ended a relationship, learned of life changing facts, I had learned that people could not be trusted, I learned that even the people you call friend would collude with their family to hurt you, even when they knew their family were clearly in the wrong and would kill you if you did same to them. But through it all, most importantly, I have learned to forgive and forget.

My mantra has always been, the best revenge for someone that hurt you is forgiveness. The way I saw it when you forgive you free yourself of a burden and spend the energy you would have used to plot a revenge to enjoy life, lets face it, I don’t even have the strength or even the brains required to plot a suitable revenge anyway. They person who has hurt you in turn, is burdened with wondering if you have really forgiven them. That to me is even the perfect revenge, you did no work, the person that hurt you does all the ‘revenging’ for you.

But this year I learnt a very important lesson about forgives. Forgetting!!! The terms forgive and forget are terms that go hand in hand. They are terms that we heard all our lives; at least I had, but never real had to live by. As we all know the forgiving part is the easy bit, it’s in the forgetting bit that we have our biggest challenge.

I had never really been in situations where forgiving or forgetting were a problem, because I had never been seriously hurt, I lived a sheltered life, so there was really no room for that. But this year I have been faced with so many betrayals and I have found my power to forget tested. When I was first faced the challenged with forgetting, I turned to the sermon of a priest that visited my church last year, I cant even remember what he looked like but his words have seen me through a lot this year. His sermon was on forgiving and forgetting, but what stood out to me that day was what he said about forgetting. He said, forgetting didn’t mean that you had forgotten what had been done to you; it meant that when you look back at it you didn’t feel the pain you felt when it happened. These words helped me a lot this year and they made a lot of sense, I had always felt guilty that I was unable to forget what had been done to me.

I have forgiven and forgotten all that was done to me this year, but I have taken from them a lesson. I am a happier person because of the fact that I can look back at what has happened this year, without feeling what I felt at the time it happened. I am a happier person because I can look back and come up with lessons that I have learned without feeling any pain. I am a happier person because I have accepted that my past is a very important part of who I am.

I am a happier person because I have been able to FORGIVE AND FORGET.

Young and In Charge: Susan Kukah

Our very first young person of the week is Susan Kukah, who took the business of buying and selling to a new level. Susan started out selling her mum's wares from her car but today the story is different. Read on and hope her story inspires you.

 

Tell us a little about yourself?

Susan: My name is Susan Florence Iye Kukah and am from Kaduna state! I was born on the 16th day of December. Am d first girl out of 3 girls and am d finest (lol).

What was growing up like?

Susan: Growing up for me was really really hard I must confess considering the fact that my parents didn't have enough but to the glory of God,tins are a lot better than they used to and I bless God for everything.

Tell us a little about your educational background?

Susan: I was born in Zaria. I attended Montessori nursery and primary school in Zaria,proceeded to Jabi primary school Abuja and then our lady of Fatima girls secondary school Kaduna where I obtained my Secondary school leaving certificate and then proceeded to Uniabuja where I studied law.

So what is Esskay mart all about? What does it mean and how did the name come about?

Susan: Esskay mart is basically all about buying and selling! What I basically do is order stuffs for young girls who want to go into serious business from the UK,Malaysia and Dubai! You pay me 50% of the total amount charged, I place your order, you get it in 14 days max. The first letter of my name is S and d surname starts with K so i added Ess and then Kay to it and i got esskay! Thats how d name came about!

How did you get into it?

Susan: I started doing this early this year and business is something I and mum love to d even though she has been into it for long!So what I do is I put everything she sells in my car and go to offices where I have friends and I sell for her. She gives me an opportunity to add say #500 or #1000 on every item sold and that way I was able to gather some money. When I graduated and law school wasn't forth coming I decided to confront my dad for a loan of #100000. My Dad didn't buy the idea but I was determined and with the help of God i got the loan and I was able to order six Indian gowns which cost me about #100000 and I sold them. That was d beginning of Esskay mart! So when my dad realised how serious I was he encouraged me even more and with that i was able to order a lot of boxes from Dubai and sold them to brides who were preparing to get married.

What is your typical day like?

Susan: My typical day in Abuja is all about hustling! If am not home,am in the bank doing one or two transactions, after that am already too exhausted to go out,but once in a while i get to sit out with one or two friends!

What do you love most about you and what you do?

Susan: What I love most about what I do is when I order stuffs and they arrive just in time as promised to a customer and the goods ordered are in perfect Condition, that feeling gives me so much joy and satisfaction.

What are the difficulties involved?

Susan: Difficulties I have faced in this business is having to deal with very bad debtors who make promises to pay when I order their goods and fail to fulfil such a promise,it slows me down. But I must say that I won't let it deter me from focusing on my business.

If you weren't doing this, what would you have been doing?

Susan: Lol! If I wasn't doing this I would be doing this my dear, I've got so much passion for buying and selling. It just keeps you focused and makes you remember that you have a future ahead of you and you also have responsiblities ahead of you!

Have you ever felt like giving up on Esskay mart?

Susan: Yes I have, it was just a few months after I started the business, I had to deal with some very personal stuff and it really tried my patience, I thought about giving up but I decided against it. I thank God I didn't give up.

ho or what inspires you?

Susan: What inspires me the most is the fact that am independent. My Parents have been a source of inspiration to me and i thank God for their lives. I love independent women who don't always have to wait for the men to do everything for them. That is who Susan is!

Considering the level of success you have attained, youths out there would be itching to know how old you are.

Susan: Am not young and am not old. Just 26!

Asides work, what do you do for fun?

Susan: I hang out once in a while,watch movies at the cinema. That is all.

Where do you see yourself and Esskay mart in the next five years.

Susan: In the next five years, I see myself grown and more matured, married with beautiful kids and a proud owner of a big plaza with so many things to buy and sell by the special grace of God, Amen.

Advice to youths that wish to follow in your footsteps.

Susan: There may be set backs, but all you need is Determination and Prayers. Without God you honestly won't make it. Be focused, please don't rob God of his own! Pay your tithe always and leave the rest to him to handle.

Some pictures of Susan's wares

 

Susan can be reached on, BB pin: 2A48F725.

 

Until We Want Change

Until we want change, things would only get worse.
Until we want change, our leaders would continue to get away with their corrupt ways.
Until we want change our children would continue to die in avoidable situations.
Until we want change our situation would not get better.

I saw a picture of four young men that were taken out jungle justice style today. What was their offence? They allegedly stole laptops and phones, allegedly being the key word. How do you tell a mother that her only son was beaten and then burnt to death because he allegedly stole a phone and a laptop? No arrests, no trial, no judgement? Just death because some villagers decided to be judge and jury over his alleged act of robbery.

How do we expect things to change when our mentality lays buried in the Victorian era? If Nigerian is to change and move forward, we must bring our mentality into the 21st century. We must be willing to change as much as we expect from the next person. Change wouldn't  magically happen in our lives.

Until we are willing to change, things would only stay the same.
Until we are willing to change, mothers would continue to cry for sons lost to jungle justice.
Until we are willing to change, we would be stuck in the past.
Until we are willing to change.

Aika, land of my fore-fathers

People keep asking why I want a better Nigeria, I guess it time for everybody to see one of the greatest motivation for me. This is me, this is home, this is Aika Ezeolu in Abala Oshimili, Ndokwa  East, Delta state and this is the plight of all the villages around us The closest a person can get to feeling what you feel about something is for them to see it, and since I cant take you guys there physically I guess a video would do. This video was sent tome by my dad, he had to go to the village barely a week after getting back from the states, without properly resting. He had to go back to the village to ensure the safety of our properties and also to ensure the safety of his people. Growing up, I had always been aware of the fact that the rainy season has never been the greatest friend of my people, we always came home in December to see watermarks of how high the flood had been during the year. Growing up I heard tales of how with each year my grandpa had to build a new house once the rains were over, because the house had been swallowed up by the river. In my whole years on earth the flood has never gotten this high, but from the video you can see the water is getting into the house through the window, it has never been this bad. I have been to the village during the rains just twice, and we were lucky because it never rained while we were there.

I guess you all understand why I am highly motivated for change to come to Nigeria, yes it is very selfish, but I want my people to have a better life than what they are used to. I want the sufferings of my people to stop. My people are hard working people and very successful farmers, you can imagine what the rains have done to their crops, they keep fighting for a better life but they keep getting dragged back.

This is an open call to my Governor, His Excellency Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan, the Chairman of Ndokwa East LGA, our representatives at the senate, representatives at both the national and state house of assembly, your people are suffering, please come to our aid. 

the video is on youtube and the link to it it:

http://youtu.be/f66ZttmrfeA

My2kobo: Me For Change

My2kobo: Me For Change: I had a dream yesterday night, I slept and I never woke up. I said a prayer the moment i woke up and called my Mom and we prayed together. I...

Me For Change

I had a dream yesterday night, I slept and I never woke up. I said a prayer the moment i woke up and called my Mom and we prayed together. I attended the midday mass, we weren't even up to twenty (lol). That dream scared me.

I had a thought yesterday morning, while the sweetness of a hot shower warmed my body on a cold September day. 'God would not let me die before I achieve what I was put on this earth for' and another thought popped into my head 'well no one lives forever, you have to start working towards what you were put on this earth for Iphie'. And with those thoughts the idea to start ME FOR CHANGE was born.

I had being toying with the idea of starting something that would be the center for the change i envision for Nigeria. I toyed with the names Me for change and change by me, Me for change sounded a lot cooler to me, hehehe. I kept pushing back the need to start a movement for change, I kept saying to myself, 'I would start it in December when I go home, I would start small, with my village being the first point of call'.

My dream was the wake up call I needed, I don't have forever to bring about the change I want to see in Nigeria, but I can start now and start bringing about change, no matter how little. I can bring about the change I want, doesn't matter that I am not in Nigeria at the moment. The most important thing is that I want a change that would shake Nigeria by her roots, I am not the only one that wants such change for Nigeria. I cannot not bring about such change alone and even if I wanted to I don't even know how.

I can keep dreaming about change or I can go out and work for it. The change I seek starts from me, ME FOR CHANGE (M4C). You can keep dreaming of a better Nigeria or you can work for it. Join me and we can change Nigeria one person at a time.
Follow Me for change on twitter-https://twitter.com/meforchange and join the group on facebook-https://www.facebook.com/groups/433831589997052/ or you can send us an email with your suggestions meforchange1@gmail.com

One sunny day.

I sat in my little corner of the world thinking, thinking about everything, from music to food, to fashion to family, to friends that were still around, to friends that were now a memory, to Nigeria and to the sun which had blessed me with its presence that morning. I sat in my little corner of the world, thinking about everything, I sat in my little corner of the world, thinking about Nigeria.

Most of my thoughts lately have been about Nigeria. I think of the greatness Nigeria can achieve, I think of the changes that are coming to Nigeria, I think of this change that I am going to be a big part of. I think of a new Nigeria, I think of a better Nigeria. Each day my thoughts are filled with hope of 'the Nigerian Dream'.

How is this change going to come to Nigeria, how do we achieve this 'Nigerian dream', you ask. My answer is simple, it is a nine letter word, the key to all our problems, EDUCATION. I can see you going 'errmm, what is she on about again'. But yes the key to solving our numerous problems is that simple.


You are wondering how a room, tables and chairs, a blackboard and a teacher can solve our problem right? Well i am not referring to that type of education. What I mean by education is information.It holds the key to solving all of our problems. They people should be informed about the true position of things. They should know effects of their actions or lack of it, the effect of their words or lack of it. They should know that they can get the Nigeria they dream of, they just have to work for it.


I sat in my little corner of the world, not just thinking or dreaming of a better Nigeria. I sat in my little corner of the world, plotting my return to the motherland. I sat in my little corner of the world perfecting my little plan of educating my people back in my village. I sat in my little corner of the world, perfecting my plans for a better Nigeria.

Why do I want a better Nigeria?

I think my friends are getting tired of hearing me whine about a better Nigeria. LOL. Any time i say anything related to Nigeria becoming great again, they go, 'you have come again, madam better Nigeria'.
Well it was during one of my numerous lectures on how we can make Nigeria great again that i realized 'why I wanted a better Nigeria'.

Why do I want a better Nigeria? For my kids. Sounds strange right. All my life, most of the adult part that is, I have lived my life considering how my actions today would affect the lives of my children in the future. Its funny when I say this to others, they all seem to laugh at me for thinking of children that I am yet to have. And I don't blame them, heck I don't even have a boyfriend so where would the babies come from.
But seriously, I honestly believe that my actions of today in turn has an effect in my future, my children are a big part of my future so why would I want to do something that would jeopardize their futures? I strongly believe that the way my parents lived out their youth had an impact on the almost perfect life I have today. My parents are not the richest folks in Nigeria, but a lot of doors have been opened to me and my siblings not because they gave bribes on our behalf, but because when they had the opportunity, they impacted positively in the lives of those they met. It might have been as little as just listening to the problems of some stranger that stumbled into their offices, or just simply explaining to an applicant why he didn't get his dream job. I know I am digressing, but I am just trying to show how the actions of parent have an impact in the lives of their children.

So, why do I want a better Nigeria? I want it for my kids. I want to raise my kids in a Nigeria where, 'up Nepa' is just a part of the story mummy used to tell them. I want to raise my kids in a Nigeria where we can take road trips when we want to, not caring the time of the day or the part of the country we are headed for. I want to raise my kids in a Nigeria where I don't have to send my children abroad for a sound education. I have lived abroad for the past 7months for my masters and I have hated every minute of it. I want my children to have the choice of schooling at home or abroad, and upon graduation having the opportunity to compete for the best jobs in the world. I want to raise my kids in a Nigeria where strikes and corruption are a thing of the past. I want to raise my kids in a Nigeria where I know they are getting the same health care as any other kid in the UK or the US. I want to raise my kids in a Nigeria where they can be best friends with Hadiza, Oiza, Segun and Uwa. I want to raise my kids in a Nigeria where they would get nothing but the best.

My kids cannot get the best if I don't work for it today. It is not by getting the best job and making all the money in the world. It is not by putting in all those hours in the office just so I can make enough money to give my children whatever they want. I want to give my children the best of everything and the only way I can give them the  best is if I start working on a better Nigeria today. I want my children to have the best so I am going to play my part to ensure Nigeria is great again. Nigeria may never be great in my life time, but I would do my best to ensure my children and grand children grow up in a great country.

Lucky? In what sense?

Meeting new people I must admit is one of my favourite things. But getting to know them beyond the surface is one of the most annoying phases of a new friendship, I must admit. I remember meeting people and getting to know them. Then they realize that my hair is a beautiful mix of brown and gold, as opposed to their ordinary black hair. They first thing they blurt out is ‘you know you escaped being an albino right’? *And so, does that make me less human*. ‘Your colour is so different’,* duh, I have been asleep for the past 20 something years of my life that I dint notice, thanks for bringing it to my attention Einstein*.  And my personal favourite ‘mehn, you are so lucky, you escaped albinism’ *really? Why? I didn’t get the memo on them not being human*. These are my mental reaction to them. My physical reaction to them is just to smile and say nothing, let’s just say if I were to go into it, they would curse the day we crossed paths.

But really, who are the lucky ones, the albinos or these ‘normal’ coloured idiots? In my opinion, the albinos are the lucky ones; they were spared of this stupidity the ‘normal’ coloured folks seem to keep passing down from generation to generation. Really so what makes you, Mr ‘normal’ colour, more human than Mr Albino huh? What makes you better than him, ehnnn? What gives you the right to call him unlucky?

Funny how when I was young I used to let their stupidity get to me. I remember putting a lot of my dad’s youth hair in my hair once, just so I could have ‘normal’ coloured hair. When my mum found out, I thought I was in for it, I silently said my last prayers. Funny enough all she said to me was ‘you are beautiful the way you are, I remember getting you ready for school each morning, combing you golden hair was my favourite part, so never try to change it’. I was still in high school at this point. Fast forward a few years, I am in uni and my hair colour seems to be the rage. Everyone is trying to get their hair to look like mine; they keep asking where I get my colours done. ‘hehehehe’ I laugh to myself secretly  and simply say to them ‘from the chief stylist Himself’, they walk away confused.

In recent years, I have come to see what my Mama saw years ago when she gave me that advice. I have come to embrace my ‘lucky’ colour just the way it is and I love it just like that. I remember one of my uni friend used to tell me I always look tanned, ‘really’ I think to myself, ‘this is what these oyinbo people shell out money for and am like this naturally’. That’s a good thing right, lol. I love me just the way I am and I wouldn’t have me any other way.

The fact is, I would meet a lot of smart ass ‘normal’ coloured people in the years to come. But their comments would no longer get to me anymore. I would also meet a lot of normal ‘normal’ coloured people in the years to come, that see beyond my ‘lucky’ colour. But I wouldn’t let the stupidity of the smart assed ‘normal’ coloured people cloud my judgement. I love me the way I am, and I am not going to doing anything about the way I look, if you don’t like it, you can take it out with the Big Guy himself.

Advices and the pinchy shoes

Have you ever given advice that you thought was perfectly sound for the situation, only to have the person turn around and not take your advice? Remember going on about how the person is a fool and how he/she is stupid for deciding to go on with that situation? Remember going ‘it’s not your fault, it’s me that refused to keep my mouth shut, it’s me that gave you advice now, next time I would just shut up’?

Have you taken time out to ask yourself why he or she chose to go on with this situation? Have you ever tried taking your own advice?

Truth is when we find ourselves in similar situations, taking our own advice becomes a herculean task. It’s easy to give out advice especially when we have never been in those shoes, but it is very difficult to take the same advice. Especially when it comes to the matters of the heart, advices come easily, yet it is so difficult to take that same piece of advice. For instance, a woman whose husband has turned her into a daily punching bag turns to you for advice. As a good friend, your best advice to her is to leave the b*****d right? And when she ‘refuses’ to leave him, you tell her about how stupid and weak she is right? Sometimes we don’t always say it out but we sure are thinking it. Now imagine the tables have turned, your boyfriend hits you, just once let’s say. Taking your own advice becomes a herculean task. You start making excuses for him, remembering all the good times you both had together, using the good times to make up for the bad times. What about the girl with the serial cheat for a boyfriend? As a good friend your advice is, ‘leave him abeg, he is not the only fish in the sea’. Well the tables have turned, yet you are unable to same, unable to take your own advice.

I am not saying your advice is a bad one, far from that. All I am saying is, be gentle on your friends, loved ones or whosoever you are giving advice when they don’t take this advice. The truth is, until you have been in their shoes, you don’t know how hard it is to take this advice.

Next time, when giving advice, remember to be a strong shoulder to lean on during the implementation of your advice. Don’t get mad when your advice is not taken, just remember to be there for them through it all, that is what is important.

Just a little love.

Almost everyone I know keeps going on about how bad Nigeria is and how our leaders are our problem. I beg to differ, 'WE ARE OUR PROBLEM'. They all go on about how they want a better Nigeria, and how they wish things would just get better. I have just one question 'WHAT HAVE YO DONE TO CHANGE THINGS AROUND YOU'? Some even go on to say they are looking for the quickest ticket out of Nigeria to developed countries. I have just one reply to them 'IF THE CITIZENS OF THESE DEVELOPED COUNTRY YOU ARE RUNNING TO DECIDED TO BE LIKE YOU, WHERE WOULD YOU HAVE TO RUN TO'?

The biggest problem with Nigeria is not our leader, it is NIGERIANS. We are Nigeria's greatest problem. We don’t love her enough, so we are not willing to put in the effort required to make her better. Every one complains about how bad things are yet they are not willing to do their parts to make Nigeria better.

Agreed the leaders are a big part of our problem. But ask yourself this question 'DONT I ENABLE THEM BY REFUSING TO DO MY PART'? When we refuse to play our parts are we not giving their corruption an enabling environment to fester? If everyone one does their part, would these politicians have the 'TOOL' required to carry out their evil corrupt acts. I mean they are not God; there is no way they can do it all by themselves.

It’s about time we stop pointing fingers and start making efforst to change Nigeria. Nobody loves Nigeria that is the problem. You don’t expect to have a normal child when you don’t show her any love. A child needs love to become a social acceptable woman tomorrow; she doesn’t become that magically. Start loving Nigeria today and see the difference.

Love Nigeria a little today.

The 11th commandment.

The commandment of exs, aptly named the 11^th commandment by my friend. In her opinion, all exs are STRICTLY out of bound. You are not to touch these exs, not even with a ten foot pole.

In the girl world, there is an unspoken law that exs of friends not to talk of siblings are out of bound. This same rule applies to chykers of siblings. This rule is not written anywhere and cannot be found anywhere. It is a lawyou are meant to obey without even being told about it. In law, ignorance of the law is not an excuse, same logic can be applied here right, lol. It is something that you are born knowing, you just know this instinctively. The opposite can be said in the boy world, where the ex of a friend or sibling becomes fair game, she becomes a mission to some of them. It becomes a game to see how many members of the gang can woo and get her into bed; the first one to do that becomes a mighty conqueror, until the cycle begins again and he is dethroned or wins again.

I knew of a girl who made it a habit to ‘steal’ exs and chykers of friends. Well one day she got what she had been stupidly looking for when she got a surprise hot (very) water bath from one of her friends. Let’s just say she settled down pretty quickly after that. I don’t support her friend’s method, but it sure taught her the lesson she ought to have learnt in her mama’s womb.

Making this law of strict application is rather drastic in my opinion. Come on, we can’t help who we fall in love with right? Like with the law, there is an exception for every general rule. The exception in this case in my opinion is DISCLOSURE. Yup, disclosure. When you approach you friend or sister about this ex or chyker you suddenly developed feelings for, then in my opinion you can carry on the relationship. Some friends or sisters may not be happy about it, some may out rightly forbid it, some may be cool with it, some may come around, some may never approve. What is important here is that they had fore knowledge about it, you don’t just spring that as a surprise at your pool party and expect to go home without ‘drinking small pool water’, lol.

Like I said we can’t help who we fall in love with, but we can make sure our love has a smooth ride, trust me it would be a bumpy ride if you have that on your mind throughout the relationship. I know of a girl that was in this position, her best friend had date this dude for about three years, but they had a bumpy relationship and broke up, not that it matters right. Four years down the line, girl meets bestie’s ex and they become friendly again after losing touch. The moment she noticed it was becoming more than just friends, she lets bestie know, bestie pretentiously grants her permission but is unhappy about it. This girl is happily married now with baby number three on the way, so tell me; in your opinion should she have stayed away from him because he was bestie’s ex?

11th commandment or not, just make sure you make a full disclosure.

My opinion.

Blogging has never been one of my strongest points, if you think I'm lying check out this site,http://almostfaymous.blogspot.co.uk/. That was my pitiful attempt at blogging, went nowhere for over a year. I started this new blog with the hope of blogging every day; unfortunately it coincided with the deadline for most of my course work. Well course works are done now and I hope to blog more often, hehehe.

I didn’t realise why I was such an inconsistent blogger till I saw a tweet from Alibaba, someone asked him why he didn’t blog about what normal blogs blog about. His reply to the person summed up to the fact that, that wasn’t his style. That was when it hit me; I had been trying to blog like others, but that wasn’t my style, that was why I was inconsistent. I was not doing me, I was doing somebody else. I have decided that, that has to change, I would do what I do best, give my opinion on things. It might not be the best opinion out there, hell it might not be the smartest, it might not be the most politically correct, it might change from minute to minute, but what is important is that it is my own opinion.

Be the change you seek.

I saw a tweet about military presence being the change needed in Northern Nigeria.
Is that really the solution we need? We need change that much is true. How the change comes is the issue now. After reading that tweet, I retweeted asking what happens when the military leaves the north.
The saying we are the change we need comes to mind anytime i tink of Nigeria. For nigeria to get better we have to be the change we want and work towards it.The fact that our leaders have failed us doesnt mean we have to remain stuck in the rot we find ourselves.I mean you work hard to make money, you dont sit at home and wait for the government to come give you some. Why then does it have to be different for the change we are seeking for Nigeria, you dont have to wait for the government to bring about the needed change, why not work towards it.
Making Nigeria a better place doesnt require a lot of work, its actually quite simple. If everyone just does his or her part, change would come to Nigeria, we would get the Nigeria we want.You dont go about taking bribes and expect Mr B to reject bribes, come on hes no fool, he would take it just like you. Besides you wouldnt have any moral justification to ask him to stop taking bribe.If we all just do our parts Nigeria would be great. If i do my job without taking bribes, is that not part of the change i seek, if i get to the front of the line without cutting the line is that not the change i seek. i f i do the right things at the right time, is that not the change i seek, if pastors and imams remind their congregation that violence is not the way out, is that not the change we seek.
The truth is change would not come to Nigeria in a big way, it would not just be dropped on Nigerians, it would not happen overnight. Change would slowly creep up on us when we start practicing the change we want to see, it would be a gradual process. At first we wouldnt even notice the change, until one day we wake up, and wow, we live in a different Nigeria.
Say this to yourself everyday, 'I am the change I seek, I am the change Nigeria needs'. Do your part and leave the rest to your fellow country men.
'Be the change you seek'

This whole boko ish

So today while I was in church, I was thinking about the whole boko haram problem in Nigeria. I remember when it just started,  I was in my final year and I took to my Facebook page insulting and berating the cowards. For a while it was cool and we all thought we had heard the last of the boko haramites as I have come to call them. But then the attacks started all over again and a lot more aggressively this time. Slowly but gradually we all found ourselves believing that every Muslim was a boko haramite and most of us started hating them. The killings have not stopped and the hate keeps spreading, this people don't have any value for human life so its very easy to take theirs and that of the 'infidels' as we are called.
Anyway analyzing boko haram or our hatred for them is not the aim of this post. After one of their usual attacks I remember going into one of my usual tirades, stating how if I wouldn't be held criminally liable I would kill each and everyone of the boko haramites, stating how they should made to suffer before death and so on.
In the middle of my ranting, my mother said something that made a lot of sense to me. She said that Islam was only in its 1433 year, the church had also undergone a violent stage. This made a lot of sense, the church underwent a violent stage in which it waged war against people that were not accepting of Christianity, e.g of these violent outbursts include, the Spanish conquests, the crusaders, the dark ages, puritanism e.t.c. The catholic church has since apologized for these acts of violence. What am trying to say in essence is that the church in its primitive years went about things the same way and then by its own self realized the evil of its ways, changed and apologized for them. I am not trying to justify what these people are doing now or something, all I am saying is that until they accept that what they are doing is wrong, there's no amount of dialogue or war that can stop.I am not suggesting that we wait for them to realize this, am just saying that they would keep going till they realize it themselves.
Someone once said, you don't know the value of peace till you experience war, maybe its time we take the war to them. I am not asking you to go out with your arms to go fight them, what am saying is protect yourselves and your family. Lets work together, christians and muslims and together we can fight this evil that is slowly killing our brothers and sisters.

Welcome

Blogging has never been my strongest point, but a lot has happened in my life and I think I need to share. My blog is going to be a mixture of my story, your story and their stories. I am a bit nervous about it I must admit.I believe everybody has an opinion, I sure do, and i believe everyone should be free to express this, this is my medium to do that, feel free to do same.