And Sophia Cried

 

I was thinking this morning.... Last week Saturday, I was privileged to be the guest speaker at a graduation and Prize-giving ceremony of Havilah Gold School, a private secondary school at Epe, Lagos. There were speeches followed by academic and cultural presentations by the students. Great atmosphere it was. The high point was the presentation of awards to deserving students.

From one best in this to best in that, the roll call went on with loud rounds of applause. A young female student, Sophia Adeleke, sitting on the second row, watched her classmates being called upstage one by one. She was quiet, head looking to the floor, probably feeling the pangs of disappointment yet again and wondering when in this life, it will be her turn to be called for recognition and award.

Then she heard it 'And the award for the Best Improved Student in Junior Secondary goes to.... Sophia Adeleke.' There was a loud gasp from the students that drew the attention of everyone to poor Sophia. Sophia's jaw dropped. Her? Best Improved Student? She was confused. Did she just hear her name? She looked around, just to be sure, bowed her head and started crying. Everyone clapped, but Sophia was too paralysed by surprise to find her feet. With the support of her friends, she finally stood up, trembling, and with more tears rolling down her face, she slowly made her way to the podium.

Almost moved to tears myself, I imagined what could be running through the mind of the little girl. She was probably used to being at the bottom of her class. People may have called her 'never-do-well.' She may have waited for years to be recognised like others, but it never happened. She has accepted that nothing good can happen to her.

There are so many 'Sophia' out there that have waited all their lives to be recognised and awarded on any stage. They watch others every week climb up the altar and testify of one breakthrough or another and wonder, 'when will it be my turn.' It seems as if everything good passes them by, and they wonder why. The experience of Sophia Adeleke gave me hope that good things can happen to anyone. Give your best in all things, and 'Sophia' may just happen to you. Romans 4:18 - 'Who against hope believed in hope, that he might become...' Only believe.

Stay hopeful. God's got our back.

Happy Sunday!

......Just the thoughts of a certain Wey Mey

THE BUSH FLOWER

 

I was thinking this morning.... It was 20 years last Friday since my second missionary journey to Bonny National Grammar School (BNGS) on Bonny Island. As I paused to give thanks that Friday morning, my thoughts drifted to 1991, when I was first posted to BNGS for my NYSC primary assignment. I had prayed and lobbied to be posted to any of the oil companies in Port-Harcourt, but God had other plans for me. With fear and tears, I entered the local boat, which was then called 'See me, see water,' en route to Bonny Island.

It was the first time I was to live in a remote riverine community. I was accommodated within the school premises and assigned to teach biology. After overcoming my initial self-pity, I embraced my reality and made up my mind to make the most of the situation. With the support of fellow teachers like Mr Johnson and Mr Sokari, BNGS became my second home.

Within a few weeks, my high energy and effervescent nature had seeped through my teaching like gravy on hot rib eye steak. I inspired the love of education in so many students and prepared them for schools debates. I remember blowing their minds with the 'This is the beginning of the end and there can be no end if the begining has not ended,' as well as the 'Warsaw never saw war until Warsaw saw war' quotes.

The nine months I spent on Bonny Island between 1991 and 1992 became one of the most fortuitous periods of my life. When it was time to leave, I declared, during my sendforth, that I would be coming back, after my M.Sc, to work with the multinational company that was about to be constructed. July 19, 2004 (20 years ago, last Friday), I walked into BNGS in fulfilment of that prophecy.

As I reflected on how I gave my best in that remote location, I recalled the fact that flowers blossom in a forest even when there is no one to admire their beauty. The truth is, you can't make a real success out of your life if you are unhappy with yourself. Wherever you find yourself today, give your all and blossom. I can never know what would've become of me, if I had rejected my posting to Bonny island. Embrace your reality. God is taking you somewhere. Isaiah 28:29 (GNT) says 'The plans God makes are wise, and they always succeed.'

Stay hopeful. God's got our back.

Happy Sunday!

......Just the thoughts of a certain Wey Mey

THE MIDNIGHT JUJU

 

I was thinking this morning.... Sometime in the eighties, we lived in a 4-flats building with the landlord, in Gbiaye Street, in the Marine Quarters area of Warri. One day, the landlord had sent for my dad and complained that he had been having a problem sleeping at night because of a strange noise. He posited that it seemed someone in one of the flats had juju that came out at midnight, making this ka-ka-ka-ka sound that kept him awake. The landlord and my dad's bedrooms were separated by just a wall.

Despite assurances from my dad that there was nothing of such, the landlord sent his grown sons on a search mission to uncover the juju disturbing them at midnight. They turned my dad's room upside down but found nothing. Then they moved to the two flats downstairs and did the same, but no luck.

Though angered by their ridiculous accusation, we decided to pay attention that night to help unravel the mystery. 'You know say e no dey tay before dem dey catch winch for Warri.' We waited as everyone went to bed. Decibel by decibel, the surrounding noise went down. As the noise finally died after midnight, we listened intently, waiting to hear the steps of the juju. 'Listen. I can hear it now,' one of us said. We inclined our ears and could hear the ka-ka-ka-ka sound. We followed the sound into my dad's room again. We froze and listened. It seems to be coming from above us. We looked up and almost died of shock by what we discovered. We finally caught the juju. It was my dad's old ceiling fan.

Apparently, the ceiling fan, due to wear and tear, makes this tick-tock sound when on low oscillation. It does so all day, but no one hears it because of the noise all around. It seemed louder from midnight when everywhere was dead quiet.

Don't be too quick to jump to a conclusion. Too many Africans are fighting imaginary devils because of their ignorance. Many are too lazy to investigate or do a deep dive. If only they can quiet the noise of their prejudices. Like they say, everyone's mountain is their ignorance. Invest in developing your mind because it is a thought factory. It produces based on the raw material you feed it. If you put in garbage, you get garbage. Proverbs 4:23 says "Keep your heart will all diligence; For out of it are the issues of life."

Stay hopeful. God's got our back.

Happy Sunday!

......Just the thoughts of a certain Wey Mey

LOOKING FORWARD TO 7.30PM

 

I was thinking this morning.... My flight landed in Lagos right on schedule, at about 3.30 pm. The vehicle was on hand to pick me up. We immediately set out ahead of rush hour traffic. As we exited the Third Mainland Bridge at about 4.30 pm, we ran into the rush hour traffic at Victoria Island. Oh no, I exclaimed quietly in my soliloquy. One will think I was rushing to meet a business appointment. It wasn't that. Why exactly was I bothered about an hour or so of delay, since I wasn't driving? A deep search exposed what was driving my anxious expectation. I was in a hurry to get home before 7.30 pm.

What exactly was happening at 7.30 pm? No, I wasn't expecting a VIP at home. I was rushing to watch Tinsel on DSTV. Wow! How is it possible that I have become hooked on this soap opera on TV? I did a mental playback and discovered to my chagrin that for 16 years, I have been looking forward to 7.30 pm each week day.

Tinsel is a Nigerian soap opera that began airing on DSTV in August 2008 and is currently in its 17th season. There were times when the plots in the series were really interesting and understandably held me spellbound. But there were many times the storyline was drab and made no sense, yet I still looked forward to 7.30pm. As I imagined how from one day to a week and then one month of watching Tinsel has grown to 16 years, it gave me a fresh understanding of how Smokie, in its 1972 hit song, could live next door to Alice for 24 years without telling her how he feels.

Whenever I wasn't physically on the ground to meet my 7.30 pm appointment, like when I was out of the country, my decoder was always there to record every episode. Apart from my walk with God, which has been since 1994 (30 years), I am not sure of any other daily or weekly activity I have been committed to for an unbroken 16 years. It is difficult for me to understand how I can be committed to a TV program for 16 years. For the 30 mins each week day means I have cumulatively spent 87 days of my life watching just Tinsel.

Be careful what you give your time to. Just one video game or one episode of Telemundo, before you know, it has become an addiction. Don't watch another porn video, else you get hooked. Time is one of your most valuable resources. How effectively you are spending your time is a reflection of how your life will be. Redeem your time because the days are evil (Eph 5:15).

Stay hopeful. God's got our back.

Happy Sunday!

......Just the thoughts of a certain Wey Mey