Category: Lifestyle

  • A November month of gratitude

    This month started like every other month and ended as a November month of gratitude.

    A November month of gratitude and giving thanks

    I’d never forgive myself if I went into the next month without sharing the beautiful memories and blessings God bestowed on me this November.

    Let me share a little of them with you, shall we?

    Clarity

    I started this month just doing my thing without caring less about other things that didn’t have to do with me or anything that wasn’t in my schedule. Yet, something happened along the line while I was living my boring life. Clarity. Everything I kept doing; which were still things I normally did everyday gave me a clearer picture of my purpose and career path. Like magic, it would hit me when I talked to someone, or when I was writing or running my business. Another confirmation would slap me on the face, assuring me that, girl you’re on the right track.

    Ever experienced this?

    You cannot imagine how beautiful that experience made me feel. I’ve seen first hand how moving and working so hard without clear goals and vision can be so detrimental and frustrating. So it was truly a blessing. One I’m very grateful for. So believe me when I say this is a November month of gratitude. And I’m just getting started…. winks

    Birthday

    Oh Yes! For someone who’s birthday was like every other day; boring, dead phone, staring at the wall, stomach worms crying, empty bank account, no vibes, few calls etc. This time, it was explosive. A big blast. It was pure vibes. In fact, I started receiving alert from few days before. I had to check my mail if my eyes were deceiving me. laughs Then the prayers that drove me to tears, the calls that melted my heart, the surprises that left me in awe, and the lots of good food that relegated me to the toilet for days haha The mind blowing part was how healthy I’ve been in my adult years. No sickness, life threatening injuries or diseases, no taking of meds. Nothing. I have been blessed with divine health only few people get to enjoy. It’s a November month of gratitude for the best Scorpio birthday experience I’ve ever had. And now to the best part…

    Gods Love

    Where do I even begin with on this one? I cannot begin to quantify the amount of battles I’ve fought at work, the temptations I’ve faced trying to uphold my character and faith, the risks I’ve taken for my business, the rough decisions I’ve made to make more money and put food on my table, my carelessness, my mistakes, my bad decisions, and above all my spiritual coldness in the past month due to pressure from every side. Yet, the only thing God has done is embrace me in his loving arms and show me how much he loves me. Damn! I’m tearing up right now because loving him, believing in him and submitting my all to him is and will always be the best decision I’ve ever made. And I see and feel his love everyday. I’ve not been in my best behavior, neither have I spent so much time with him as I should have. So how does he love me so much? I sometimes ask myself.

    As an answer to my question, his word reminds me that his very nature is love. He exists to love. Which is why he has given me more blessings this month than I could ever fathom. Mehn! I’m counting those blessings. Each and every one. Every thing I did fell on pleasant places even when I thought I saw some fall on rocky grounds he still made it all perfect in his time. I have never been more grateful. The world doesn’t need to see the six zeros in my account to know, they don’t need to see my huge pocket, they don’t need to see me wear the best cloths to know. They only have to hear me speak, and feel how much my heart beats for only him. This is truly a November month of gratitude for me, with many reasons to be eternally grateful.

    A November month of gratitude and giving thanks

    So my question is: Why isn’t it one for you?

    If everything I just shared doesn’t make you jump for the little things you have in your life right now, then I don’t know what will.

    Phew!

    Its so coincidental that as i am writing this, America is celebrating Thanksgiving today. You get to see a full bowl of tasty, salted, roasted turkey placed at the center of the table with a large number of happy faces of friends and family with folded hands held together to give thanks and reminisce on why they should give thanks. A tradition I admire so much and wish Africans, particularly Nigerians would join in upholding.

    Let me leave you with this:

    Give thanks not because you have it all figured out. But because you know it can be figured out with the gift of time. The gift of the simplest things is big enough to be grateful for. Not because there is no negativity but because the positive times would get you through the negative times.

    I don’t know about you but I’m going to remember this November for a really long time. My November month of gratitude

    You’ve heard mine. Your turn; What are you grateful for? Share with me in the comment. As we share this light of gratitude with others in this November month of gratitude.

    Ever tried a November gratitude challenge? Click here to see how

    I told a great story on Faith here

  • 5 reasons why some close friends don’t last forever

    Why some close friends don't last forever

    Why some close friends don’t last forever? Well, I’m sorry to inform you that, that close friend you have now may not be as close few months to come. Some close friends don’t last forever. Sometimes even best of friends fall out of friendship not only because of an argument, fights, betrayal or some obvious reasons but because of the most simplest thing you never see coming.

    My 300L in the university I met this pretty girl. We met outside school. At home precisely, during the holidays. She came to spend the holidays in her uncles house and would go back to school from there once the holidays was over. We were schooling in the same school (Madonna University) but not in the same Campus. I was in the Arts campus studying Economics while she was in the Science campus studying Physiotherapy, which was a four hour drive from where I was.

    I don’t know it happened but I loved her the same day I met her, she was the most silliest and sarcastic person I knew then. laughs She was so full of life and hardly ever gets angry. I mean I am the same too, except that I am crazy and I often get angry. smiles

    We exchanged numbers and was always talking even when we went back to school. During the holidays, her campus was still in session, and i missed her so much. I did the craziest thing ever. Without thinking, I hopped into the bus and it took me two hours to reach there. I dropped off I front of her school gate. I went to see her. And damn! The look on her face is something I can never forget. She was all smiles, and practically introduced me to everyone on her block. After we spent the afternoon together, I went back home and that was the day our friendship took a big turn. We became inseparable.

    Our friendship blossomed and became so strong. And then we graduated. I first, because as always science student were always delayed for some reason or the other. We couldn’t wait to see each other and plan NYSC (National youth service corps) together. Nysc – A one year service for new Nigerian graduates

    And when she finally graduated and came home, it was pure bliss. We were like two broke street girl lovers. A mixture of fun and crazy. And then months later, we were off on our path to the Nations call.

    If only i knew that, those few months before service was going to be the last real time we spent together, I would have made a copy of each experience.

    Slowly everything changed. In the one year we were apart we were no longer as close as before. But I still refused to let go. No. This was my best friend and best friends were supposed to last forever. That we didnt talk often didnt mean I loved her less. No. My love for her didnt change. So we found a way to meet again and hangout as before.

    It was so great to get together again and the more time we spent with each other the more I realized that, nothing was the same again. We were different. Those important values and dreams wasnt in the picture anymore. We had grown into separate direction. I teared up at the realization that we were no longer close nor best friends. Sadly we were just friends. Something close to an acquaintance. I finally agreed that some close friends don’t last forever.

                              ***

    It is as hurtful as it is real. As young people we thrive through friendship. The energy that comes with been surrounded by great friends keeps our spirit alive and constantly makes us feel loved and needed. While some of us are lucky to have the greatest circle of friends, others aren’t. And while some are still celebrating fifty years of friendship, others like me, often experience never-lasting best friends. But now I’m no longer bothered by it, because after experiencing it firsthand, the fact still remains that, not all friendship fail or never last because of something hurtful like betrayal, cheating, lies etc. Some fail because of reasons beyond our control.

    I’m going to share 5 reasons why some close friends don’t last forever.

    Why some close friends don’t last forever

    Growth and exposure

    Growth is one reason why some close friends don’t last forever. Growth constitutes development and differences. Growth here doesn’t mean an increase in size or age or career. It means a big increase in experience. The things you experience at different point and areas; be it the people you meet, the conversations you have and so on can impact greatly on your mental level. Thereby increasing your level of exposure and knowledge. If your friend is still stuck in the same pattern, then this growth in you can dampen your relationship. They may begin to feel left out because there is now a restriction in your conversations. They may not be able to meet up with your level of maturity and gradually…distance creeps in and creates a gap too big to fill.

    Change in lifestyle

    This is one of the most important reason why some close friends don’t last forever. When the big word ‘Change’ creeps in, everything moves to a different direction. Our lives are ever changing. So a change like; moving into a new city, getting married, becoming a new father or mother, kids going to school can result to a big change in your friendship.

    This is a constant factor that is a constraint for any relationship. The impact of such changes can reduce the communication between friends, thereby slowly killing the friendship.

    Different Values and Principles.

    This reason why some close friends don’t last forever is very important to me personally.
    I for one cannot be close friends with someone that doesn’t see life the way I do. Its okay to have friends generally. But your close friends should have good values that compliment yours. Friends that wouldn’t want you to compromise on your principles. Imagine a man of color having a racist friend. Its very clear that such friendship would not work.

    No Effort

    This is probably one reason we are mostly guilty of. When visiting your friend, making a phone call to a friend, checking up on them and supporting them when needed, becomes a big deal for you, then that friendship is going to fail before it even starts.

    Friendship take a lot of effort from everyone involved (not just one person) to work. It takes commitment and hard work for it to last forever. Whereby, the needed effort is lacking, then that friendship is bound to not last long.

    Priority Shift

    When your other relationships begin to take more importance over others, there’s bound to be a stir in your friendship. This happens more when a single girl transitions into a married woman, you’d here her friends begin to complain that, “now that she is married she doesn’t have time for us”. Her entire world begins to revolve around her husband. She subconciously pushes her friends away without even realizing it and also begins to welcome married friends of the same status to her side.

    No bonding time.

    If there is no bonding time between close friends, then that friendship is sure to not last. Bonding time can include traditions between friends to keep the friendship alive. Like; date nights, girls trip, boys trip, games night, sleepovers, late night parties, dinners, travels etc. Anything to strengthen the bond between friends. When these traditions are no longer maintained, the friendship is bound to diminish.

    Know this;

    No friendship is perfect. Some friendships would last and some others would fail. Don’t beat yourself each time you lose a friend. Don’t blame yourself either. Remind yourself that its never your job to nurture that friendship alone. It is theirs as well.

    Remember that life passes and so does people. Some people are in our lives to stay for a while then leave, while some are there to stay for a lifetime.

    The most important thing is to cherish those moments and enjoy it while it lasts because I’m sure you now know and understand why some close friends don’t last forever.

    Was this helpful? Got anything to add? Share in the comment.

    You should see this post on friendship

    Read more here

  • 6 reasons why kids, teenagers hide things from their parents; How to bridge the gap in parents-children relationship

    Seventeen years old Oma dressed up to go out
    “Where are you going to Oma?” Mummy asked.

    “I’m going for my computer training class mummy”. She replied.

    “Oh! okay. Good. Come back on time”. She instructed and left.

    Oma left quickly and went to Iyke’s house for the party. Oma lied. There was no computer training class that day

    Six years later. Oma is now twenty three years old. And its about going out.

    “Mummy I’m going for my friends bridal shower, so I can’t come back tonight”. She said.

    “Hmmm…why can’t it be in the evening?” Mummy asked.

    “Because its a bridal shower, it always ends late. Do you want me to enter the road my 12midnight?”. She asked obviously irritated.

    “No. Its alright”.

    “Oma leaves and meets her girlfriend at he club that night.

    Till date Oma still hides things from her parents. To her, there’s no use telling them because for them its evil, even when she was not doing anything wrong.


    I can’t recall the zillion times I’ve hidden things from my parents, even now as I’m writing this.

    Yet I was watching “13 reasons why” show again, and I wondered why we hide things from our parents. I keep thinking if some mishap would be averted if we learn to tell our parents important stuffs that happen in our lives.

    And yet I wonder if telling them may also be a bad idea.

    So I decided to throw this question to some of my readers to help me and you understand better why children hide things from their parents.

    These answers are quite personal and come from their personal experience as an African Nigerian child, And I know it would help you too.

    (Some identities were hidden as instructed)

    I hid things from my parents because of three things;
    I didn’t want them to lose the trust they had in me.
    I didn’t want them to talk to me in a way i might not like.
    Because we were not close enough for them to know those things.

    Albert Nduh

    Things i hid from my parents as a child/teenager/young adult. It was a different perspective for me because I was the only girl amongst a lot of boys. Teenagers growing up faces a lot of things; attention, getting to know your body, opposite sex. So I hid everything opposite sex from my parents. My parents did not do the needful in terms of teaching me sex education. Because my mom wasn’t available to teach me the right thing. Those were the reasons i hid things from my parents. I’m glad i didn’t make mistakes though, because I learned the needful over time.

    Anonymous

    Well, our parent are both our guardian and friend depending on how your parent makes you feel, my parent were quite subtle and rigid, so I could tell them some things. But also, I’m a very reserved person and I don’t like people all up in my business, so I don’t tell my parent everything, and I believe in learning with your own experience rather than your parents, in Africa, the parent and child relationship is more or fear and respect rather than love and respect, so kids are always scared of what their parent are going to do. It’s good to however be a guardian and a friend so you can correct your kids when the need arise and also let them confined in you as a parent because, a parent will teach from the point of love and experience which the child needs.

    Banji

    Actually I didn’t hide things from my mum and I feel it’s because I was comfortable with her (she raised me in such a way that I saw her as my friend,best friend even) so I started telling her everything from a very young age.
    Now that I’m matured and she’s taught me well, I don’t really need to tell her everything again. I feel I can make my own decisions now.

    Sandra

    Well….I like many other children hide things from our parents for many reasons ranging behavioural, psychological , environmental and what I would term ‘in-house’ factors.
    For me personally, I hide things from my parents because I don’t want them to react in a certain way, and I start regretting why I even told them in the first place. I don’t want then to feel bad. Because they don’t understand and start shouting at you. So sometimes I just let things be. I close my mouth and allow peace reign.

    Aida

    Personally I felt I wasn’t close enough to my Parents to share my personal stuffs with them, like I didn’t feel secure to tell them everything. Also I was concerned about how my parents were going to react.

    Moses Ameachi

    From our readers responds and various experiences, you can see some of the reasons why kids hide things from their parents.

    Here are some advice on how to foster better connection between parents and children.

    • Basically, we need to re-orientate the Africa parent mentality, I believe in discipline a child, but I also believe in having a strong love relationship with your child.
    • To parents, try to not always be a decision maker for your kids. Allow them make their own decisions and let them get to understand that you’re a friend to them, not just their mother or father.
    • Get to tell them about your adolescent age and some of your errors then; in return it makes them open up to you too about theirs.
    • It shouldn’t be always about shouting and scolding, a little hanging out and gisting about what happened can change your ward’s life.
    • Teenagers should be responsible for their actions, that can make their parents believe and trust them

    I hope this has motivated you to be and do better as a child and parent.


    Any questions or input? Drop them in the comment.

    Don’t leave without sharing this post with your friends.