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Anyone in the world

To balance this; commute to and from work with family demands such as, social engagements, religious activities and sometimes academics is a big challenge. However, one must plan and dedicate time for all as they are important.

Work, either paid employment or business is what put food on the table, pay all other bills, so it is obvious that it takes bulk of the time. One must also have time to bond with the family, by creating time to eat together, watch TV and have fun outdoors; visit family and friends. Social engagements cannot be left out; be it attending friends and family members birthdays, weddings, house warming, etc. After all, the adage that ‘one good turn deserves another’ is well practised in Nigeria. Meaning, if you do not create time to celebrate with people then be sure they will not do same when you need them.

It is well known that Nigerians are very religious people. Many people spend a lot of time in places of worship, especially weekends. They do not just go to worship but also make themselves available for other programmes. These require attending one meeting or the other after the regular worship. It also involve organising various activities which takes a lot of time.

As a centre of excellence, those in paid employments usually upgrade themselves academically, in preparation for promotion or move to more lucrative positions in other organisations. Most of these academic activities take place during weekends or late after work. Parents also have the responsibilities of helping their children or wards with the demands of their school work.

With all these challenges, balancing work life with that of family is a big challenge in Lagos. It calls for good planning and meticulous execution. Every minute counts, as once it is lost, it is very difficult, if not impossible, to regain it. One must strive to balance it. It is not only embarrassing but a case of failure in parenting when one’s child refers to him as uncle, simply because he is hardly at home to bond with the family.
 
Picture of Ijeoma Adino
by Ijeoma Adino - Sunday, 24 March 2019, 11:26 PM
Anyone in the world

Growing in a mother’s womb were two babies. Baby A and Baby B

Baby A asked Baby B, “Life after delivery. Do you believe in that?”

Baby B replied, “Yeah, sure! There has to be something after delivery from this womb. I have a feeling we are only here to prepare ourselves for what comes next after this.”

“Nonsense” said A retorted. “There is no such thing. What sort of life would that even be like?”

B explained, “Am not sure, but I would like to think that there will be more light there than in here. Maybe, we will even get to use our legs to walk and run, use our eyes to see, nose to breath and mouths to eat. Maybe we will experience many more amazing things that we cannot even begin to imagine or understand. Wouldn’t that be grand.”

Amused, A replied, “That is well beyond reason. Walking is impossible. And eating with our mouths? Highly doubt it! That is why we have the umbilical cord here. It gives us nutrition and everything else we need to thrive. However, because of its short length it cannot take us too far making the life after delivery, you are so enamored by, highly improbable.”

B urged on, “Well, I would like to think that there must be something lurking there beyond what we can see and imagine. Perhaps a whole new different world, vastly distinct from what we see here. A place where we have no need for an umbilical cord”

Again Baby A replied, “That can't be true B. If what you say is true, why hasn't anyone ever come back from the other side? This further proves that delivery is the end of all life, and after that all that remains is a whole of nothing… Just endless silence and darkness.

Baby B answered, “Well, I don't agree, my intuition tells me that someday we will certainly meet mother and she will be happy to see us too.”

 “Mother?” A said, “You actually believe in something like a mother exist after delivery? That’s a good joke. If your so-called mother exists, then praytell, where is she right now, why can't she come here?”

B elaborated, “She is all around us, surrounding us. We are here now because of her. It is due to her existence that we have life. Besides her this world should not, wouldn't and couldn't exist.”

Then A sighed saying, “Well, I do not see her, so it makes no sense to me to say that she exists.”

B concluded saying, “Every now and then, when you’re in silence and try narrowing your focus to her. With an open mind, if you isolate the noise and listen closely, you can feel her presence warmly surrounding you and her loving voice calling down from above.”

Because life on this side is ANOTHER LIFE, Baby and Baby B were finally born but never remembered they had this conversation…lol! If you doubt me, ask any twin you know…hahahaha!!!

 
Picture of Tochukwu Egbosi
by Tochukwu Egbosi - Sunday, 24 March 2019, 11:02 PM
Anyone in the world


In the tides of life, we are met with various challenges. Some are predictable but most are completely unprepared for and take many of us by surprise. Many fall by the wayside. Many give up the pursuit of dreams and visions. Some get swallowed and give up completely. However, to become the last man standing i.e. to continue to stand even in the face of adversity certain habits, mentality and beliefs must flourish in our lives. The tides could make or mar us.  I want to describe the last man standing as the man or woman who will patiently wait for tides to turn into joyous moments.

 

Take the case of Nehemiah, the walls of Jerusalem lay in ruins and the gate of the city destroyed by fire. As a human, he was weakened in the face of adversity. In Nehemiah 1: 4, the bible says he fasted and prayed on a number of occasions before God of heaven. You will see a man who clearly understood the spiritual implication of cleaning of sin as an antidote for destruction and preparation for work ahead. Heaven downloaded all he needed to rebuild the walls. The rest of the work he had to perform was staying focused and playing out a victorious script which eventually saw him rebuild the fence despite all oppositions. Indeed Nehemiah stood as the last man standing. Of course, there is another last man standing.

 

Looking at the first text we read (Psalm 1: 1-6), the last man standing enjoys blessing by not walking in the counsel of the ungodly. He is preserved by meditation day and night (by creating space). He is planted by the tree acquiring all the needful tools and talents, taking up the rich nutrients even in the midst of tides. Ecclesiastes 3: 1 talks about the various seasons and time to every purpose under the heaven, the last man standing sees the period of tides as the period of planting while others misunderstand the tides as mountains that cannot be surpassed. The last man standing is not moved by what he sees; he is firmly planted by the rivers of the water. He is continuously nurtured in the right place until the tides are turned. He understands the glorious future. 

Bible talks about men of Issachar who had an understanding and discern the time. That’s the illustration of the last man standing. Truly, men like Nehemiah would be counted as men that belonged to the category of 'last man of standing' in their generation.


[ Modified: Sunday, 24 March 2019, 11:05 PM ]
 
Picture of Tochukwu Egbosi
by Tochukwu Egbosi - Sunday, 24 March 2019, 11:00 PM
Anyone in the world


Arrogance is a characteristic that can never be disassociated from humans. As humans, we do not like to be demeaned in any way so we put a defence which would portray arrogance. The arrogance of teenagers must be fully understood by the parents. There is nothing that parents or anyone can do to eliminate it totally but rather it can be kept under control sensibly well. At that age, the sudden appearance of arrogance starts as a result of a teenager’s desire to express his/her views. The only way their demands can probably be met is through portraying the air of arrogance or pride. One of the ways to describe arrogance is pride. There are many causes of arrogance which could lead to pride. Pride could be as a result of peer groups and friends. Anytime a teenager whose views about a particular topic is rebuffed, he becomes unhappy but the basis of the unhappiness is more often and not pride. At such times, he feels that the advice or views given to him/her are uncalled for and even childish. The teenager equally feels that his views are much more superior and practical than the views of his folks. This is arrogance of not even knowing that he or she does not know. 


I remember on a particular day I was arguing with my dad about a particular topic as a teenager many years ago. In fact, his points were somewhat meaningless and funny. I even went to the extent of thinking that his arguments were immature. I still held on to my views despite all he did to convince me. I blatantly refused to understand and at the end, he had to try to enforce his views upon me.  The teenager is a naturally proud person and can become arrogant if not curtailed properly. On that occasion, I felt I was being mistreated as a child. 

Depending on the role teenager play in the family, there is an argument which suggests that could lead to arrogance.  If he/she brings income to the family, there is a tendency he/she may become proud at home. Many are now sending their children to become breadwinners at young ages to the detriment of the children.


 
Picture of Tochukwu Egbosi
by Tochukwu Egbosi - Sunday, 24 March 2019, 10:56 PM
Anyone in the world


Saturday 23rd of March, 2019 was another beautiful but special day. My wife was celebrating another birthday. Immediately after lectures, I headed back home to spend the rest of the day with her. Although my class EMBA 24 had an important football match against EMBA 23, I could not stay back for the game. As I drove home, I thought of my wife and couldn’t help thanking God for her life.

She has over the years matured with grace and beauty. For that reason, I decided to write a few words to celebrate her.

'Woman of faith and strength. Truly, I wish you well in good health and wealth

May your days be filled with joy and peace

I pray that all heart desires will be met

I pray that trouble will never find its way to your (our) household

I pray that each day will herald evidence of God’s mercy in your life

To this day, I appreciate God regarding your life.

Despite the cries and laughter in your life, you have always stood defiantly positive

Not minding the circumstances, you are always ready to laugh and tell jokes

With your witty words, it is always a delight living in the same house as you.

I am very much unlike the man mentioned in the bible who would rather live on the rooftop

As a new chapter is opened to you, may you grow wiser and stronger

Happy Birthday my dear love!'

 

We had a wonderful celebration at home with family and friends. There were delicious meals, good music, and the entire atmosphere was wonderful. My wife is much more social although she disagrees. She received lots of gifts, visits and phone calls. It was a wonderful day. In addition to that, my classmates held the defending champions of the Dean’s cup to a 1-1 draw. Although I missed the match I followed all the discussions on social media regarding the match.

I wish my class well in the next match and will surely join the supporter’s club.


 

 

 


 
Picture of Onyeche Emefiele
by Onyeche Emefiele - Sunday, 24 March 2019, 10:25 PM
Anyone in the world

Mrs. A happens to be my seatmate in the EMBA 24 class. Well, this didn’t happen by chance neither was it pre-planned. But you know how it is when you get to a new place with many seemingly unfamiliar people, you tend to pitch your tent with the one whom you’re most acquainted with, right?  

So, I was scheduled to write a pre-entrance examination following my application for the Executive Masters of Business Administration (EMBA) program at the Lagos Business School. On the examination day, I learned that we were to write the exams in different batches with about ten to fifteen people in each batch. When it was time for my set, we were led into the exam room and exams started with the first paper lasting for about 2 hours. For the second paper, we were required to write an essay on a given topic. 

While still trying to put my thoughts together on how to construct a beautiful essay, a lady spoke up asking the invigilator if she could submit her paper, as she was done with her essay. Ehhhh! Done ke? I tried not to be intimidated, as I needed to focus on my strong-worded essay. I looked up to see the “efico” that was ready to submit her paper barely twenty-minutes into a one-hour exam, and I saw Mrs. A.

One thing that captured my attention was not the fact that she finished her work in good time, but her voice struck a chord in me. After the exams, I searched her out and requested for her number. I needed an ally on this unknown path I wanted to thread. I promised to keep in touch. Did I fulfill my promise? Of course, I did. I sought out every opportunity to call to ask after her well-being amongst many other questions I already had answers to. More like I needed a reason to speak to her because I wanted to hear that beautiful voice again.

School resumed in January, Mrs. A has been a wonderful friend. She’s truly an amazing person, always armed with words of encouragement for every challenging situation. God has blessed her with not just a beautiful voice, but a beautiful soul to complement it. Little wonder, she has become the cynosure of all eyes - lecturers and classmates alike, everyone wants to hear her speak. It is evident that her teammates love and care for her with a passion.

So dear Mrs. A, if you ever get to read this, I want to say I love and appreciate you. Your voice attracted me to you, but your charm has kept me stuck. 

Cheers...

 
Picture of Ibiyemi Odufuwa
by Ibiyemi Odufuwa - Sunday, 24 March 2019, 9:44 PM
Anyone in the world

Samuel’s father, Joshua Michael, was born in Ibese. (Ibese is a small town in Yewa North Local Government Area of Ogun State. Dangote Cement Plc opened a $1 billion cement plant in Ibese in 2012.) Joshua spent most of his childhood to early adult life in the town. When he was about twenty-three years, he left Ibese to live with his uncle in Lagos. He worked as a truck driver for a manufacturing plant and though he wasn’t rich, you couldn’t call him poor either. He soon moved out of his uncle’s house to start his own family.

Although Samuel does not have vivid memories of the time his father lived with them, he remembers clearly the day he left and never came back. That morning, he hugged him tighter than usual and even gave him a kiss on his forehead. He did exactly same thing to his sister and mum. He even gave him and his sister extra pocket money to buy snacks during break time.

He remembers his mum’s anguish during the early days following his father’s disappearance. Lydia went from fear and anxiety, to anger, hope, despair, depression and hope again. Samuel learned early to stop asking questions, seeing they only triggered heaviness of heart for his mum. As much as she tried to disguise the pain, Samuel could see through it and could not help wishing his father never left. He learned very early to “man up” and be there for his mother and little sister. He had so many questions but had no one to ask, no answers.

As a young boy, Samuel would daydream about his father coming back. He played with different scenarios in his mind. His favourite was that he’ll come back from school one day to meet his father at home; that he had been in America all the while and that he came back with lots of toys, chocolates and many more goodies for him.

(To be continued)

[ Modified: Sunday, 24 March 2019, 9:44 PM ]
 
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by lilian tokunbo-ajayi - Sunday, 24 March 2019, 6:13 PM
Anyone in the world

It's funny how fashion is transient, few years ago ladies in this part of the world spent money buying chemicals called hair relaxers to straighten their hair.However today most people are going natural while investing heavily on wigs. When they are not wearing the wigs, they're creating a labyrinths with their hair demonstrating high level-creativity.I used to relax my hair at intervals but I have also joined the train of natural hair which is the new big thing. I don't remember the last time I sat down for at least 4hours just to get my hair done which used to be the trend, wasting man hours.Thank God for wigs whose re-emergence has solved time management problems for a lot of ladies.

Time is everything, I can't imagine what I would have done if I still spent all those hours in the salon every other weekend to get my hair done, when I have to deal with being in school every weekend. For this one thing I am grateful  for wigs.I only need to wash my hair every two weeks and change my wig like I change my clothes and life is easier.I am sure a lot of ladies agree with me on this one. In fact with the way the assignments and to-do list is heaping up, I am considering cutting the hair so that  hair issues will completely be out of the hair and one less thing to worry about. While doing the test run of cutting my hair, I walked into the hair salon and colored my hair. 

My greatest critique is my 11year old daughter, my son doesn't say much, but my daughter will not give me a breathing space. So I had gone to the salon to colour my natural hair and was almost running late to pick her from school, however I was able to arrive just in time. I was a bit uneasy with my new hair color:honey brown, though I still plan to change it if it still doesn't sit well with me.When my daughter saw me, she smiled and said,"Mum, you look different". And then I go,"how different?". With her response, I knew I shouldn't have asked. So she said , that I look like am in my fifties and that the hair color gives the impression that am trying hard to cover my grey hair. Clearly I have asked the wrong person to evaluate my looks .And so for now the plan to cut and color my hair has been put on hold for now.

 
Picture of Kazeem Shitu
by Kazeem Shitu - Sunday, 24 March 2019, 5:33 PM
Anyone in the world


Over the weekend, I stumbled upon an interesting discussion on Twitter about the imminent arrival of the corn season. The thread was thronged with comments such as “Corn season is almost here! I can’t wait!”, “Of all the seasons we have in Nigeria, the boiled corn season is the best!” and “I have been warming up my jaw for the corn season. It’s going to be bloody!”. I could not help but wonder why eating boiled and roasted corn is a phenomenon to be reckoned with in Nigeria. Is it the taste? Is it the health benefits? Or is it the nostalgia of being given corn as a snack while growing up? I have asked a few people and no one has been able to give me a straight answer. Whatever the answer may be, corn will be making its way into millions of homes and the streets will be paved with traders selling corn in different forms, mainly raw, roasted and boiled.


To be honest, I am a partial participant in this yearly ritual and I do like the taste of corn, but I just do not understand the buzz around it. I agree that it is not abundantly available all year round, nonetheless, it is available all year round. I consistently saw corn in supermarkets and market places in the last quarter of 2018. I guess this is one of those unexplainable cultural dynamics that I am not ‘tuned’ into.


The part of this annual event that brings me joy is the impact it will have on the value-chain and the economy at large. From the farmers, traders, businesses to the street vendors; it is a source of income that will sustain millions of families. This alone is a good reason to celebrate the coming of the corn season. Let the feast begin.

 

Kazeem Shitu (EMBA 24)


[ Modified: Sunday, 24 March 2019, 5:46 PM ]
 
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by michael fatoye - Sunday, 24 March 2019, 4:59 PM
Anyone in the world

Traveling has always been part of my Job requirements and I always look forward to it because I enjoy it. Traveling affords you that opportunity to traverse different parts of the world, to learn more, to get exposed to diverse environments and people. I guess this hobby has always been part of me since childhood. I was always the first to volunteer to go on any errands or join my parents in any travel as long as I would get to see the outside world.

There are periods I am in three cities in twenty-four hours or have commuted within six states in a week. Over time I have become an expert in travel matters from knowing the right type of clothes to pack, best mode of transportation, where to relax to places to see. My friends give me the nickname “Johnny” meaning I am always on one journey or the other, its not uncommon to find them first asking about my location whenever they call. They would often say “Michael, would always have a way around any situation in any town or city he finds himself.”

In as much as I enjoy traveling, it also comes with it is own inconveniences, from being fatigued, sleepiness, poor customer services, late night trips, cold nights, stranded situations to nasty experiences with different persons. It comes in different ramifications, you need to have patience and cultivate that habit of unlearning and learning to enjoy and appreciate the travel times.

I can categorically say, that I have learnt invaluable and extremely useful lessons from my travels over the years, that have impacted positively on my life. In as much as this hobby has its shortcomings and it could be expensive sometimes, it is not something I intend stopping soon. I already have my year planned and booked despite my demanding schedule. I would keep at it and get better and also get more followers because in the words of Danish author, Hans Anderson, “to travel is to live”, thus, I want to keep living.