BOY OR GIRL?

Hmmm...In Africa, this question has become the most popular question asked as soon as the birth of a new born is announced. There's usually great excitement when the answer is "it's a boy!" and 'ooh' when it's a girl most times. I really wonder why.

I met a woman my mum's age at a friend's wedding sometime ago who prayed for me that God will make my wedding soon, i told her i was married and had a child, immediately she asked for the sex and i told her it's a beautiful baby girl, she said ooh, don't worry, God will make the next one a boy. I was angry and wondered at her thinking. Thoughts then flashed accross my mind of an old couple who their wife after several years of trying to have a boy, gave her husband a young girl to "give him a male child". I became thoroughly sorry for women whose security is based on their ability to bear their husband a male child. Some even put themselves under pressure when they don't have a male child. It's rather worrisome. There's a mentality that the female gender isn't quite as good as the male.Hence we see mothers making their male children enjoy priviledges that the females are not given.

I was at a carol over the weekend and there was a ballet dance presentation by a group of little girls of btw 3-6 years old. It was a beautiful sight to behold. I was excited cos i had just enrolled my daughter for ballet lessons. I've got so many plans for her God willing, she will live a full fulfilled feminine life.

The proof or test of a fulfilled life is not linked to one's gender, but to the quality of life lived.

It's great to have desires, but let it not be due to societal or family pressure. Nothing just happens. There's a higher force that ensures we have what's best for us per time. Be Happy - It's a choice.

Hi People!

Compliments of the season to you all. Christmas is a season for giving and sharing and more importantly, a time to celebrate friendship. I've been reading up some quotes on friendship which i'll like to share with you all.

"The meeting of two personalities is like the contact of two chemical substances: if there is any reaction, both are transformed."

"You Can Make More Friends In Two Months By Becoming Interested In Other People Than You Can In Two Years By Trying To Get Other People Interested In You."

"When the character of a man is not clear to you, look at his friends."

"Friendship makes prosperity more shining and lessens adversity by dividing and sharing it."

"The shift of fortune tests the reliability of friends."

"It is wise to apply the oil of refined politeness to the mechanisms of friendship."

"Have friends not equal to yourself."

"Do not protect yourself by a fence, but rather by your friends."

"Never explain--your friends do not need it and your enemies will not believe you anyway."

"Nothing changes your opinion of a friend as surely as success - yours or his."

"A good friend can tell you what the matter with you is in a minute. He may not seem such a good friend after telling."

"Be courteous to all, but intimate with few, and let those few be well tried before you give them your confidence. True friendship is a plant of slow growth, and must undergo and withstand the shocks of adversity before it is entitled to the appellation."

"All people want is someone to listen."

"Friendship is certainly the finest balm for the pangs of disappointed love."

"Go through your phone book, call people and ask them to drive you to the airport. The ones who will drive you are your true friends. The rest aren't bad people; they're just acquaintances."

"In Prosperity Our Friends Know Us; In Adversity We Know Our Friends."

"Adversity does teach who your real friends are."

"If you make it plain you like people, it's hard for them to resist liking you back."

"It’s the friends you can call up at four a.m. that matter."

Read these quotes, think deeply and choose to celebrate in your own unique way, the friends who have been friends INDEED. Show some love, give, there's no loving without giving.

Enjoy the season!

HAVE YOU REGISTERED?!
Hi people,
I was supposed to have written about this for some time now. I've read and heard so much about people's comments and views about recent happenings in the political scene in Nigeria, especially as the 2007 elections draw very close. People have talked and analyzed, it's the topic of discussion at almost every informed/educated gathering. The discussions are usually laden with passion and hope or otherwise at the possible turn out of events.

But I really need to ask, How many people have registered? I put this question to every undergraduate and working class individual who have been actively involved in analyzing our nation.

Let us put our votes where our mouths are o. Let's make things work. For your information, i registered almost 2 weeks ago. It wasn't convenient but i made a sacrifice to do it. The people i was on queue with were old women and men, some of who didn't know their ages, artisans, street boys and some public school teachers. They don't know what you and i know as the learned but they have registered and will cast their votes for "whoever settles them, or whoever they're told to vote for", which mostly likely will not be the right people. Some aspiring councillors were even hanging around to help the old men and women with their registration, they obviously appreciated the gesture and could listen to these aspirants' advice on which party to vote for. They're vulnerable because they're not informed.

I head a house fellowship group. I mandated them all to be registered before showing up for last sunday's meeting. They ALL came, registered! This group is made up of working class people like you and I. Some of them registered just before the meeting. Oh Yes! registration takes place on sundays as well, so, your excuse???

I'll round up this post with this saying:

"When an educated man vacates his right to choose his own leader the punishment that life offers him is to have stupid people rule over him”

A society deserves the leader they get(by voting or deciding not to vote!)

I'll be excited to get comments from people telling me, "I've registered!"

Have a great weekend!
TGIF!

DON'T FALL IN!

Hi all,
The weekend was a busy one for me, a friend got married on saturday. The church service took place in an orthodox church. It took forever - choruses spanned through almost 2 hours after a 30 minute prayer time. As soon as i spotted the bride and groom, i went outside the church auditorium to congratulate them, hung around for a few more minutes and zapped! I headed straight for carol rehearsal/end of year party for my choir - it went well and lasted till about 7pm.

On my way home, my mind flashed back to the happenings of the day as i remembered the bride's wedding gown, it was simply lovely, she definitely must have bought it from one of the big bridal houses in town. Then i remembered how lovely my dress looked on me when i got married. I thought, Oh God, the dress is hanging idly in a box,same with my native engagement attire as well as my husband's. It cost us some money and the most painful part of this is that, none of those clothes has been worn after the ceremonies, was it not a waste? I am an advocate of looking good in quality costumes, so if i were to make those same decisions again, they wouldn't change much. I'm disciplined as well when it comes to spending. But i really think there must be a way around having huge wedding expenses in this part of the world. What do you think?

My heart goes out particularly to young men who are under tremendous pressure to drop huge amounts of money in the name of wedding expenses, this is not to say you should be tightfisted, but have an agreed budget with your fiancee and stick to it.From experience, i think the wedding rings should take a high priority,don't compromise the quality, it will save you the money you will need to get a replacement 1-2 years down the line if you buy cheap, low quality ones. Meanwhile, it's about the only accessory that will remain in use for years after the wedding. As for the others, you could work around a moderate budget; afterall, people forget about most of those things that cost one an arm and a leg.

So keep the expenses slim, same with this xmas season; so many people spend so much that they're dead broke all through January. You really don't need to find yourself in this trap. Planning and wise spending pay off. Give, but do things reasonably.

OLOPA KE?

I studied pharmacy in the University and did very well, I was however faced after school with the reality of the fact that there was no field of pharmacy practice that appealed to me.

I had few options if i was going to practice the profession in Nigeria - It was either i went ahead to be a medical rep, in which case, i would have a brand new official car to move around 'hawking drugs'and earn a paltry pay, be a hospital pharmacist (sit in a cubicle in a hospital and dispense drugs to patients), go back to academics to become Mrs Lecturer or set up a private community practice in which case i would sell drugs, this is one thing that some of our Eastern brothers have made to be far from appealing. I had my 1 year internship and NYSC in government hospitals (Military and then Police Hospitals) cos i was going to have ample time for business and myself (9am-2pm working hours) and the pay was far better than private hospitals.

I finished these two programmes and barely a month after, got married. All the while, i had done a self assessment and knew that the probability of my practising pharmacy was very low. I got a few job offers but they weren't quite what i wanted, so i went to french school, picked up my beadmaking business which i had neglected for a while and generally got busy.

Along the line, vacancies were sent out at Police Medical Services where i served for Doctors, Pharmacists, etc . I never considered applying cos i thought, 'Olopa ke? i.e. "Me, go do police?" As far as i was concerned, the police was stigmatised and i didn't want to be a part of the mess. I thought of what my friends who worked in big, nice sounding companies would say, it was for sure they would be amused, how relevant would i still be among my professional friends?...and so on. As i was telling myself no way for police, another thought came to my mind. It was the picture of Dora and the impact she was making in NAFDAC as a pharmacist. I then reconsidered things and told myself i would join the force and make a difference, the decision gave me a good feeling but police? Naa; coupled with this however, i got serious encouragements from my parents, my boss who supervised me during NYSC there and colleagues; they highlighted the benefits of the job especially the 'job security'and the fact that i could do without coming to work in the 'black and black' uniform so most people don't need to know i work with the police! (A typical case of eating my cake and having it!), moreso, jobs were scarce. I got convinced and picked the form and waited.

Summarily, i'll say that the interviews spanned through 1 whole year (about 4 of them) and they all took place in Abuja. Eventually, i made the final list and was told to come for an accreditation exercise to confirm my data and get an official code. This exercise was scheduled to take place on the due delivery date of my little angel, so i didn't go.It took place in Kano and my younger sister offered to go there to fix things for me. She got back and said we should expect a message on when we'll commence work. I went to the Lagos office some months later but was told things were on hold. It's been over 2 years now and nobody that went through the process has resumed (little wonder we haven't resolved many of the killing cases). Fortunately for me though, i changed jobs recently and i'm doing something i'm passionate about, i'm having fun.

Last week Friday while i was at work, i got a call from a lady who we served together at the Police hospital saying that forms were out for the same positions as the ones we had applied for and done interviews for, over 2 years ago! Registration was meant to be on-line and i checked their website as soon as i dropped her call- it was under maintenance. She called me about 3 times within 5 minutes to find out if i had downloaded the forms and printed them out.I was shocked and couldn't believe that this lady would still consider going through another round of stress, risk and uncertainty. It's so glaring to me that it wasn't worth it afterall, i would rather do what i enjoy than enter a system cos it promises security. Are they worth it? Do you think it makes sense to pick up my plan of making a difference in the force? I bet i have every reason to say again today, 'OLOPA KE?' No way o!

WATER THERAPY

Hi Friends,

How has the week been? Mine has been full and exciting. I just want to share something i started practising a few days ago and the benefits.

"Water therapy" is not strange to most people, but how many practice it?

Required daily water intake - 6 glasses of water (1.5 litres)

God has given us plenty and free water. Without spending on medicine, tablets, injections, diagnosis, Doctor fees, etc., just by drinking pure water, research shows that the following diseases will be cured: Headache, Blood, Pressure/Hyper Tension, Anemia, Rheumatism,General Paralysis, Obesity, Arthritis,Sinusitis, Tachycardia, Giddiness, Cough, Asthma, Bronchitis, Pulmonary Tuberculosis(T.B.), Meningitis, Kidney stones, Hyperacidity, Gastro-enteritis, Dysentary, Constipation, Diabetes, Eye diseases, Ophthalmic Hemorrhage & Opthalmia (reddish eye), Irregular Menstruation, Leukemia, Uterine cancer, Breast cancer,Laryngitis, etc. Haba! i can hear someone say. Let's see how water works in the body system.

Consuming ordinary drinking water by the right method purifies human body. It renders the colon (large intestine) more effective by forming new fresh blood, known in medical terms as Haematopaises.

If the colon is cleaned then the nutrients of the food taken several times a day will be absorbed and by the action of the mucousal folds (of the colon), they are turned into fresh blood.

The blood is all important in curing ailments and restoring health, and for this water should be consumed in a regular pattern.

How can this water therapy be done?

1) Early morning after you get up from bed (without even brushing your teeth:-), drink 1.50 litres of water i.e., 5 to 6 glasses.

2) Here it is very essential to note that nothing else - neither drinks nor solid food of any sort should be taken within 1 hour before and after drinking this 1.50 litres of water.

3) It is also to be strictly observed that no Alcoholic drinks should be taken the previous night.

4) If required, boiled and filtered water may be used for this purpose.


To the average working class person who counts it luxury to take a soft drink with every meal, easy o! keep your system waterfull. Join me in the water therapy exercise, i want to run it through the whole of December, i've started with 2-3 glasses first thing every morning, i'll then move gradually till i get to 6. I must agree with you that December ain't the best month to do this when juice and drinks will flow like water.

Let's value our health, have a timetable and stick to it; ultimately, you'll sure be glad you did.

Pls feel free to send in comments as you notice changes in the course of practising water therapy.

So here's to your health.

Cheers!!!

Glug . . . . . . . . . . Glug . . . . . . . . . Glug . . . . .!

Two days ago, after a full day at work, i ate dinner and decided to relax a bit in the living room before retiring for the night. Just as i started reflecting on how the day went, a male junior friend who was around for the night came to meet me and he asked how the day went, that question eventually ended up being an interview/counselling session.

He gave me a run down of his relationships with ladies and how all his attempts so far at sustaining a serious relationship have been far from being successful. The one relationship which kicked off was according to him 'called off abruptly' . This guy really wants to have an early relationship now that he's 'nobody' so that he can be sure that Miss Right will say Yes for the right reasons. This guy still has 2 years to go in the University but while in school, he has started and achieved success in various small businesses, he has investments and is very serious about being very successful. The lady that left him for a business associate of his did so giving the excuse that he wasn't there when she needed him most. This last statement is what makes it so painful for him. In fact, he feels he's unlucky about getting the right girl. Also, he doesn't attend a campus fellowship but a church in which he's one of the youngest, so he feels his options are limited and he wants to have a relationship with someone he knows well enough. He has role model couples that he looks up to (of course, i'm one of them ke!) and his desire, of course, is to be like them, or better!

The first thing i told him was that i didn't have the full picture especially of the incident with the girl who left him for a colleague. Definitely, if i meet the lady now, i'll get a different perspective. Anyways, i asked him a few questions and gave him my advice.

Before i spill it out, i'll want to take a few opinions and advice for this brother of mine. Is he too serious and needs to unwind a bit? Does he need to chill or what? I'm more than excited to take your comments.

Till then, keep it real!

Listening is rare. There are certain people to whom we feel we can talk because they have such a deep capacity for hearing, not just our words, but hearing us as a person. They enable us to communicate on a level we've never reached before. They enable us to be as we've never been before.

We will never truly know ourselves unless we find people who can listen, who can enable us to emerge, to come out of ourselves, to discover who we are. We cannot discover ourselves by ourselves.

" Note the words "there are certain people… who enable us to be as we have never been before." Those are the people we need most.

Consider these questions: Who coaches you? What older, wiser, and more experienced person stands on the sidelines of your life and watches with the big picture in mind? A coach doesn't try to run the race for you. No, he sets the standard for the race and makes a judgment on your performance. Who does this for you? Who stretches your mind? Who makes you wince as they expose the many faces of your ignorance?; who will not let you get away with Spiritual and intellectual superficiality? Who listens to and encourages your dreams? Dreams are not intellectual propositions that must be proven. They are the work of visionaries; they are out-of-the-box, frequently awful and occasionally good. These are the folks who, when others laugh and say you're trying to build castles in the air, remind you that God "calls those things which be not, as though they are" These are the people you need.

A very important question, it is great to have people who can listen to you, but do you give a listening ear? Are you there for someone? Live to Give.

If you don't have people around you who motivate you in the direction of your dreams and believe in you, then your so called 'desire' will remain a wish. Let us cultivate the Art of Listening.

Hi People, I believe we had a great weekend. Mine was nice, though full of activities ranging from meetings to a birthday party i had to take my daughter for.

In my former blog which i mistakenly deleted, i wrote an article titled, "ember months syndrome" in which i wrote about the general belief that evils abound more towards the end of the year due to increase in the activities of witches and evil forces who are "in a hurry to meet their yearly target".

I look back now and wonder what coincidence lies in 3 air crashes that have occured in this nation within 1 year in October, December (2005) and October (2006) respectively. Countless road accidents have occured as well, did the spirits make our roads bad as well or did they withold the hands of the government from releasing funds already allocated for road maintainance thereby taking responsibility for the lives of its citizens? This syndrome seems to be a no miss in our dear country these days.

I need no one to tell me that these events are mere leaves of a fundamental problem of our dear nation and recent items that have made news these days like impeachment and co have been attempts to distract us from seeing the things that demand attention.

We know better now than to blame some mysterious spirits for our carelessness and excusiologism. Let's change what we can by starting with ourselves. let's become the change we desire to see.Let's register to vote, it's our right, our power. Let's obey the laws of the nation and support people who are bringing in reforms that will birth change, let's do it right, at least, we'll be sure by then that we've done our part, leaving God to help us begin from where our strength ends and make us impenetrable to "evil spirits who are on target meeting rampage!"

Hi there!
I told myself that i must post something on my blog today. Men! it's been a week! I've still got a pile of work to do and it's 3 hours past closing time.

Remember, 'As a man thinks in his heart, so is he'. Keep your mind on the path of possibilities. You will achieve your desire. Stay on top!

It's great to be back again! Men, it's not been encouraging developing my blog a third time. Did i hear someone say,'So? Do you want to compare yourself to Thomas Eddison?' Abi o!

I've come to discover that my resolve not to easily give up has increased greatly especially in the past one year. Don't give up, get a grip of your desires and aspirations, don't let them slip away. I have a clearer picture of my tomorrow now than i did before. I won't take things as they come, i'll work things out with God's ultimate wisdom which i have. If things don't work according to my plan or desire this time, i'll find out why and try again.

Summarily, i'll say no one has an excuse not to make things work. Believe, then ACT. Get a grip!