Nice Linus

THAT LITTLE GIRL FROM EIGHT YEARS AGO(part 1) Rose couldn't stomach it. The young girl before her was right, yet she looked petite, like a four year old. Her hair was cut so low that they were barely noticeable and the frontline was so acutely shaped that it accentuated the roundness of her face. The kind of confidence she exuded was one which Rose dared not call childish. Her fairly big and round eyes shone with expectation as she gestured to a big pair of red Tiger batteries. “We don't use big batteries,” Rose replied in her mother's place. Her lips, dried and broken as a result of the harmattan, curved into a warm smile. Her teeth were distortedly arranged but Rose thought her smile was cute. “What of this?” She touched the small Tiger batteries. Rose's mother laughed. “I already bought Festos biscuits from your mother. So you want me to buy batteries from you as well?” The girl smiled again. It was the pure tender smile of a child. For a few seconds, she stayed put. “Mum, I need new batteries for my torch. I want to read this night,” Rose whined. “Okay. We'll buy one pack,” her mother concluded. Afterwards, Rose helped place the tray of batteries on the girl's head. Day in, day out, Rose kept seeing the girl plod through the street in which her mother's shop was situated. Often, she would stop by and exchange pleasantries with Rose. They would share small talks and laughs. It would all end with a goodbye wave.

#thegirlchild

DARE TO BE YOU! The eagle stands out by simply being himself. Don't try to copy what's trending or what's in vogue. Don't let your motivation revolve around 'feeling among'. No, you don't have to 'feel among' to really be among. Whether you like it or not, you're among already. You're in that environment amongst those people! Don't feel inferior.

Imagine the room is dark and you have a torch. Will you switch it on or panic in the darkness? Don't let inferiority complex and peer pressure be the darkness that overpowers your light. You are born different. So dare to do things differently. Dare to stand out. Dare to be you!

#daretobeyou #NiceLinus

Just when different kinds of thoughts grope for my attention, I remember that I have to cater for my mental health. I think a lot. Yeah, who doesn't think anyway?

I'm in my own world and right here, I rule. Absentmindedness is a skill I've learnt to hone overtime. I call it a skill because you need to learn when its application is necessary and to what extent it is required. You spread negativity in the air, I enter my protective shell. You say hurtful words to me, I dust the lethal stains off. Yes, you're right; the poisonous arrows only scratched my shiny armour😄. You try to force your opinion on me, I jump out of the window like a burgglar😂. I mean, I literally switch off.

Trust me, my mind (and yours too) is like a computer. I can wipe, save, highlight (take note of), delete anything/any memory. Forgetfulness is golden. You don't have to remember everything. The biblical instruction to forgive and forget is very sensibly, profitable and practical. Forgiveness and forgetfulness helps you and your mental health.

So I'll go ahead and be like those traditional women whose mindset has been shaped by society to believe that fulfillment is found in the number of children you have. They'll have nine, twelve, fourteen kids even after their first experience of birth pangs because of forgetfulness, courage and strength combined. The same way, I'll give chance upon chance, keep relationships regardless of human imperfections and difference in perceptions. I'll throw the memory of the things you said and did that were way below my expectations in the trashcan of my mind provided your motive was not to break down but to build.

Love yourself today. Build the right relationships. Be positive. Take care of your mental health and remain patient.

#mentalhealth #positivity #buildingrelationships #NiceLinus

TRIBUTE TO GREAT TEACHERS

Which one is the best? Everyone is unique, Each with different virtues, Imparting knowledge to students, Indirectly contributing to the nation's economy.

I know of one who is willing to Lend a helping hand to others always, Who possesses an irresistible tongue, Thus becoming a role model Another is as gentle as a dove, Exercising patience towards the Academically weak and correcting the lazy Rome was not built in a day.

Another has great potential, Skillfully influencing others for the better He's not aggressive Action speaks louder than voice Everyone has weaknesses But a forest is made up of different trees.

Oh dearest teacher I hail You put in your best lest I fail! Here and there you strive For knowledge to impart Now and then, I resolve to reflect your impact To you, all dearest teachers I hail.

Happy teachers day.

She came back at dusk. Darkness clouded the stairway as she climbed up. Thoughts of food and rest filled her head. But to her chagrin, upon entering the house, she discovered that no one had cooked anything. Everybody said they were tired. She thought of the mildest reply to give but found nothing. Eventually, she gave silence a chance to do it's magic.

She was going to leave all of them alone and sleep but sleep refused to come. Cause how can someone sleep on an extremely empty stomach? Drinking water sef would only aid the hunger this time. If not for the “big girl-ness” she had been trying hard to maintain all these days, she would have burst into tears right there in her room. Because why will they send someone on an errand that took all day, burnt all energy and not keep food for them to eat at their return??

So when her younger sibling announced that he had cooked rice and pleaded for her help with preparing stew sincerely, she obliged. All the while, resentful thoughts played in her head. This people! Ahh! They didn't know what it means for one to be tired and hungry.

The next morning, her mum came to wake her up to cook at the usual time- 4:30am. Half asleep, she tossed, changing her sleeping position. She was still very tired. Her mother tapped her leg strongly, urging her to wake up. Remembering her mother didn't keep food for her the previous night and how she slept late because she had to cook, she groaned sleepily. “I'm tired. Leave me alone!” She didn't feel her mother's tap again.

The day was breaking when she eventually woke up. Her eyes widened in shock. Jesu! She had to go to work o. She hurried to the bathroom. Alas, her younger brother had gotten in first and that one doesn't know the Greek meaning of “bathing fast”. After a few screams of desperation, she got the chance to use the bathroom. After everything, she couldn't make it to school by 7am.

Take two things. Don't let anger cloud your judgement. Know what will benefit you and do it regardless of resentments. The sun has risen and I think it's going to be very bright today.

Happy Tuesday ✨

#Nice_Linus

THEIRS IS A JUST FIGHT. YET, WHEN WAR LINGERS, IT WOULD BE IN THE BEST INTEREST OF ALL TO CALL FOR A TRUCE!

Knowing fully well that when two elephants fight, it's the grass that bears the brunt, I refrained from picking sides when all of this began. As a matter of fact, my disappointment in the failed educational system and anguish wouldn't let me.

Resuming school as a fresher(after a year and a couple of months) was like a dream come true. Omo! Come and see galavanting I trekked down to the school gates a couple of times just for the fun of it(and the most of the time,as a result of a phenomenon common to students popularly known as Sapa).

When the time table came out, I wondered why some courses were taught virtually, especially the GES courses. Soon enough, I attended my first lecture. I took an available seat at the far end of the lecture theatre. Subsequently, students who came in after me either had to make do with the remaining seats or stand so as to hear the lecturer properly. Later on, when someone told me that GES courses had to be taught virtually because no lecture theatre had enough capacity to house all the students who are to take the courses, I readily agreed.

On February 14 when ASUU embarked on the industrial action, I thought it would all be over soon. I didn't know . Now, it's seven months already since then. How time flies! I still remember how I donned my matric gown atop my white and black. In fact, I can still picture how I held the scholarly cap in place with my red flowery hair pin. I was seriously expecting that my lecturers would resume after two weeks. I thought two weeks was enough time for the government to sort out things with them. However, I was wrong.

We know that this administration is irresponsible and uncaring about the Nigerian students. Their despicable actions show this. The strike has obviously not achieved the desired effect. So, I ask: isn't it high time it is called off? At least, for the sakes of students all over the federation who have engaged in protests and done all in their capacity to advance the just cause of ASUU and parents too, the strike ought to end.

#ASUUStrike #EndASUUStrikeNow #NigeriaDecides2023 #EducationIsOurRigh

The Pool of Thoughts

Dark rain clouds must have gathered but there was no illumination to show their face. A few insignificant stars were scattered about in the moonless sky like seeds. Remarkably, the same song replayed in her head over and over again: 🎵 Listen with your heart You will understand 🎵 It's been three months and now that she needed it most, Cynthia didn't keep her word. The creditor was on her neck and she had no funds. This favor she did was almost killing her on the inside because Cynthia just decided to wait till her mother took ill so she could have an excuse for not repaying her debt! The wind whistled and whooshed. Curtains danced to its tunes and thoughts twirled in a pool. Other incidences recounted in her head; how someone had spilled oil on her textbook, her dinner had been eaten and her clothes had been left at the mercy of the afternoon drizzle. The worst part was that she didn't know who to hurl words at or blame for all her misfortunes. She had almost shouted the whole house down in frustration at her return. Still, there was no culprit. What can she do now? She thought it would only take a few weeks for her to repay the money but now, the creditor has come. She had no money to pay off someone else's debt. Her mind began to drift off to other things. Those dark brown crescent eyes lit up the chiselled face. The well shaped eye brows narrowed in worry. Her red pouty lips stood out, complimenting the beautifully tanned skin. Her dark long hair flew in the direction of the wind. She sighed as Disney's Pocahontas's portrait came to mind. What does it really take to mediate between two parties?

#Pocahontas #disney #mediation

ON THIS HAPPY DAY On this happy day, This lovely day in May, The sun so brightly shines, The wind so lightly blows And the birds sing their song- A victorious summer song.

An ant hastened forward like a ray Which has lost its way While I rid the shelf of mice Scattered around like an army of flies At last, the telephone rang And my heart got a bang!

On this happy day, I got twice my pay, Gave out my fears on lease And ate a meal of peas I travelled pages long To the heights where bliss hung.

On this happy day, I've judged it right to pray; Just some words of thanks For a day like this.

#Happy

Nightfall Normally, we're a quiet, peace loving people. Nothing ever happens, really. Nationwide protests hardly happen here. However, lately, cases of kidnapping and murder have been on the increase. Ritual killings and cultic confrontations have become 'normal news'. Most of these things happen at night, they say, hence, the need to be cautious. It was 7pm yesterday, almost nightfall and so I was hurrying back home. I had undone chores waiting patiently for me. I didn't mean to but somehow, my ears caught several discussions as I passed by the houses lining the street. Up in the sky, an helicopter glided rather slowly towards the East. It was the noise it made that attracted the attention of everyone once again. Children came out in their numbers to admire its different shades of light while adults reasoned among themselves, who the important personality in the aircraft could be. Caught in the commotion, I watched the helicopter until it disappeared behind the horizon. When I was a little distance away from home, the helicopter glided back from the direction in which it had gone before making me wonder if its pilot was confused. On getting home, I discovered there was power supply for the first time in several days! The excitement was too much. I plugged my phone and turned the TV on. I was enjoying a Nollywood movie with my siblings when we heard the sound of the chopper again. Stepping outside to take a look, we discovered that there were not one but two choppers flying across the sky. It was until the next day before I discovered the identity of the mysterious figure who helicoptered over our city that day- his excellency, the Vice President. Like, the Vice President visited. And there was power supply throughout the night too. Wow! What can't elections do?

#Generalelections2023

The Kind of Melon she Hated

Its outstretched leaves, fluffy and widespread like an elephant's ear, she would have loved to call green but for the palish white that covered them. Rooted atop the conical heaps close to yam plants, they reminded her of the cowpeas she had planted at the backyard of her apartment back at school, made her wonder if they had blossomed. Her mother told her it was a different specie of melon. I was the same one whose fruit she had dipped in palm oil after they had been boiled and eaten to suppress the tension which was welling up in her heart on that day when they had that discussion that left her speechless except for the frequent nods, “hmm” or “abi oh” she had to spare to hide her confusion. She had been given motherly advice on academics, relationship, blah blah. Arrgh! She so hated relationship talk, or at least, she reasoned she should. But upon close observation, it was revealed that they only put her in a state of nerves, made her think about the part of sociality she wasn't ready for. Yet, deep down her heart, she loved that everyone that cared talked about it. So, she spent half an hour staring at this different species of melon she hated, wondering why her mother loved its sour-tasting fruit and wishing she never planted them at all. Four days later, after taking a brief nap, she came out to the balcony for fresh air. It had not rained at all in seven days and the sun was scorchy. Gazing over the railings, beneath their flat, she saw the melon plant again. Now, its leaves were wrinkly, parched in a displeasing way. Looking at the sky, Phoebe hoped it would rain soon.