Romance Meets Life |
- Police IG, Mohammed Abubakar - Please Stop These Mob Killings!
- Couple Love - Sony and Betty Irabor
- Short Story - My Baby Left Because I Cried
- Stills From Half Of A Yellow Sun Movie With Genevieve Nnaji and More Nollywood Actors
- Jason Njoku and Mary Remmy-Njoku Welcome First Child
- Couple in Their 90s Share the Secrets to their 65 Years of Marriage
- Types of Women To Avoid On Twitter and Facebook
- Going For What You Want And Awkward First Dates
- Desiderata - Great Advice For Life
| Police IG, Mohammed Abubakar - Please Stop These Mob Killings! Posted: 31 Jul 2013 03:03 PM PDT  I believe Mob killings stem from police actions and inaction. One could say the respect for life in Nigeria has continued to wear thin because over the years, civilians had either lost trust in the government, especially in the work of the police and the judicial system which have been derailed by corruption and incompetence. Or civilians are simply emulating the brand of justice dished by the police in their extra-judicial killings. Police men frequently shoot and kill innocent people on the streets for very flimsy reasons including personal vendettas, accidental discharges and refusal to pay bribes. While suspects wait for trial, the police also murder them in jail, some say to depopulate cells or as their own version of justice. I was still living in Abuja in 2005 when the "Apo Six" were killed and the incident initially buried by the police, like they tried to do to their victims. The truth finally came out, and most of their killers apprehended, but the case is still in court. [AllAfrica] Last year, "ALUU4" became another slogan. It began on October 5th, 2012, when Biringa Chiadika Lordson, Ugonna Kelechi Obuzor, Mike Lloyd Toku and Tekena Erikena, all students at the University of Port-Harcourt, were falsely accused of theft and severely beaten and burnt to death by a mob of civilians as policemen watched. Chinwe Biringa, the mother of Chiadika, one of the murdered ALUU4, confirmed to Channels TV that policemen were present during the killings. According to her, Eyewitnesses accounts revealed that policemen were at the scene of the incident. Besides, policemen at the police station confirmed to one of the bereaved parents who visited them that policemen were there. What manner of policemen are these? [Aside - talking of insufficient bullets and how totally under-resourced the police is, who can forget former IG of police, Tafa Balogun and the billions he and other police fraudsters have milked from police funds over the years?] But I do not think lack of resources is the major problem of the police. They will have to look at how personnel are recruited and the training they receive as well as their knowledge of the law they're supposed to enforce. Again, another mob action killing has occurred, this time in Lagos, and in all the accounts, it says that some policemen actually participated actively in the murder. According to the report by Punchng, At some points in the video, a policeman was seen interviewing the boys. He asked who sent them (victims) to rob the area, an accusation they denied. One of the hoodlums, holding a sharp object attempted to cut off the private part of one of the victims. According to the reporter, the Lagos state police spokesperson, Ngozi Braide, has said of the killing, "The incident is quite pathetic. Even if they were armed robbers, no one has the right to take the life of another. Why then do we have the police and the judiciary? The Nigerian police as well as the law condemn mob action and jungle justice. The commissioner of police has set up a high- powered investigation body to investigate the matter." But how can she say that with a stright face knowing the history of the police as a whole and the involvement of policemen in this particular case? After he was appointed and confirmed as the Inspector General of police in January 2012, Mohammed Abubakar admitted to the extrajudicial killings of the police and the effect it has had on civilians. In a speech to senior police officers in which he called for changes, Abubakar agreed that; "Justice has been perverted, people's rights denied, innocent souls committed to prison, torture and extra-judicial killings perpetrated. Our anti-robbery squads have become killer teams, many people arbitrarily detained in our cells because they cannot afford the illegal bail monies we demand. Our respect is gone and the Nigerian public has lost even the slightest confidence in the ability of the police to do any good thing." If he stands by what he said, and is really working to reform the police, then I want him to add this challenge to his list of must-dos. I am calling on the IG of police to do everything in his capacity as police chief to stop this menace of mob killings in Nigeria!        | ||||
| Couple Love - Sony and Betty Irabor Posted: 31 Jul 2013 12:06 PM PDT  Betty Irabor believes that marriage takes two [see post] and after 30 years of marriage, one must say she's getting it right. Her husband, Sony Irabor is veteran broadcaster and talk show host while Betty is the publisher of Genevieve magazine. RML wishes them more years of love. Betty Irabor said about their marriage.... We do have our roforofo moments but we work it out. A marriage where couples don't communicate and bear grudges is likely to be an unhappy one. Talk it over and don't keep digging up the past. Forgive…forgive…forgive. What I know for sure is that Christ is the foundation of a good marriage.     | ||||
| Short Story - My Baby Left Because I Cried Posted: 31 Jul 2013 10:07 AM PDT  By Kem Nathan-Gaul That baby meant so much to me. Luke and I had tried really hard to have a child. We had been married for three years and had two miscarriages in that time. We called them accidents. Maybe Luke felt that by calling them accidents, they would feel less real to me and therefore, less painful. Not true. I smiled and said, "Yes, the accident…", only because I wanted him to move on and change the subject. Perhaps talk about hockey or one of his patients at the hospital. Finally, that one month when we didn't hope, pray and wish; it happened. I got pregnant. We decided not to announce it. Maybe if we kept it quiet she would stay. I felt it was a girl. My little baby girl. Months passed and the excitement grew. Luke painted the room and we shopped and shopped. We wanted her colors to be purple and yellow. Luke's brother, Jason, did a wonderful job on her room. He painted the skies on her ceiling. When you turned out the lights, the stars glowed in the dark. It was so beautiful. Her walls had on one side a sun rising above a hillside and on the other little cherubs in what looked like heaven. I made Jason, a huge cup of French vanilla, his favorite, and gave him a huge bear hug. That was his present to his little niece. Luke kept urging me to check the baby's sex. I refused. My heart told me it was a girl and my heart never lied. The doctors said she was growing well and everything was good. You see, I had more frequent follow-up because I was living with epilepsy. Also, one of the Epilepsy foundations in Canada was studying pregnant women with epilepsy to help in their research. They wanted to find out what drug combinations were best to control seizures during pregnancy. I signed up for that, to help other women and maybe help myself too. I was placed on Keppra 1000mg b.d and 8mg of folic acid as opposed to the regular 4mg. Everything was going well and I looked great. Luke was so supportive and he was making sure I was eating well, exercising and resting well. However, sometimes when we lay in bed at night talking, he would fall silent and the look in his eyes when he looked at me was filled with fear. "What are you afraid of?" I asked him one night. He looked at me and with all sincerity he replied, "I don't know. Sometimes, fear doesn't give us an explanation. We just fear". In my head, I thought, "What rubbish!" I was not ready for negativity or crazy philosophies, so I just murmured, "Good night" and I turned on my side and went to sleep. My marriage was a strange one. I was very happy and so was Luke. We were two troubled souls who found each other, and our greatest gift was silence. We both were not great talkers but in our silence we communicated beyond words. Our minds communicated with words our mouths couldn't speak. I had been abused as a child; Luke's parents were abusive alcoholics. We had our demons but together we found peace and happiness. There were many things I wanted to say to him and many things I knew he wanted to say to me as well. Words failed us. When I felt love, I reached out my hands and he held me, tight. When I wanted to be loved, I hugged him and he held me close, knowing and sensing my desire. When he looked into my eyes, I saw all the words his lips would never speak. It was 5 am when I felt something wet between my legs. I smelled it, it was not pee. Gosh! My water had broken. I tapped Luke, "It's time. She's here". I had packed a hospital emergency bag and was ready to go in no time. It was a good thing I got Luke to shave me down there the day before. I did not want the nurses doing more than they had to in my vagina. I was ready and excited. We got to the hospital and by then I had started having frequent contractions. She seemed real eager to come into the world. Things went pretty smoothly and I didn't even take the epidural. I was exhausted from the pushing that once I heard her cry, I passed out. When I came to, Luke was holding my hand and he had a strange look on his face. It was not sadness, or disappointment, it was a sickening emptiness. He just stared at me, more like he stared right through me. "Where is my daughter?" was all I could say. "I should get the doctor", he replied and left the room. Dr. Rufus came in with his fatherly smile and gentle hands. I wondered why Luke called my neurologist. "Where is my daughter?" I asked again. Just in case he didn't hear me right the first time. Dr. Rufus started saying something, "…I don't know how they missed it…" "…The scans should have shown something…" "…clear case of spina bifida…" He went on and on and I said it again, "Where is my daughter?" I was discharged the day after we had the baby. I had to leave my precious baby at the hospital. I still refused to believe that something was wrong with him. How dare Dr. Rufus? And Luke just stared. Why couldn't he tell the doctor to stop saying those things? Our baby could not have spina bifida. I took my folic acid religiously; I ate fruits and vegetables, exercised. I did everything the doctors asked me to do. Why do bad things happen to good people? Maybe at the end we get what we deserve. Luke had been looking at me strangely. I knew he expected me to cry. I could not cry because I didn't even believe it. I felt like a stranger in my own body. Like a visitor in my house. I wanted to cry but the tears would not flow. The next morning I woke up and Luke had gone for his run. I felt so alone. Like a part of me was missing. Yes, my baby. We hadn't even discussed boy names. My heart told me she'd be a girl and we planned to name her Keira. Now, I wondered what we would call him. Then I remembered. My baby would be different. Other kids would make fun of him. I would always fight for him, protect him. I would love him fiercely. At that moment, something inside me broke and I wept. I wept for shattered dreams, I wept for my little boy. I wept for his struggles, his pain, my struggles and my pain. I wept for every sick child out there and every mother who had to deal with raising a child with disabilities. I just wept. We got to the hospital and I was finally ready to hold my baby. I had decided to name him Simon. Luke said it was a strong name. I liked that. We got to the ICU where he was being monitored and the friendly nurse who attended to me the day before said the doctor would like to speak with us. Everyone looked at us with pity. I hated being pitied. People had children with disabilities everyday and they braved it. I would be no different. The doctor was friendly but direct. He didn't dilly dally. He said Baby McLeod, that's what they called him, was gone. He was born with spina bifida and developed respiratory complications. They tried their best but they lost him a few minutes before we came in. I hadn't cried and the morning I cried for my Simon, was the morning he left. I went hysterical. I was screaming incomprehensible words and crying. The nurses tried to hold me down to sedate me. The last thing I heard Dr. Rufus say was, "I'm sorry, Helen". Sorry? Sorry was what you said when you misplaced a pair of shoes? You were sorry when you lost my wallet, my purse, my phone. You don't say sorry when I 'lose' a baby! I screamed for the last time from a place of guilt. My baby was like Luke. He had read my mind. After he saw my thoughts, felt my tears, he decided to leave without even saying hello. __________ Kem Nathan-Gaul is an aspiring writer who dreams by day and counts sheep at night. She likes to make funny faces, read mystery novels, listen to love songs and watch tear-provoking dramas. She is a die-hard lover of Sex and the City, Criminal Minds and Dexter. She is married to Art Director and dog lover, Nathan, whose heart she conquered and who helped her conquer her dog phobia. They live in what she calls, "the little house on Hastings".     | ||||
| Stills From Half Of A Yellow Sun Movie With Genevieve Nnaji and More Nollywood Actors Posted: 31 Jul 2013 09:07 AM PDT  I shared my first thoughts after watching the first TIFF trailer of Half of a Yellow Sun movie here, saying, - "Though she's still in the movie, I saw several naija actors - Zack Orji, Onyeka Onwenu, Gloria Young, Tina Mba - but not Genevieve in the preview. Did I miss her?" I actually did, and also Wale Ojo, OC Ukeje, and Hakeem Kae-Kazim who are all also in the movie and the trailer. See more stills below...                | ||||
| Jason Njoku and Mary Remmy-Njoku Welcome First Child Posted: 31 Jul 2013 09:08 AM PDT  Jason Njoku, got married to his Nollywood actress wife, Mary Remmy-Njoku, last year, and yesterday, the couple welcomed their first child, Jason Obinna Njoku. The birth took place in London and mother and baby are doing well. Jason Njoku says: "We are so blessed and so happy to welcome our son into the world and Mary and I could not be happier at his safe arrival. We feel we are the luckiest people alive and cannot wait to bring baby Jason home to meet our family and friends". RML wishes the new family all the very best, and congratulations!     | ||||
| Couple in Their 90s Share the Secrets to their 65 Years of Marriage Posted: 31 Jul 2013 07:09 AM PDT  How did you meet and when did you get married? Gabriel: We knew each other quite well before we got married on August 5, 1948. I took great pains to let her know I was in love with her then. She was also in love with me. Luckily, we ended up working in the same place later on. My employers gave her the chance to join me in the service because of the likeness they had for me. We worked together in the same organisation till she retired in 1971. Florence: We met at Ijebu Ode. He was attending Ijebu Ode Grammar School at that time, while I attended St. Saviours' School. Sometimes, we used to go to his school for sports competitions or other extra-curricular activities. That was how we met. Then, he used to visit me at home but my father would drive him away. Fortunately, we met again when I relocated to Lagos. When we came to Lagos, he was working at the Government Press; while I was looking for a job. He was the one who told me to write an application and bring it there, which I did and I got the job. I was lucky to get my first job with my husband at Federal Government Press at Broad Street Lagos in 1945. So, our relationship continued until we got married in 1948. I retired in 1971. We have seven children. What is the secret of your 65-year old marriage? Gabriel: The secret is love. She also gave me good children, children who are doing a lot for us today and doing well for themselves. They are based in Nigeria, US and the UK. Florence: We love each other. We go for outings and come back together. Marriages break up today because the wife or husband has no patience. Two people may fight, but a wife should stick with her husband in good times and bad times. They should also have patience in training the children. No matter the amount the husband gives the wife for home keeping, she should be able to manage it, whether it is a penny or £100. But nowadays, some people do not have the patience for that. We never fought. If he gave me a penny, I took it. If he didn't, I was all right with that. We were patient with each other. Your husband said he went to great pains to let you know he loved you. What did he mean? Florence: When my father drove him away, we couldn't speak with each other. But, we spoke to each other whenever we saw outside. I gave him assurance that he shouldn't be worried, that I would marry him. My father kept driving him away for about two years, until we came to Lagos. Then, my uncle, whom I was staying with in Lagos, never allowed him to come into the house whenever he came visiting me. We used to live on the second floor. So he would stay outside until we closed the gate, then he would go home. I guess my father refused to allow him visit me then because I had not introduced him. By that time, I was still in school,but I was already working when I was living with my uncle, who said that my husband was too black. But I didn't mind him being dark in complexion. My husband was patient enough until we got married. When you finally got married, what did you father say eventually? Florence: Well, he got the dowry and everything required, as tradition allowed, before our marriage. So he was very glad. I got married at the age of 25. How was it like training seven children? Gabriel: It is another special grace of God. They are all successful. We have a doctor, dental surgeon, laboratory scientist, petroleum engineer, optometrist, senior special assistant to Lagos State Governor Babatunde Fashola; another is also a doctor and an assistant director at Federal Industrial Research, Oshodi, Lagos. Their mother was helpful in a great deal also because when she retired in 1971, she went into business and had more time to plan for herself and the family. She got favour from friends to expand her business. God helped her to make some fortune, which helped to train the children up to the university level. She was able to help me pay for their tickets to the UK. There is nothing better than the blessings of God. We now have ten grandchildren. Florence: I started my business three years after I retired from the service. It is very difficult to train seven children, even up to secondary school, not to talk of university. I spent the little profit I made to train the children and support their education in the UK and US. One of my sons in the US got a scholarship after he had secured admission into the university. The university later refunded the one year school fees we had paid for him. I gave it back to him to travel to do a summer holiday in London. Another one also gained scholarship to study in the US. I thank God I was able to train my children. Every year, I bought clothes and shoes for them and organised Christmas parties for them. Some of them attended boarding school then, like Mayflower School, Ikenne. But they appreciated it and did very well in school. What are your fondest memories and things you are most fulfilled about? Gabriel: I was not a socialite. I liked staying indoors. But I was successful in my career. Also, my achievement is to see the grace of God upon my children. God has helped me so much and also gave me a wonderful wife to support me. I have no regrets. Rather I thank God. Florence: I remember we used to go dancing at Forrester, Lagos Island club and other places. But now, you need to have a lot of money to go to such places. I like dancing, even before we got married, I used to go to these places with my uncle. I like all kinds of music. I was once a leading dancer for the late Hubert Ogunde when I was much younger. I did it for a few years on a part-time basis. I can't remember all the performances I featured in, but I remember Yoruba Ronu, Strike and Hunger. Also, my husband and I loved to attend the Miss Nigeria pageant show every year. We didn't miss it. We are too old now to attend. Is there anything that brings unpleasant memories? Gabriel: That was when I lost one of my daughters a few months ago. She has been one of the most loving to me. That is the only thing that saddens me. Florence: Our daughter was one of my most beloved, which was why I didn't want to celebrate my 90th birthday. But my children prevailed on me to. They said, "Mummy, you are a good mother." They came from the US and UK to celebrate with me in Nigeria. Losing her was painful. What are your hobbies? Gabriel: I was not involved in sports. Now I cannot walk well. Because of the inconvenience walking causes me, I hardly go out nowadays; although, in my younger days, I was not a party crawler. But I loved watching television. Today, I watch when I feel like watching. Florence: I like travelling. Before now, I used to travel to London or the US every year. Sometimes, I stayed six months, a year or two years. I celebrated my 78th birthday in London, 79th in the US and 80th in London. My husband and all my children were there and we had a great occasion. What's the secret of your long life? Gabriel: I give thanks to God that I celebrated my 90th birthday and added two more years to it. The secret is God Almighty. I don't know any other secret, but that it is the grace of God Almighty which has sustained me until today. It's not by just eating good food or living comfortably. Florence: I didn't live a wayward lifestyle. I don't drink. I only take soft drinks. Even though I sold beer, I never tasted it because I didn't like beer. I eat Ijebu food (laughs). But I don't want to live up to one hundred. To grow old is not easy. I have arthritis now and can't hear properly, but I thank God for my life. My advice to people who want to live long is to pray to God and He will give them anything they want. They will live long if they can also exercise patience in life.     | ||||
| Types of Women To Avoid On Twitter and Facebook Posted: 31 Jul 2013 07:09 AM PDT  Rejoinder to Types of Men to Avoid on Twitter and Facebook[post] by Oyebanji Ayodele Nowadays, it is nothing new that a lot of relationships start off on the internet. However, it must be said that beneath every online personality is some sort of anonymity. Or symbols meant to be decoded. Thus, it is essential you look beyond the façade of the posts, pictures and chats you have on Facebook, Twitter and their likes. So if you're a guy, looking forward to getting hooked up online, or your hook has already caught a fish, this is for you. In case your online love falls within any of these groups, don't just sit, watching. Find an escape route. 1. The "I Love My Body" Group These ladies capitalizes on the visual sense of men. Their members flaunt their front and back assets opulently. You see more of their pictures. Sometimes, nude. They steal all the attention, likes and comments, leaving whatever you must have posted deprived. When online, you take a breather on their pages. I do. They occasionally chirp on Twitter and Facebook. And when they do, they ask you to assess their near-nude and much revealing pictures. In case you have not met any of their kind, this is what happens: something begins to heave in your head, your eyes bulging out of their sockets. Then, if you are not careful, you may fall for their tricks and send that DM or PM that has your naked tool. You will be blackmailed forever. Does the name Carlos Danger sound familiar? 2. The "Christian or SU" Group They are the early risers on social media. You wake to their 'Good morning Lord' and 'Thank you Jesus' posts. They feed you with the quotable quotes for the day. Sometimes, short sermons. Preachy thingz, that's what they are. On account of their reserve, you consider them the best 'take home to mama'. They can't cheat, you say in your mind. Listen! Their type has exhausted their cheating airtime. Don't be surprised if they confess having had a past before meeting Master Jesus. They comfort you with the scripture: 'old things have passed away and everything has become new…' To add to your new problem, you may have to put up with their narrow minds. For instance, you must never demand a blow job from them. If you dare, you may end up being a subject of a deliverance session. In your house. The "Chop and Go" Group These women are beautiful. Or, they pull out all the stops to look beautiful. They are crazy about making money. They're not streetwalkers but high-class ashewos - let's call them aristos. It's the economy, I don't blame them. And I hope you won't blame yourself. On their Facebook and Twitter pages, DANGER is penned in legibly faint letterings. All you need do is open your eyes. Their kind project refined images online. They don't look starved, but they really are. Their type exerts a pull on you with updates and pictures of lavish meals, designer dresses, shoes, luggage and so on. If you ever manage to land one of them, your offline dates will take you to boutiques and eateries alone. God help you if you are some broke fellow. When you are trapped in their net, you end up becoming an instant ATM. Milking you dry is not the expression, you won't remember having anything at all. They are the high maintenance kind of ladies. They live for their appearances. Once you can no longer pay their bills, they leave you. 4. The 'Feminist' Group That is what they call themselves. Feminists. I don't know what to call them, but I know feminists when I see or read them. Members of this group are not. You find their posts and tweets regularly these days. No thanks to Senator Ahmed Yerima. They use hashtags the most. According to them, they fight for the rights of women. They are fighters, really. Blood-sucking, phalli-cutting fighters! Here is a sample tweet: 'Come near my child with your prick, I'll castrate you! #childnotbride' You'll run from them if you really love yourself. You dare not offend them. If you do, they go either for your small head or big head. For you reading, you may probably not find this list comprehensive enough. If so, drop your views as well as share your experiences in the comments box. _________ This post is a rejoinder to the post - Types of Men to Avoid on Twitter and Facebook. Oyebanji Ayodele blogs at ayoyebanji.blogspot.com and tweets @ayoyebanji     | ||||
| Going For What You Want And Awkward First Dates Posted: 31 Jul 2013 03:04 AM PDT
My sister-in-law visited us recently and spent a lot of time gisting about her latest man issues with my wife. I'd listen in half-heartedly until she mentioned wanting a particular guy to "man up". "Does he like me or not?" "If he does, he should come out with it and be direct!" I asked her if she'd be willing to make a move and tell him she liked him and she responded: "ME? Tell a guy I like him? Back to Sender!" If I had N100 for everytime I heard a lady complain that a guy wasn't "aggressive" enough or "confident" enough, I'd have quit my job a long time ago. I blame the romance novels. Why won't women expect that their men have to be these handsome "sweep me off my feet" types when they're being bombarded with images like the Old Spice one above. I wish women would remember that men are human beings. We have insecurities and hangups just like women do. While we all know about the standards imposed on women by society (rehashing that topic every other day in the blogs, twitter and facebook ad nauseum), we don't ease up on the men much. We're not all full of swagga "used to getting BB pins on a daily basis" koko masters (even if we form like we do). The sincere ones are more like:
Before a guy can figure out if a girl is even available and make sure it's all clear to move in, he has to find a way to do some detective type sturvs without being labeled a pervert stalker. If he tries to add her on facebook, wahala. If he requests to follow her on twitter, wahala. If he asks her friends, they will use him as an example. If he just straight up asks her, he'll be forced to wait centuries for her reply so she doesn't seem "too eager". Lucky for me I met someone who, once she thought she liked me, spoke to me herself, without waiting for me to make my standard blundering approach. But that doesn't mean the first date wasn't still incredibly awkward. I'd booked the standard "dinner and a movie" setting thinking it couldn't fail. I just had to get through the dinner with enough "topics of interest" to actually hold her interest and then we could sit in sweet silence during the movie. However, the moment we were led to our seats, she proceeded to tell me her thoughts on how the restaurant was crowded, our seats were terrible, the food was tasteless and the menu was overpriced. Pointing out the faults of your date's arrangements may not be the best conversation starter, but for some strange reason I didn't mind at all. The reason she was being so nonchalant however, soon became clear to me. "So let me just tell you now that I don't actually like men." ?!?!? "I mean, not that I'm a lesbian. but i really just don't like guys that much. I like you though." "Oh ...ok...thank you." "But I'm sure we'll still want to date other people right? Or should we just have a cut off deadline?" 
Things got even more awkward at the movie theater with the questions she kept asking me. "Is James Bond seriously going to sleep with that girl when the killers are looking for him?" "Um.." "But don't you think that's so stupid? Would YOU do something like that?" "Well..." "If I was attacked like that would you protect me?" "Why do they always make the bad guys in these movies Russian? You'd think the Cold War was still happening? On and on it went but I couldn't figure out if she wanted me to answer or just listen. The movie ended and we set off to drop her home. She sent me a text once she was in and even though I'd barely put two words together during the date, for some reason, I called her back. We talked for hours. Suddenly, what I couldn't say in the formal setting of the dinner and a movie, came gushing out through the casual phone. I actually liked this girl who didn't like the food or the movie or the ambiance. The girl who liked me even though she didn't like men. The girl I struggled to get a word in edgewise with. The girl who'd given me a chance in all my awkwardness to avoid stalking her before getting in touch. I wasn't sure if she'd dump me the next day or the next month given that she seemed to be on some sort of deadline. But when her "cut off" date came up, I asked her to renew my contract. _____________ I am Naija Husband otherwise known as NH. Follow me on Twitter and check out my blog out atnaijahusband.com     | ||||
| Desiderata - Great Advice For Life Posted: 30 Jul 2013 11:10 PM PDT Desiderata means the things we desire in Latin. It is also the title of poem written in 1927 by American writer Max Ehrmann. The poem became widely known after it was used by a priest in his church's 1956 devotional. The poem has also featured in spoken-word recordings published in the 1970s. I find the advice contained in the poem very encouraging and soothing too. Go placidly amid the noise and haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence. As far as possible without surrender be on good terms with all persons. Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even the dull and the ignorant; they too have their story. Avoid loud and aggressive persons, they are vexations to the spirit. If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain and bitter; for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself. Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans. Keep interested in your own career, however humble; it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time. Exercise caution in your business affairs; for the world is full of trickery. But let this not blind you to what virtue there is; many persons strive for high ideals; and everywhere life is full of heroism. Be yourself. Especially, do not feign affection. Neither be cynical about love; for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment it is as perennial as the grass. Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth. Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune. But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings. Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness. Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself. You are a child of the universe, no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here. And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should. Therefore be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be, and whatever your labors and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life keep peace with your soul. With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world. Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.     |
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