Ballerina Continues...

"Omo."

"Yes, mummy."

"Please, go and remove the dishes from the dinning table, your daddy has finished eating."

"Ok mummy, one minute."

"Honey."

"Yes, dear."

"Please come and listen to what Omo has to tell you."

"Daddy, regarding what?" Omo questions her father from the kitchen.

"Regarding a dancer, or don't you want to be a dancer anymore?"

"I do, daddy. But I didn't tell you that I want to discuss it with mummy."

"Discuss what with mummy?" Their mum ask as she hurry into the living room.

"Your daughter said she wants to be a dancer."

"Ha dear, I thought it's something very important you called me for."

"It's very important, she's very serious about it."

"Come on dear, you know she's only a child, she can't be serious."

"Mummy I'm not a child, I'm a teenager now and I'm in senior secondary." Omo informed her mom.

"Huh?" She responds in perplexity.

"And for your information, Omo continues, I and my friend will be representing the Apex Ball Team in next month's Ball dance competition."

"Which one is ball dance again?"

"Ah! Mummy, please don't tell me you've never heard of ballerina."

"Dear,she calls her husband with a bit of frown and curiosity. Which one is ballerina again?"

"Omo."

"Yes daddy."

"Explain to your mummy with some steps."

"Yes daddy." She stretches herself and starts to dance as she hums a song.

"Wait, wait, wait, is this what you said you want to be doing? Raising up your skirt for everybody to be looking at?"

"Mummy it's not what you think."

"Obviously, it's not what I think, it's what I'm seeing." She shakes her head in disappointment.

"This is so funny."

"Dear please stop laughing, I'm not finding this funny at all. This girl wants to spoil our family name. My only daughter!"

"Oh my God." He laughs louder.

"Daniel Ehime Lobekeme!"

"That's my full name, honey."

"Please stop laughing and talk to this girl."

"Mummy there's nothing to tell me, afterall, daddy was a dancer."

"No! He was a masquerade, not a dancer."

"Ah honey! Mr. Daniel exclaims, was I not dancing as a masquerade?"

"Oh yeah, but old things have passed away."

"Alright, Omo," Mr. Daniel calls, pretending to be serious, "you need to listen to your mom."

"No dad, both of you should please listen to yourselves." Omo advise. "Both of you used to tell us that we shouldn't live in rat-race. "You both told us that everyone was created with an ability, a gift and talent to impart lives for good."

"Yes, that's true." Mr. Daniel responds, nodding his head.

"You taught us to discover, harness and put our potentials to the best use," Omo continues," now I tell you that I want to dance and you are saying that I should not. What then do you want me to do?"

"What I want you to do is to try and understand that this country is not a place where you can get ahead with that kind of dance." Their mom tries to explain in a soft tone. "I think you should concentrate on getting into the university and think of something else."

"Mummy, Omo calls in a lachrymose tone, when did you become the creator and giver of opportunity." she asks as tears begin to well up in her eyes.

"What do you mean?"

"You said this country is not a place I can get ahead with ballerina."

"Yes, but I...I..."

"Mummy this is the opposite of what you've been teaching us, and I don't understand. Have you two been lying to us?"

"It's alright Omo, Mr. Daniel interrupts, we have not been lying to any of you, your mummy just want you to concentrate on your studies and do first things first rather than getting carried away with your hobbies.

"Hello people." Eromo calls excitedly as he walk pass his parents, he ruffles Omo's hair playfully. "What's up ballerina."

"Eromo, leave me alone, I don't have your time this morning."

"What is it?" Eromo inquires as he walks toward the dinning table. "Are you having a quarrel with you husband again?" He pulls out four eggs from the paper bag he took into the house and gently place them on the dinning table.
"Why is nobody saying anything?"
"Daddy."

"Yes."

"It must have come from you because you're the only one that is capable of releasing missiles that are powerful enough to create this type of noisy silence."
He walks into the kitchen and turn on the oven...

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Ballerina conts.

"Kunle doesn't call as he used to" Beatrice begins. Although that's not the reason I'm going out with Kelechi. We had a little altercation the last time he came visiting and we resolved it. But I just lost something I used to feel for him".

"Since when?

"A few months ago".

"Its since you started seeing kelechi" Edith replies with her eyes wide open as she nods her head repeatedly to show that she is certain of her statement.

"Who told you it's since I started seeing Kelechi?"

"You didn't lose anything when you and Kunle were still burning with passion, how come it's when this big-mouthed, haughty Kelechi shows up that you are losing something you felt for Kunle?"

"Edith please don't insult my boy... my, my friend."

"Aha!!! Your boyfriend. So soon?" Nkechi exclaims.

"I'm not insulting him, Beatrice. You of all people should know Kelechi better than that." Edith informs her in a peaceful tone. "You knew how much he disturbed me with his love stories," she continues, "and how he promised me heaven and earth while he was dating one of my friends. And come to think of it, he's even Kunle's friend. Ah, Beatrice!"

"We're just seeing each other now."

"Let me hear word." Nkechi interrupts harshly. "Are you telling me that for the few months you two have been seeing yourselves, he has not seen you finish?"

"What if he has?"

"Beatrice, why are you like this?"

"Like how?"

"Where is your dignity, your value, your pride?"

"Edith what is it now? Why are you acting like you are my mother here?" "I said I lost something I used to feel for Kunle."

"Then find it, find it and continue with him." Nkechi complains.

"Why am I even wasting my time on this issue?" Edith asks. "I don't think you ever loved Kunle."

"Both of you that are even accusing me, do you know what your boyfriends are doing as we talk now?"

"For your information, I have no boyfriend for now," Nkechi answers. "Because the three guys I dated on this campus thought they were doing me favour for dating me. They talked to me like I was their maid or some kind of whore. The only time they made me feel special was when they wanted to have sex. I observed it in all the relationships and I had to take a break."

"As for me, Edith begins, I don't care if Bryan is dating another girl. I'll keep my head straight. I'll not start doing something wrong because of someone who I'm not yet married to. If Bryan chooses to, let him date and sleep with all the girls he sees, it can't change me from being chaste, focused and disciplined. Besides I came to the university to learn not to look for boyfriends."

"I hear you, reverend sister!" Beatrice teases.

"Who is the reverend sister in our room?" A girl in her early twenties walks into the room with textbooks in her left hand and a pen in her right hand.

"Heeey, Scholar!!!" The three girls shout ubiquitously.

"Efe, you left the library on time today, it's so much unlike you."

"Edith my sister, I'm tired of deceiving myself everytime I go to the library to read."

"What do you mean?"

"I intentionally sit there and gaze into emptiness to waste time."

"Why do such a thing? That's self deception." Beatrice educates her.

"I know "B".

"Then why persist in such an act?" Nkechi inquires.

"You know those my class mates that we all go to the library to read together always complain that I'm not a serious student because I don't read as for longer hours as they do."

"Is that supposed to be their cup of tea?"

"Ask me oh, Edith. Are you people answering the same surname?" Nkechi asks with surprise.

"You girls are asking me questions that you already know the answers."

"So what's your decision?"

"Beatrice dear, no more self-deception."

"That's my girl." Beatrice nods in approval.

"Now you're talking." Nkechi offers Efe her knuckle."

"Those girls can read for six hours straight, non-stop. But they don't know that I can read all I need to know in two hours and fully comprehend. Any additional second or minute to that will be a waste of time.

"That's how one girl joined her friends to read in 300 lecture theatre, a fortnight ago, and fell asleep." Edith explains as she tries to control herself from laughing.

"Is that why you want to laugh?" Nkechi cuts in. "I've seen girls snoring in classrooms all in the name of preparation for exams."

"Allow me to finish what I want to say, now." Edith appeals.

"I'm sorry, you can continue."

"While she was sleeping, Edith continues, a guy walked up to her and started fondling her apples..."

"Ah!!!" They all scream.

"Rubbish!" Nkechi exclaims as she jumps up from her chair." What did they do to the boy?" She enquires in a raging detest.

"Nobody knew how he escaped."

"If it was me, I would lay curse on the boy and his generation." Efe adds.

"It wasn't entirely the guy's fault."

"Come Edith, don't let me slap you, o." Nkechi warns. "How can you say it's not the guy's fault?" You that is a girl." "If it were your apples, would you have been happy that a total stranger grabbed them?"

"Nkechi stop being a woman liberator, the girl deserved it. How could she go to a public place to read at about 1:00 am midnight, in night gown and bum short, without bra?"

"Ah!!! Without bra?" They all scream.

"No, no, no, she got what she was looking for." Nkechi laments, shaking her head in regret as the other girls laugh out helplessly...
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Body Guard

I like to cross the road with my husband when we walk together.
You know why?
I'll tell you.

When we are about to cross a road, he holds my hands and tells me when to move. The way he does it is like he controls the cars to let his wife pass,like he is my body guard.
Most times because of my phobia for accidents, (I have had two that left me badly wounded) I usually say to him "I'm not going to look whether cars are coming oh,I will just follow your lead when you say move or stop"
And he smiles and says ok and puts on his "full body guard armour". I m sure he likes to hear that.
That's a sign of trust. That's like saying "I trust that you will lead us safely to the other side". And when we get to the other side which we always do,I sometimes call him 'My Mr .Macho'. Well yeah,he just saved the day or at least he saved my day.

That's how it should be with us and God. Sometimes we take God along with us through life's journey but when we are about to 'cross a road' or pass through a bridge we become scared.
We want to know if the cars are coming fast or slow. We want to see the whole scenario. We want to run or give in to the fears that come from the sound of the big trucks and lorries that we hear.
A better alternative would be to say to God,I don't want to look at the other side,I'm even afraid. But I will just follow your instructions on when you say move or cross now or even stop.

But the problem is we don't trust God enough. We don't think he knows what he is doing. We don't think he can take us to the other side. We don't trust that he loves us.

Just like it will break my Husband heart when I am shouting at him from the place of my fears about the big cars that are coming or start panicking or fidgeting like we are just going to die because he is the one leading us to cross.
Just the same way,God hurts when we don't trust him enough to hold his hand.
You know how we hold his hands as we cross life's road?
It is when we obey his commands no matter the temptation to do otherwise. When we read his letters and do what he says do even if it looks stupid. That's how you know that you trust God. That's how you know that you trust your 'Body Guard' because truly he know what he is doing. That's his job not yours.

So do you trust him enough?

Selah!!!

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The making of a General...purpose in pain

There is this popular song that we learnt as kids. It goes like this:
"We are soldiers,soldiers of the cross, in the name of Jesus, we shall conquer"...
I loved that song and loved it even better when we were told to march and sing along and our teacher would then shout some orders for us to follow and we would happily do them and sing along. I loved it, I loved the feeling you get from it. That feeling of being an actual soldier.

But have you taken out time to watch soldiers train or watch them in their camps? If you have then you may be like me that just hated the whole idea. My little experience in NYSC camp for three weeks gave me a very little idea. And as little the experience was,I banished the thought of ever becoming a soldier or having anything to do with one.

Soldiers are trained in the worst of circumstances. They are deprived of sleep,they are given rigorous exercises that make them tough and almost immune to pain.

I have often even heard that if a Soldier mounts a road block on the road,they never collect bribe. Attempting to even give them bribe worsens your predicament.

Why do they act that way? Almost cruel and termed heartless sometimes. The answer is simple :TRANNING. They have been taught how to be tough. They have been trained on how to withstand pressure.
During training,the male and female train together and they see their nakedness end they don't even notice the difference between themselves as male and female. The reason they train together is so that if an enemy decides to tempt the Male soldier by sending lady to seduce them and get them to leave their post,they are actually immune to it because they have 'seen it all'.
Now that's the life of a soldier.

If we are Soldiers of Christ therefore,there are some tough and rough training that we are to be subjected to. As much as we hate to suffer pain we have to go through those trainings to be certified as good soldiers.
So the pain that the Lord who is our commanding officer allows to come our way is for a reason. He allows us go through hunger sometimes, lack at other times,and pain at yet some other times. He is not being wicked when he does that. He is not being uncaring as those from the enemy's camp make us believe. But rather he is training us to be tough,he is training us to be true Soldiers.

Just like some training done by earthly soldiers are seen as stupid and senseless. So it is sometimes when the Lord takes us through training and sometimes since we don't understand his purpose,we leave the process before we are certified as true Soldiers. People may hail us as Soldiers because we wear the 'uniform' and all but we are not true soldiers.

So the next time you face something hard and tough just remember that
"You Are A Soldier In The Making" and that there is a purpose for the pain.
God bless you.

Peace!!!
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Preparatory Time...

I was called in for an interview a few days ago and one of the questions I was asked was: "Can you type?"
I smiled at my interviewer and answered. But before I tell you what my answer was, let me tell you a story first. Come with me...

I never went to a formal computer school well because I couldn't afford it at that time,but I did learn else where.

I was in 300L university of Benin and we were on Hols,so I figured I should make a little money before school resumed.
I talked with someone and he said I could help him sell snacks and drinks in his business centre.
Well that was ok by me,at least I would carry my school books and read while I was at it. And so I resumed. While I was selling snacks I pleaded with the computer operator to teach me how to type and after much plea he agreed and I learnt a little.
When there was much typing work to do at the business centre I would beg the guy to allow me type so I could learn in the process. And so I did and there were times he wasn't around and I did the jobs myself. But school resumed and I had to go back but I couldn't get any computer to use. But what I learnt was stuck with me.

Fast forward to my first legal job after law school. I was the only lawyer at the firm at that time with the secretary. But she was the type that loved to be begged to do her job and I was looking forward to pushing her aside and getting the job done. When my boss found out I could type, he got me to do some of the jobs and actually preferred me to do the job.

All this while,instead of seeing it like I was doing a job that wasn't for me, I saw it as an opportunity to learn something new and I used every opportunity to do that.

Then the other two jobs I got after that I used the same opportunity to learn something new that wasn't necessary 'my job'. All the while I kept telling myself that I may not be doing a job I love to do (by the way that includes litigation...don't really dig it much) but I was preparing myself for my next job or my dream job.

So back to the interview... "Can you type"?
My answer was a smiling yes.

You may be at a place that you don't really like to be or doing a job you really don't love. Just know that there is something you can learn there that you would use in the future. Don't just sit there and complain about how bad you hate the job,there is something or a least one thing that will be useful in that place.
Find that one thing and do it because you never know when those skills will be needed.

What if I had said how will a 'whole me' be selling egg roll and minerals. But yes 'a whole me' sold it and learnt how to type in the process.
There is always something to learn because each step serves as PREPARATION for the next.
Don't miss your preparatory time. Seize it and make the most of it.

And oh! By the way,I got the job and its so close to my dream job and guess what? I see this as preparation for the next one...how do you see yours?...

Peace!
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Preparatory Time...

I was called in for an interview a few days ago and one of the questions I was asked was: "Can you type?"
I smiled at my interviewer and answered. But before I tell you what my answer was, let me tell you a story first. Come with me...

I never went to a formal computer school well because I couldn't afford it at that time,but I did learn else where.

I was in 300L university of Benin and we were on Hols,so I figured I should make a little money before school resumed.
I talked with someone and he said I could help him sell snacks and drinks in his business centre.
Well that was ok by me,at least I would carry my school books and read while I was at it. And so I resumed. While I was selling snacks I pleaded with the computer operator to teach me how to type and after much plea he agreed and I learnt a little.
When there was much typing work to do at the business centre I would beg the guy to allow me type so I could learn in the process. And so I did and there were times he wasn't around and I did the jobs myself. But school resumed and I had to go back but I couldn't get any computer to use. But what I learnt was stuck with me.

Fast forward to my first legal job after law school. I was the only lawyer at the firm at that time with the secretary. But she was the type that loved to be begged to do her job and I was looking forward to pushing her aside and getting the job done. When my boss found out I could type, he got me to do some of the jobs and actually preferred me to do the job.

All this while,instead of seeing it like I was doing a job that wasn't for me, I saw it as an opportunity to learn something new and I used every opportunity to do that.

Then the other two jobs I got after that I used the same opportunity to learn something new that wasn't necessary 'my job'. All the while I kept telling myself that I may not be doing a job I love to do (by the way that includes litigation...don't really dig it much) but I was preparing myself for my next job or my dream job.

So back to the interview... "Can you type"?
My answer was a smiling yes.

You may be at a place that you don't really like to be or doing a job you really don't love. Just know that there is something you can learn there that you would use in the future. Don't just sit there and complain about how bad you hate the job,there is something or a least one thing that will be useful in that place.
Find that one thing and do it because you never know when those skills will be needed.

What if I had said how will a 'whole me' be selling egg roll and minerals. But yes 'a whole me' sold it and learnt how to type in the process.
There is always something to learn because each step serves as PREPARATION for the next.
Don't miss your preparatory time. Seize it and make the most of it.

And oh! By the way,I got the job and its so close to my dream job and guess what? I see this as preparation for the next one...how do you see yours?...

Peace!
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Ballerina... Continuation

"Girls, where are you?" Nkechi calls as she walk close to the door that was left ajar. She pushed the door slowly.

"Ah! Beatrice are you sleeping?"

"No, she's meditating." A voice echoes in reply from the bathroom.

"Tatafo!!! Am I talking to you?"

"No, you are talking to my voice."

"You are supposed to be reading at this time of the night, not sleeping. Exams are commencing next week". Nkechi informs Beatrice who pays no attention to her. She starts tickling the sole of Beatrice's left foot as she whispers in a hoarse tone," Wake up little princess, your fairy grand mama is here."

Beatrice squirm with smile on her face as she mutters,
"Stop, Kelechi, oooh stop." She fondly squeeze the big teddy bear she has been holding in her arms all the while in bed.

"Kele what?" Nkechi exclaim in utmost surprise.

"What's up?" Edith inquires as she walk into the room with a white towel hanging from her chest down to her knee.

" You're supposed to be calling Kunle, not Kelechi." Nkechi informs Beatrice.

Kunle indeed! Beatrice responds sarcastically as she drags herself out of bed.


"B, are you seeing Kelechi?"

"No Edith, I'm seeing you and Nkechi." Beatrice responds angrily..

"Come on babe, relax, we're not quarreling, I'm just surprised as much as Nkechi is.

"No no no," Nkechi cuts in, shaking her head. There's nothing to relax for, Beatrice is dating Kelechi, she must confess. Beatrice, confess."

Beatrice starts laughing. "Ok, I will give you girls the gist. I know it's gist you want to hear.

"Come on baby, pour it out, I can't wait to hear it. Nkechi responds eagerly, pulling the plastic chair under her close to the bed Beatrice is sitting on...
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