“Time flies over us, but leaves its shadow behind.” – Nathaniel Hawthorne (American novelist: 1804 – 1864)

The events and situations that nature roll out on humans actually define what they experience as time. Time can be criticised or evaluated, valued or abased, underestimated or overemphasised; but definitely can’t be thwarted. This COVID 19 lockdown period, like every major time in the history has revealed who we are as a people, consciously or unconsciously.

I have seen how great minds shoot their dreams into reality by starting digital lucrative businesses, some launched their blog sites, began online courses, and few started trainings through webinars and other online means. Time created the paths they once thought untrodden.

It is however saddening that some people continually lose their voices to webs of confusion and panic, men with fine principles toss their pearls to swine, while I pity the rest that languish in the pool of unproductive arguments.

It is pertinently realised that each person is responsible for their opinions, however, one should bear in mind that subjective debates

are detrimental to the sanity of our society. People that thrive in the opinions of others without reasonable judgment blur their own mental visions and drain their productive potentials.

It is my grand earnest expectation to see a focused, unified Nigerian voice to hold our government accountable and responsible not only for this temporal period, but also for the future that bleakly stares us in the face.

We see, hear and read how governments of other nations responsibly wake up in catering for the welfare of their people. Here, I see people accuse Ministers of God for their national jeopardy. The government that collects taxes and 7.5% VAT (value added tax) from its poor citizens struggles to distribute relief materials and/or funds for the same.

If we find it hard to commend the efforts of Pastor Adeboye, Bishop Oyedepo and the like that donated hand sanitizers, surgical face masks, hand gloves, ambulances, test kits etc to Oyo, Ogun, Osun, Plateau states to mention a few, can’t we question the government where they keep one billion naira each donated by the businessmen in persons of Tony Elumelu, Aliko Dangote, Femi Otedola, Segun Agbaje and Jim Ovia?

While men of God are not answerable to people because they have spiritual calling, and men of business are not to be held accountable for the national defects as they pay their dues in the course of their investments; it is our political leaders that get the mandate of the people to manage the resources of the state on their behalf. Yet, we choose to shield them as they wallow in perpetual corruption.

It is the same government that has claims of sharing billions of naira to people, while coming out again to debunk the claims. What a country!

This nation cannot be librated from its shackles and ruins of oppressive leadership until the subjects maximise a time such as this to unanimously demand the relevance of the government. And, if you ask me how to achieve that, the answer lies within the context of what we assert theoretically and how we practically respond to time.

There are tall dreams and lofty heights which human beings can attain in life. But these expectations seem difficult logically when one observes many obstacles in the path to that greatness. However, one quality is very important in achieving that desired greatness. That quality is skill. Skill is synonymous to talent and gift. It is your innate ability to do something well. It is your expertise or natural aptitude. Our society has endless records of diverse great and successful people who conquer the world through their skills. They diligently put their talents to use and life pays them back with greatness.

This skill is the only amazing gift God has given to everyone. How you use it depends on you. The spiders are very tiny animals. They don’t deserve to survive let alone succeed. But, pay a close look at them, they find themselves in the palaces of kings. They fulfil the verse of the Scripture that says, “the gift of a man makes way for him, and introduces him to great personalities, not average persons. (paraphrased).”

Spiders only work with their hands. They spin wools which we know as cobwebs, but the mystery of how they appear in King’s palaces is beyond any human calculations. Some translations of the Bible use lizards. The message is still simple in the sense that they perform their activities of life with their limbs as well. The validity of the message is that you should use the skill, talent or gift the Lord has deposited in you. It is your trademark of excellence. It is your signature of greatness.

Whenever skill is explained, one must understand that diligence and passion are significant in the equation. You cannot succeed if you don’t add diligence and passion to your gift. In fact, you hone your skills when you persistently use it.

Our life will experience greatness when we stand up to bless our world with our gifts, talents and skills. That’s why the American-Canadian actor, producer and retired professional wrestler, Dwayne Johnson (The Rock) said that, “With drive and a bit of talent, you can move mountains. I know. I’ve done it.” The only way you can guard your gift is by using it. The world will rewards what you give, just do your best with it, and be rest assured that greatness awaits you in the midst of eminent people.

Wishing you a profitable week.

Inspired by Proverbs 30:28.

#Spiders #Skills #Gifts #Talents #Greatness

AFTER THE DARK CLOUDS is out in paper back!!!

After the Dark Clouds is the story of a melancholic Nigerian male graduate, Michael who resides in Lagos, but struggles with complacency, joblessness and a lingering feud between his religious, pastor father and enigmatic, politician uncle.

In his attempt to reconcile the brothers, he meets Sarah, a beautiful but ambitious young lady.

His adventure with her exceeds his expectation as this does not only change him, but also reveals the dark side of the two most important men in his life, as he thirsts for a cause to live for…

The story is set in Lagos – the commercial engine room of the nation; Ibadan – the nation’s largest city by landmass which houses the premier university; and Ogobia and Adoka – two among several Idoma communities of Benue State, which is the food basket of the nation.

The story is beautifully set during the fourth republic.

After the Dark Clouds is an intriguing story which provides education, information and entertainment to the readers from every angle of life.

It has themes of emancipation and self-discovery together with conflict between good and evil which effortlessly resonates with readers.

After the Dark Clouds, fascinatingly weaves the past into the present, and balances it with the expectations of the future – which are the three phases of man.

To get copies, contact Biodun via:
+2347031261572 (WhatsApp)
+2348054278036 (Call and SMS)
abeybusary@gmail.com (email)

Thank you.

Hustle and quest to succeed by all means have slaughtered many people’s conscience to the extent of abusing law and order. A lot of people are ready to maim and defame others literally and metaphorically for them to get what they want. This is the kind of lifestyle that daily throws our society into turmoil, despite rules and regulations guiding us.

Locusts, in their desire to survive, however do not live indecent life. They appear to be weaklings, but the scriptures affirm that, “Locusts – they have no king, but they march in formation.” This is a total definition of decency and orderliness in all that matters to their survival.

The lesson to be learnt from this is that as men that define questions and seek solutions for our productivity on daily basis, decency should be our signature at all times. This is not negotiable as we are social beings who should show concern in the comfortability and convenience of others.

Locusts have no king means there are no laws, rules, regulations or instructions directing their behaviours. They go about their business of life without supervision, yet they deem it fit to apply decorum and tranquility in the face of survival. Whereas, men in this generation have social, political, professional and religious laws to monitor them, and still go ahead to take law into their own hands.

The wisdom comes to town boldly to remind us that success is still possible and achievable without arrogance to the law of the land. Social etiquette and courtesy that we have to uphold shouldn’t be overlooked. Our society still values politeness in greetings, maintaining queues in public places, arguing reasonably without insults and other virtues that promote peace among us.

You have been designed to succeed, therefore, crooked means and wicked methods are not needed. Passion, synergy and focus are attributes of locusts, but as hungry and thirsty as they are in their desires, they never advance without decorum. Decency is the bottom line of their success.

The focus of this piece aligns with a quote by Abdulazeez Henry Musa, that, “Decency is judged by our actions not by our words.” As we devise various principles, methods, strategies and mechanisms to attain success this year and beyond, decency should not only be our watchword, it must reflect in us as a lifestyle.

Wishing you a productive week.

Inspired by Proverbs 30:27.

#Locusts #Decency #Decorum #Orderliness #Survival

Shelter is the third most important need of man, after food and clothing. Man needs to have a place to relax his body, which energises his soul. When a soul is strengthened, it builds the spirit-man to function effectively, and perhaps efficiently in any capacity. This is what the coneys represent.

Like we studied last week that ants are feeble animals, conies or coneys are also weak creatures. They are kind of European rabbits called hyraxes. However, they build their shelter in rocks: that’s why they can also be referred to as rock badgers. Like ants which work as a team, conies also go in groups to eat and do other daily activities. Other vital aspect of their lives is that they find and live in piles of rocks.

Rock signifies strong shelter and protection. It symbolises strength and defense.

We are going to be successful this year, and beyond, if we learn and practicalise this. This exceeds having a literal place of abode. But, the point I want to emphasise here is to have principles that would protect our lives from external threats. Be diligent to train your mind against arrows of failure that life shoots at you. Doing this signifies that you have protected your soul. In return, it gives you confidence.

These external threats include fear, doubt, worry, cowardice, procrastination and other negative feelings which tend to devalue us. All we need do is to structure a resistance against these bad feelings. That’s when we have a shelter in the rocks. Do not allow life to talk down at you, don’t accept defeat when you fall, up your game, and be confident that your next move will earn you the desired victory.

Don’t forget that you can only achieve all of your dreams after you’ve built for yourself a strong refuge. It may look daunting a task to live above darts of failure, but it’s actually achievable. Devise principles that will give you leverage above failure. Success comes from who you are, and this is possible when you have protected your mind from failure.

Wishing you a productive week!

Inspired by Proverbs 30:26.

#Confidence #Success #Victory #Protection #Strength #Defense #Shelter #Conies

Time is an integral part of life. Ants understand this, hence become wise creatures. They are not strong, but smart. They are time investors. Summer time, the warmest season of life is when they gather and store foods. This period is characterised with little or no precipitation for them to plan their survival. You will understand that food nourishes the body for survival and growth. They utilise their energy during summer to plan and invest in growth. When they survive and grow, they focus on other areas of life.

We should understand this as people who want to grow this year and beyond. There should be time carved out to work on our strength and growth. As a person who wants to grow, you should understand that there are seasons to invest into every aspect of your life including business, career, finances, relationships, ministry or academics. And, the analogy of summer period here is the time you choose to get things done for your growth.

The summer period of your life is when you take a course or training, learn new crafts, act as a volunteer or freelancer, buy shares, attend capacity building conferences and many more. These activities you participate in, are to equip and surge you into personal growth. If you haven’t thought of this, this is your best time to plan. The year is still fresh.

Another wise lesson from the ants is that they work as a team. This is synergy in planning. Your journey into successful year 2020 might be slow if you don’t work as a team player. The action of these ants corroborates an African Proverb which asserts, “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.” This signifies that there would be time you have to consult experts or colleagues to help you move forward.

The truth is that this year will be profitable to those who understand time and plan with it. Create time to think and plan as you run with the year. Ask people to help you achieve yo

ur goals. Learn from them as well. They are in your religious centers, professional offices and academic institutions. Michael Althsuler says, “The bad news is time flies. The good news is you’re the pilot.” In essence, you have time at your disposal to do what you like with it. Just be wise with time.

Wishing you a productive week.

Inspired by Proverbs 30:25

#Time #Planning #Teamwork #Synergy

It is a leap year starting on a Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. It is 2020th year of the Common Era (CE) and Anno Domino (AD) designations. It is also 20th year of the 3rd millennium, the 20th year of the 21st century, and the 1st year of 2020s decade. All these are interesting facts about the much anticipated year 2020 to be unveiled in few days.

Just like the past years had, notable people, remarkable events and strategic ideas will characterise the year. For instance, Blockchain and AI African conference will hold in Johannesburg, South Africa on 11 – 12 March, and Japan will host Summer Olympics in Tokyo. It is a year to have many actions rolled out by top global players in governments and organisations.

The next question is, what are you doing in 2020? Are you going to make a noise or lend a voice?

What prompted this article is a lot of noise already released into the atmosphere. Many beautiful and captivating adjectives have been used to describe the incoming 2020 already; more will still be added. But, what makes a year remarkable is not in the deafening noise, rather the commanding voice that counts.

This reminded me of 20:2020 Vision! It was much a disturbing noise that, “Nigeria will be one of the 20 largest economies in the world, able to consolidate its leadership role in Africa and establish itself as a significant player in the global economic and political arena.” 2020 is upon us now! Where are we? It was just theory in empty noise. We are very good theoretical beings in this country. The problem with us is that we allow ourselves to be carried away with theories and leave practicals in the hands of fate.

2020 should be treated as a code that unlocks ideas. It is not a number that confuses. There is nothing in the celebrations mixed with agitations, but lack productive actions of purpose.

In the story of Jesus’ triumphal entry, there are 3 lessons to learn as we embrace year 2020. Let me quickly assert here that Jesus’ life transcends religions of any kind, it is rather an emblem of life-changing principles.

The first thing to note is that His trip to Jerusalem did not start without a commanding voice. He sent His friends to get Him a colt to ride on, and added that He should tell anyone dared to ask that He needed it. Jesus actually knew what He needed, and He established that in His demand. We should know what we want/need as well. But, knowing them should align with how to get them when we face the questions posing as threats.

Secondly, He received a splendid ovation from the people of the city. This would definitely happen in our journey. It has begun already. These are moments of celebration, ovation, and pleasure in our journey. However, if care is not taken, they can turn to distractions. They can make us forget what we actually come for. For Christ, it was symbolic.

In the third point, it was such an interesting thing to note that Jesus’ mission in the temple was to clean His Father’s House. He drove out manipulators and pretenders out of the temple. Yes, that is how to describe them in this contemporary age. The action point here is that Jesus got rid of the robbers in the sanctuary telling them the purpose of the Place was for prayers, and not for traders. Jesus did not let the royal and priesthood greetings He got from the same people deformed His mission.

The Yoruba elders say that, “the celebrity called upon to perform on the stage shouldn’t get carried away by the cheering audience.”

In a nutshell, our celebrations and agitations should be minimal or curtailed in order to conserve and channel our energy into the profitable and productive assignments in the year 2020 and beyond. As Jesus did make His voice count, regardless of the noise around; we should take a cue from that.

In the American film series 24 Season 10, Nicole tells Isaac that, “You don’t know what you can do, until you try.” He ruminates on those words and process them into actions.

The entirety of your journey in 2020 is hinged on the strength of your voice, not the loudness of your noise. It is better to lower the volume of your noise, for the world to reckon with your voice which is needed for a profitable and productive 2020.

Wishing you a Merry Christmas and prosperous year 2020!

When you squander money, it’s just a piece of paper or coin with value, and it can be regained over time. But, every time you spend without meaningful or valuable result is a waste, and a piece of your life is being trashed into the bin. Time is crucial!

It was cloudy on the eve of the presidential election, so the atmosphere was gloomy. It wasn’t only the cold weather that kept people indoors, the army had their men and armour tanks positioned on the streets. It looked like the country was at war with herself. It had always been like that during elections. That was true, anyways. The evil was at war with the good. The people that profited from looting the nation’s treasury wanted those who campaigned against their filthy deeds maimed. That was the reason they tagged ‘our’ neighbourhood the ‘enemy’ zone. When youths assembled to protest against this, it was Nkechi that forbade us. She begged us to not fight against it. She explained that the nomenclature befitted our strength and matched our cause. She told them that we were the ‘enemy’ against insentivity, insecurity, corruption, impunity and injustice in the governance.

Since that moment, they began their antics to get our voice silenced. We didn’t have voices but one voice. They eventually arrested her for allegedly disturbing the peace of the society. But, I knew it was their scheme to widen their corrupt tentacles.

Nkechi and I were in the sitting room, studying and analysing data gathered on the field. When I was tired, I ambled to the kitchen to get anything I could munch. I didn’t know why I lingered, but that was the moment needed to detect the evil. KayBee and two other guys came in to threaten Nkechi. Chief Sam sent them. He was a bad egg in the politics. He had been arrested by the police many times for using youths as pawns to perpetrate evil. He had been arrested by the police many times only to be seen in the public the next day going about his business. It was obvious that he was a sacred cow. He wanted Nkechi to do his bidding. He wanted her to stop writing against his ‘politics of blood.”

“Chief sent us to warn you the last time.” KayBee announced in his croaked voice. “He wants you off his trail or get your fingers burnt.”

“You’re joking, right?” Her voice rose courageously.

“It’s no joke, young lady!” He puffed the smokes of his cigarette and smiled widely, “Chief can pay you handsomely, no I meant beautifully just as you are, if only you come to our camp. Your writing skills will be hugely appreciated. He has prepared a gift of…”

“Did I just hear you mention a gift?” She smiled derisively.

“Yes…”

“Tell your Chief that I’m a gift of my generation. I am the voice of the voiceless. I’m God’s own. No better gift than me. Nothing shakes me..”

“You can’t win this.”

“Now, if you will excuse me.” She pointed to the exit and shouted, “Out!”

———————————————————–

Now, I’m checking my cousin’s wedding album and I see Nkechi. She is the beautiful but bold face behind my cousin’s happiness. She has been kept away from us. But, we can fight and take back what belongs to us. I’m sad because many people still don’t recognise her. If only we know she’s a gift. If only we know she’s God’s own. If only we look very well. If only we know she’s Nkechi.

Photo credit: Nigerian Wedding Blog

Did you hear about Liverpool’s Super Cup triumph over Chelsea last night? It doesn’t matter whether you’re a football fan or not, there’s something in it for you.

Sadio Mane shone really bright, scoring two goals — one equalising Olivier Giroud’s neat finish, and the other, a deft strike, putting Liverpool ahead before the ref gifted Chelsea a non-penalty. But Liverpool goalkeeper Adrian was the undisputed hero; it was he who saved the penalty that earned the Reds the crown, and it was he Jurgen Klopp and the rest of the team sprinted towards at the blast of victory. Actually, Adrian had no business being the hero. Let me tell you a little about him.

After six years in the employ of mid-table club West Ham United, Adrian — full name Adrián San Miguel del Castillo — was let go in June at the expiration of his contract. West Ham, a side that was only good enough to finish 10th at the end of the 2018/19 season, deemed Adrian surplus to requirements. He wasn’t even first choice for them that season. At only 32, Adrian was no longer going to have a club. Towards the end of the transfer window, though, Real Valladolid, a side only good enough for a 16th-place finish in the 2018/19 Spanish La Liga season, entered talks with him. You see Adrian’s life? Rejected by a 10th-place side, approached by a 16th-place one.

Eventually, in the 59th minute of the eleventh hour, Liverpool stepped in to take him on a free transfer. Actually, Liverpool signed him to rot on the bench — as replacement for second-choice Simon Mignolet, who had left for Club Brugge to get game time. Alisson Becker was always Liverpool’s number one; Adrian wasn’t going to get it. He was merely backup. In a twist of fate, within a week of Adrian’s arrival at Liverpool, Alisson got injured in the very first EPL match of the season, paving the way for Adrian’s debut. In his second match for Liverpool last night, Adrian, the rejected and unneeded one, won the first ever medal of his goalkeeping career. Until yesterday, he had never won jack!

Who is that person that has deemed you useless? Who is that boyfriend/girlfriend, wife/husband, that broke up with you? Who is that employer that sacked you? Who is that employee that unceremoniously resigned from your company? Who’s that lecturer saying you’d never succeed in life? In fact, who are those people coming to you because they only see you as second option? Take a cue from Adrian; you can succeed regardless of multiple rejection. Your biggest moment of glory can come during your toughest or longest spell of rejection. It’s all in the mind!

– ‘Fisayo Soyombo