Impacting Positively

Yes I know, I'm a poem freak but I sure know something about other things. It's that time of the year when we get all covered up because of the weather and for some, that could be a real challenge. Today, I share a few tips and tricks that have helped me weathered the weather. 1. Get a Sweater Do not get just any sweater. Get one that's fashionable and preferably black. Not only does black attract heat, it's ideal for people who always come in contact with a lot of people as it hides dirt(that is not to say that you should not wash it o). You should also get one that is easily removable incase the weather gets sunny all of a sudden. 2. Get a Lip Balm Most people shy away from gloss because it smears, the good news is balms don't. Another added advantage is that it is colourless and that makes it suitable for both sexes. 3.Cream the Hair Everyday This is for ladies. Abandoning you hair wrapped up in a net or scarf can be damaging. It is best to cream the hai...

If I ask questions, If I seek other options, If I ask why the sun sets If I scorn those asleep in death I am a Rebel. Can I try to catch fire? Can I call the old man a liar? Can I ask the elders why? Can I, the standing norms refuse to buy? Yes but I shall become a Rebel. If I do anything never before done I am a Rebel.

Do you hear the clock tick? Soon, you will be dead And all that shall remain Will be your deeds and undeeds of today. The stupid mocks my pen, But, The wise listens as it strikes the paper Soon! You will be dead! Now is the time for greatness Push back your fears,  hide them like the virgin's  breasts And run to your dreams. Today is all you have. If we are gone tomorrow, Our faces are forgotten. Eni a ri la mo Eni a mo, la ri. Write your name on hearts With an indelible ink. Be good to all men Soon, you will be dead!

Dear Readers, after a season of poems, I am back to my freestyle writing. Today, I write on something everybody tries hard to walk away from and that is FEAR.  Due to the strong grip it has on people which sometimes prevents people from doing things, Fear is an unwanted visitor in the average Nigerian home. Countless articles have been written on how to control and in some cases, eradicate it. Fear they say is bad but I say it is good.  For one thing, it is the very presence of fear that makes man aware of his faults and pushes him to productivity. If you are afraid of failing, you are more likely to double your efforts.  Also, fear adds spice to life. Fear is always accompanied by uncertainty and this is a vital flavour. Imagine a world without fear where every man is so sure of the next minute, it will be boring.  Finally, fear creates a cordial bond between humans. When a person is afraid, he seeks protection from other humans and a relationship is established...

I tried to reach out to you, But like others you fled too. I ask myself "Do I stink?" My mirror says "You ugly, I think". My mind tells me, Nobody wants me, But tomorrow, one comes along I have one to whom I belong Then it happens again The race begins again.

We once were, but now lost. Our flags we have fed to the soil, Our dignity we sold at no cost. In our armpits, we planted a boil. We are lost! We betrayed Freedom Our lasses, at war with their clothes  And Our sons, at war with wisdom  Elders on maggots put sugar coats. If we shall move, we move forward We must remember our roots To be ashamed of it,makes a coward. To a fellow man's fault, never keep mute. The only way to find ourselves, Is to help ourselves.

It shall end, very very soon But daily death eats us with a spoon. With sugar laced and buttered utterances And heartbroken feigned appearances, They say SOON, but how soon? Burnt, like fishes by a bad cook And reduced to stories for books. Conveniently, we have gone to war Our stories, to the world now a bore They say SOON, but how soon? If we must win this fight We must hold on tight Realise your neighbour is friend If we must defeat these fiends. We must fight with peace! Then soon, very soon.

So hard is it to write a piece on women these days and not be tagged a feminist. However, I am of the opinion that most injustices against the feminine gender come about as a result of woman's inhumanity to woman. Women, I think, are the architects of their fellow woman's destruction. Dear reader, come along and reason with me, and if at the end you disagree, please write back.       To begin with, take my society for example. Nigeria, a country teeming with enough opportunities and  partners to go round for everybody. Yet, you will find that most women are always interested in a man who is not available. Women have no problem engaging in an affair with a married man but do not hesitate to rain curses on the woman who tries same with her father. Some women will do almost anything to ruin a fellow sisters home just to take her place and these very women are bold enough to raise their voices and say that men are what's wrong with the world.       That ...

Welcome to Nigeria, the country where you're viewed as unsuccessful simply because you are a lady who has attained a certain age and still remain unmarried. This article is in no way intended to spite the uniquely beautiful country of Nigeria but simply to express my unhappiness.  Marriage is wonderful, yes it is awesome, marriage is great, yes it is everything wonderful. However, it can end up being a continuous circle of tears and frustration if you end up with the wrong person. So sad it is that the Nigerian society places marriage at the apex of every woman's achievement to the detriment of other vital areas of life such as character and career. When I speak of career I refer not to high profile jobs but any form of employment through which a woman is able to sustain herself or family.  I have also noticed that most families do all they can to ensure their female child gets married but they bother not on what happens when the cameras go off. They bother not on the qualit...

Oh my Chand Delicately beautified Strongly fortified Lounging in my hand. Chandelier I lost When its glasses thy cold army broke My tears in them I choked Nothing to boast. If I live or die Forever earth shall bleed For beauty was killed And so she waved bye.

I am  civilized  because  I  learn  Not  because  I go  to a  school, Because  wisdom from  grays I earn Not 'cause I speak bomb words like a fool. I  am  civilized  because  I  dress  well Not  because   I  wear  expensive  clothes, Because  my  speech  is  seasoned  well Not 'cause my words fancy wearing sugar coats. I am civilized not because I have travelled far Because I love my culture like mama love pikin.

Hello readers, I am sorry for the break in transmission but hey! I am back. Today  I will be focusing  on what friendships can do to a person either positively or negatively. Okay, as usual, this will be short.   Who is a friend? The bible book of proverbs says (not that I am  trying to get all religious though) that a friend is someone sticking closer than a brother. A  friend is any  person who keeps company and shares  some moments of your life with  you(my definition).   Undeniably, friends form an important part of your life whether you agree or not. They influence your life for good or bad ,directly or indirectly. Just like an absorbent material, people pick up habits from their surroundings before they are even aware of it! This is why picking a friend should  be done with caution.  To  illustrate,  when you are friends with people who do good, you are motivated to do likewise but when friends do bad things, if ...

One week gone since the last post and I have missed sharing my thoughts with the world. Today, I share with you one of my poems written sometime not too long ago. The basic message here is finding satisfaction in all circumstances, favourable or not. Suggestions, compliments and criticism welcomed. Enjoy!       WHY GRUMBLE YE? Friend, why grumble ye? Over saltless stew and meatless soup Over torn shoes and raggedy clothes When many be who hungry for days and cope Cold and beaten by the rain without coats Tell me, why grumble ye? Over overly strict parents around Over old ugly poor sized shoes When in streets starving orphans abound And war victims without feets to wear shoes Neighbour, why grumble ye? Over troubling rays of the sun Over noise of new borns and rainstorm A blind exist who'd give anything to see the sun And a deaf anything to hear the cry of his newborn Why grumble ye? When...

The illiterates of the 21st century will not be those who can not read or write but those who can not learn, unlearn or relearn- Alvin Toffler   Alvin Toffler in this quote uses the word 'illiterate' to qualify any person unable to learn to do new things, to learn to drop bad habits or one who can not learn to do something in a better way. In saying this, he does not try to change the original meaning of the word 'illiterate' but rather, he underscores the need to have the aforementioned abilities.   So , this week dear readers, I encourage you to improve your learning skills, flush away your bad habits although it is not a day's job but requires constant hardwork. Finally, check areas where you are currently lacking. It could be in your education, job or home. Learn to relearn to do things that you currently have difficulty doing well.   Compliments and criticism welcomed. Do have a nice week ahead!

The hunter in pursuit of an elephant does not stop to throw stones at birds.- Ugandan proverb  The proverb simply underscores the need to be focused in life. When working towards realistic goals we may be tempted to 'throw stones at birds' . How? We may loss sight of our long term goals and begin to chase short term unrealistic goals. Who does not know that a bird is worth much less than an elephant?  The long and short is this :work dilligently towards your goals and dont settle for less because settling for less never pays big time. It may take a long time to achieve your goals but when you finally get there, you will be glad you persisted.

Sisi Yellow See how you de like fake karayon drawing As you wowo so like small pikin painting True you fine sef when  you dudu But now you don over do do Sisi Yellow You know say na die you de die go Because all this thing you rub de peel skin so Maybe you don turn blind creature As no be today cream de turn peacock to vulture Sisi Yellow No be say to yellow no good But to yellow no be food If na God's Personal gift na better But if na cream gift na wahala matter

"Just another  menace to the society that has come to occupy its rightful place in the life of every Nigerian. One that the 'gods' cannot prevent". This is the blind  perspective from which many of us have looked at Boko Haram. I deliberately chose to term it a blind perspective and  not myopic because a person with myopia can see but a blind man can not.    It is unfair for any man to see the activities of these masked faces simply as an offspring of fate. It is not uncommon however to find intellectually crippled minds condemning every sad occurence to fate. Why? It is because they can not think beyond their noses for in fact, they can not think as far as their noses for that is too much exercise. Their short and disarranged eyelashes mark the apex point of reason for them.    Among those who follow this thought pattern, it is common to find those who have their hearts as tough as Idanre. Emotion to them is alien and empathy like salt to the worm i...

Everything we hear is an opinion, not a fact. Everything we see is a perspective, not the truth.   I got this from a friend's facebook wall the other day. Truth is, people say a lot everyday about things and other people. One thing I want us all to realise is the fact that whatever a person says is the output of their thoughts and a person's thought is conditioned by a number of things such as personal life experiences. It is however not good to draw conclusion based on what we hear because as imperfect humans we make mistakes everyday in various aspects including speech.   Further, what we see or rather 'think' we see is simply our perspective. We tend to see things differently probably due to the fact that we have varying levels of intelligence and sometimes,a different level of exposure among other things. A wise person needs to understand that sometimes, the lens from which he/she views things may be dusty (faulty) and needs cleaning.

It is the 21st century and the 'in thing' seems to be the use of complexion lightening creams and soaps. While I am not outrightly condemning the use of skin lighteners, I feel it necessary for everybody to be cautious when it comes to the use of such beauty products. Today, we shall be looking at five ingredients used in skin lightening and their side effects.   HYDROQUINONE  I am sure that the name rings a bell to quite a number of people. For those who do not know, Hydroquinone is an aromatic organic compound that is a type of phenol that works to reduce the amount of Melanin produced by the skin. Continued use of Hydroquinone makes the skin lighter and succeptible to sunburns. Other side effects include extreme redness and succeptibility to certain types of skin cancer.   CORTICOSTEROID   Also called Corticoid. It is another skin lightening agent with adverse side effects which range from cutaneous addiction with the development of unsightly dermatoses to dia...

ALL FINGERS ARE NOT EQUAL. Most times, when people hear this quote they tend to imagine that the middle finger is longer and so therefore better than the others. Permit me to correct that view  You see, as short as the thumb seems it is relatively strong and if amputated, the hand may be unable to do alot of things such as holding a cup.  Even the small pinkie is useful. Its small size enables it to penetrate areas the others cannot. My point is, sometimes we look at our situations and compare it to others who seem to have more opportunities. We miss the point that the differences in our situations expose us to unique opportunities. If the small finger keeps admiring the thumb, it will never recognize its opportunity to display its uniqueness when it comes.  Also, the fact that all fingers are not equal also means that sometimes others will succeed faster than us, but if we are patient enough, we will get there. :)

Hello friends and family! Been off for a while yeah, thats what happens when you combine rigorous school work with blogging. However, because I love writing and sharing with my community of friends, I just cannot keep my hands off the keyboard.   Today, we are taking a look at something very very deadly . Deadlier than HIV as I said, it kills its carriers faster and even without their consent. Ladies and gentlemen, friends and family, I am referring to JEALOUSY.   Why do I think it is so deadly? Let's see It hinders clear thinking  A jealous human does not think straight but thinks only to conquer competition. Sometimes, a jealous person tends to even see competition where it does not exist. When this happens, sometimes well meaning friends are despised and help is rejected. Creates barriers When jealousy pushes a man to reject help, his chances of success are trimmed. Nobody knows it all and that is why in the game of success we need at least two people to shoot ...

Hello readers, as promised I am back with the concluding article on Beautiful Woman. Today, we will be  starting with a look at INTELLIGENCE.  A beautiful woman is intelligent in a number of ways and not just academically. She makes wise decisions from the littlest of things to the biggest. She carefully examines every move she is about to make. Her intelligence helps her excell at school, work and in building personal relationships with people. She uses this intelligence to also help those around her by giving proper solicited advice. GOOD FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT SKILLS  A beautiful woman has good financial management skills not because she is rich but because she is frugal with her earnings. Her ability to manage her finances well make her a 'boss lady'. RESPECTFUL  A beautiful woman is respectful. In being respectful she is not partial. She respects both her juniors and seniors. She recognizes the fact that being respectful takes absolutely nothing away from her...

Today,I will be focusing on five types of friends that we need to beware of.These are those who claim to be friends but are actually enemies. 1. ALWAYS ASKING NEVER GIVING.  Some friends have the habit of always asking for favours but when called upon for help, they always have the perfect excuse as to why they cannot help. Such people subtly send us the message that they are only hanging around us because of what they are benefitting from us. The moment you cannot help them, they leave! So, you need to let go.  2. ALWAYS RECEIVING NEVER APPRECIATING. When a friend never shows appreciation for gifts and favours, you need to be careful. It could be that the friend does not value you and your sacrifices. 3. ALWAYS COMPLAINING NEVER ENCOURAGING.  Do you have friends who do nothing but complain about how bad things always are? You need to beware. People who constantly complain and never encourage you are dangerous. They dampen your spirit, bring you down and fail to ...

Today, I am writing about the beauty of the female gender because I have noticed that most times, many of us miss out on the basic elements that relate to beauty. So, let us look at some of the qualities of a truly beautiful woman.   First, she is not necessarily beautiful physically. Shocked? Well, in my opinion a beautiful woman does not compulsorily possess showstopping curves neither is she extraordinarily gorgeous. Why? It is because the outward appearance is but a cover. Take for example a beautifully decorated cake,no doubt it looks appealing but what really matters is its ingredients and mixture. Therefore we will be looking at two ingredients of a beautiful woman.   SUGAR   A beautiful woman should be sweet at heart and this encompasses a lot from being caring to maintaining a positive spirit. The opposite of being sweet is being bitter. When a woman is bitter, she does not bring happiness to those around her but is either constantly complaining or starting ...

One of the greatest insults a man can ever receive is not one that is verbally expressed or written. It is DONE.   Today most of us fail to realise the fact that disrespecting people's time is a very very hurtful thing. I for one would never agree to go on a date with a man who has a habit of not being on time, neither will I delight in meeting up with people whose routine is coming late. For one thing, it is impossible to never be late at all but then it is possible to be known as one who is always on time.  Of course, there are instances when we tend to run late due to some circumstances beyond our control but we can show that we respect the people we are dealing with. HOW? Simple!!! APOLOGIZE Always apologize when you are late. DO NOT REPEAT LATECOMING If you are late once, do not repeat it again. This sends a message out that the previous latecoming was a mistake and is not habitual. APOLOGIZE ONCE AGAIN.

You will never get ahead in life if you keep  looking back trying to bring someone down.

I am quite certain that nobody likes being unappreciated. We love being Na gode(ed) /ese(d)/ Nde ewo(d). Simply put, we love being thanked. However, most of us are quilty of failing to appreciate the most beautiful things oflife.    We fail to appreciate the trees who give us oxygen, the roadside cleaners who keep our streets clean just to mention a few. You see, no matter how irrelevant a person may be, he/she needs to be appreciated.  If you think you're not guilty of being unappreciative I want us to consider a few examples. First, there are those of us who do nothing but yell and complain at everything. Nothing unappreciative about that? Well, think about a child born dumb, unable to speak then think of those who can but not intelligibly. The majority of these people will do anything just to speak yet some of us do not appreciate this gift.   I hear tons of complaints everyday from youths who nag about not having the latest shoes, they forget that there are pe...