(
By Ige Temiloluwa)
Growing up as a child, many things were fascinating to me about
cars and their operations; their different types, brands, shapes, colors and sizes, mode
of operation and particularly how my dad got it to move was very amazing. I can
remember turning the “long metal rod
with black balls on them that stood in
the middle of the two front sits” (which I later came to know was a gear) to a quick
mathematics teacher helping me recite and relearn the figures 1-5 every
morning, the letter “R” meant something to me (promise me you wont laugh) …..REPEAT!!
So it had me reciting the figures over and over again.
Driving to school and church got boring over time for quite
a number of reasons. The funny thing is I still can’t point out one reason. I just
didn’t enjoy it. Even with all the boring trips, a seasonal trip remains
refreshing anytime it comes back into my mind; the trip to my village during
the Yuletide period. That was like the only trip I always looked forward to and
no wonder my face always brighten up with deep smiles towards the end of the
year. I loved traveling with my parents to the village. Then, just another
Christmas came and I was once again anticipating the long, straight and smooth
trip where we could always tell the end from the beginning (I am not God though
but word from knowledge). To my surprise, this time, it was a totally different
experience from what it used to be. Something totally different from the usual;
bumpy roads with quite a lot of potholes
and bends. My eagerness and anticipation disappeared in a flash. The impression
that the road gave took away my excitement and my young self all of a sudden came to the conclusion that
we weren’t going to the village this time and this trip was leading s somewhere
worse with less fun. I slept off on the road because the journey was boring and
tiring. When I woke up, to my utmost surprise, it was a lot better than the
village where I thought was the best of places. The streets were good to behold.
Big buildings with beautiful façades, well-grown and nurtured trees and a lot
of paved lawns, various tourist sites
and many more. Guess where I was……. Abuja! Nigeria’s federal capital territory!
… (And that was my first time there J
)… well, I thought all I saw during the day was all there was to behold of this
21st century city in Nigeria but
the night proved me wrong. Well-lighted streets with beautiful fountains, and
lots of other fascinating things.
Now my talk ;) … many times in our journey in and through
life, we have this unvoiced expectation of how smooth and uninterrupted our
sail in life should be. Never envisaged being left behind by the school bus or
being picked up late from school not to talk of having to miss school for a day
because of a simple stomach ache or a slight weakness. Thoughts of failing a course
or having to repeat a class is very wide and far from or well pictured future.
It always has to be smooth and well worked out like the heroes in movies who never die.
The truth is certain
events and occurrences through our sojourn
as travelers on this road bring us to a better place than we ever imagined for ourselves
in life. We sometimes also fail to realize that nothing good comes on a platter
of gold. Even gold has to go through fire before it is valued and appreciated.
We are quick to forget that most times, the hero sometimes has the most fatal accidents / wounds.
Just like the story I narrated, the bumpy road filled with
bends and potholes painted a picture of a bad end . It developed a negative
anticipation in me with lots of mixed feelings about what lies ahead. These bumps
and bends might mean different things to different people. It could mean failure
and disappointment to some and to some others; it could simply mean life
challenging situations, sickness, depression and many more. We most times allow
these events and challenges to weigh us down and it looks like the end of the road
would offer something bad. We are quick to conclude that we cannot get to our
most expected destination anymore or probably develop the fear that we won’t be
able to get there in record time. Unfortunately, people around us also
sometimes tend to interpret these events to be as a result of or our own
lackadaisical attitude and lack of seriousness has brought some of these things
along our way. These challenges,
depression, failure and what have you comes in along your way, would you rather
chicken out and walk with your heads bowed in shame and defeat? Would you stop
at the nearest juncture, change your direction and gaze from the glorious
destination ahead of you just because of a little delay or bend or would your
option be to look for a short cut that will most likely cut short God’s plan
for your life and make the journey longer? Ask the prodigal son and King Saul
in the good book, they have stories to tell along this line.
No don’t!! For
whatever reason for which you’ve come to that bend or rough part of your life,
all I know is that it’s just for a little while, it will soon pass. See them as
just passing through. Different people have passed through different periods of
their lives and come out strong and celebrated. Jesus did, Nelson Mandela and
Martin Luther King also had their own period of passing through. When you see these
challenges as a springboard, it will encourage you to keep moving till you get
to your final destination.
Your life may not be
going the way you imagined it but it’s never too late to make a change and show
the world that what’s going on now is just a bend and not the end of your road.
So, stay calm and try to enjoy the rough part while it lasts. Remember that the
darkest part of the night is the closest to dawn and there is always light at
the end of the tunnel.
Be focused! Stay strong! It’s all going to be worth the
drive at the end!
TEMIDOYIN.
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