olaoluwatomi

....is never easy!

I sat down a few days ago and I thought over my life. I dont yet have as many rags as my grandma but I can boast of having more clothes than a child:) Anyway I wondered why on earth I have gone through so many phases as I have and in my minds eye none of the experiences are yet to be linked. You hear stories of peoples lives and see how an experience they had when they were young was relevant to their life later on. I almost scoffed at the idea until I consoled myself that I am probably not at that age when I can boast of such, but the question I ask myself is when are things going to fall in place? One big and pretty consoling consolation is that God knows the whole picture! He does and even if I cant see it, He does! Why does it console me? I guess my answer is like the Psalmist who said when I was young and now I am old, I have never seen the righteous forsaken or his seed begging bread. There is one thing to be said of God, He certainly knows what he is doing when I absolut...

Its the little things that matter..... the beginning of spring  the joy of a meal  the colors in the market place  the lights that dispel darkness  the sense of community  the taste of the exotic  the sweetness of chocolate  the sounds of the jazz band on a friday night  the  blueness of the sky I tell you its the little things that really matter!

Ever put your face between your palms and feel the prick of tears beneath your eyelids? Ever wondered how you will find the strength to go on? Ever wondered how on earth you can smile when you see all your dreams crashing down like a pile of rubble? Ever wondered why though you are in the world surrounded by billions of people you feel like there is no one else who knows what it feels like to be so alone? Ever trudged silently up a hill putting one step in front of the other wondering if you would ever have the strength to get to the top? Ever felt like the weight of the world is crushing you slowly but surely and wondering whether you would ever be able to smell the roses or see the sunrise? Ever looked so hard in the darkness to just see a glimer of light and instead all you saw where the glimmer of eyes belonging to the hordes of hell? Ever fought a battle in your own strength and knew without a shadow of doubt that the next blow would strike you down and death was...

Happy New Year! Its kind of belated but its never too late to say it! Wishing you all a great 2012. There is a time for everything and I have decided that the time for blogging is over. Apart from the fact that Im not moved by the blogging mojo as often as when I first started this blog I no longer think its the way I want to express my thoughts and opinions. I have gone through phases of should I or should I not? or maybe I'll start a new blog? Moved my blog to wordpress!! etc Its time to go and I'll certainly miss blogsville! I'll be around but no longer putting up posts regularly! Thank you for your comments, emails and the many followers I got over the years. Its been great fun while it lasted! Goodbye! Aurevoir! Odabo!

2011 has been a roller coaster year for me in many ways! Thankfully the plunges to the bottom were not as terrifying as they seemed! Now I am past the trough I can look back and laugh! Though I daresay Im looking forward to 2012 with a lot of expectation and fervor. Like most Nigerians do, I have not yet put a label on what I want 2012 to be for me but I  know  its going to be a good year! Yay! So here is wishing all my blog readers a fabulous 2012. I wish for you all you wish for yourselves and more. May the new year be a year of more introspective thinking, more measured and thoughtful decisions; a year when we all will look outwards to bless and touch the lives of others and not just look to what we can get for ourselves. Below are some pictures I took throughout 2011! Happy New Year!!!!! View from the sky! Chicken without feathers around its neck- Bagauda, Kano Emir of Biu's palace- Biu, Borno A medicine store I wont be caught visiting! ...

This is the last of the letters I wrote before I left and returned to Nigeria! Have some pictures from Nigeria too to put up! Thanks for reading and all your comments! Merry Christmas and have a lovely New Year! I have just two full days to spend. It dawned on me a few days ago that I will definitely miss my time here. I have been excited about my impending departure dreaming of using once again the luxury of a toilet and bathroom not exposed to the elements with the attendant comfort of being able to read a book in it. I had also been dreaming about tasting my mum’s superb meals for the first time in a long while and also getting as excited as my niece who asks her mum continuously if next week has arrived so she can see her ‘dear’ aunty tomi! Then my mood shifted and I realized that there is still so much more I would have wanted to do, more of the Somali language to learn, more of the great people to talk to and listen to their stories as well as their complaints of all t...