I have always had this feeling of being caged and trapped inside. The desire to jump out of this bodily incaceration grows by day . How lovely and wonderful, beholding myself walk, eat, pray and engage in all manner of things from a stand point, watching! Such no doubt would give a bit of clarity to me about who I am, truly. How pleasant it would be being a mirror unto myself than relying on either a physical mirror to either appreciate or detaste my looks? Why would my back become so hidden from my view and assessment? Except someone…
Author: Jarlath Opara
It was served as a breakfast, too hot, only by the grace of God I was able to pull through. I met her in her tender and impressionable age. Very innocent, angelic and adorable. Physically she was infectious, making any heart however strong , stale and steel fall to the very aura that hovered around her at a time. For days I couldn’t pull myself together to say hello to her. Many things ran through my mind, from her perceived beauty to the possibility of her being uncouth and unfriendly to me. Being a shy person who wouldn’t stand any…
This is one word I hate to hear. It unsettles my mind, makes my heart palpitate and nerves trembles. In emergency mistakes, wrong decisions and wrong applications most often happen. Helter-skelter, “kitikiti”! Panting as one runs, thinking many things at a time, as time flies. In emergency! Time is never fast. It slows, it crawls, like a snail in its pace, it ticks. Nothing matters , traffic light as good as it is, comes across as distractions. Delays are bad omen, giving one the feelings of jumping off the skin to get things done quickly. In emergency anything that seems…
Until one identifies what one plants, harvest should become less a talking point in ones life, there are seasons and each season comes with its uniqueness. Months back, my backyard was dried, leaves turned brown and crispy. Today, rains have turned the leaves green and the soil soft and porous. Seeds planted then and decayed, are today looking greenish, lush and flourishing, ready to be harvested. I dug, planted, watched them grow, nurtured them made sure, the ants, the hash weather, the animals etc didn’t have in them a place of refuge. Diligently I worked and faithfully waited, expecting the…
It is becoming very obvious. The coast is clearer than it was weeks ago. Not even a blind man would claim ignorant, to the deaf it sounds like a dynamite, blasting and shattering their ear drums. How can he win? How on earth will Peter Gregory Obi win election? He doesn’t have the power, not even the resources to win. You think he is the only person that wouldn’t win election in 2023? If you think in that direction, you may probably have another think coming. ATIKU wouldn’t, neither would Bola. They are all campaigning, throwing tantrum, mud slinging etc…
The movement isn’t enough though phenomenal. It is not enough however tusnamic. Like a raging storm, the wave is strong pulling down strongholds and making jest of what has become the norms and rule of politics. In all quarters, it sounds like a trumpet. The noise, the shout ,the comraderies etc grow by day, setting standards,breaking records setting boundaries and raising banners of right and values. The consciousness is getting spread out, beyond ethnic, religious and tribal weaponization. Values, integrity,competence and selflessness have become the talking point. Money, ingratiation and party affiliation, fading, though many are still obsessed and glued…
Things are getting out of place, rumors and scares of Bandits, Kidnappers etc at every corner . Calls and text messages from friends and loved ones, asking how I was and the current situation in Abuja, in their numbers. The heat is on, everybody is concerned, Senators boiling to impeach, Labour chanting and occupying space in solidarity, Naira falling like packs of cards, prices of things flippy-floppy , rising off the reach of the commoners. The situation isn’t nice and the future bleaked , only God holds the answer. Like joke, they are creeping, rounding off the seat of power,…
Not every body that is lucky with this, though cheap and free. Did I say free and cheat? Hmmmm! It is not, only those who find it very difficult to smile genuinely would be able to understand the very costly value of smile from a sincere and lovely soul. I have seen faces that smile and those that hardly. I have equally seen those that smile from the depth of their soul and those that pretend . The facial expressions may be the same but those who understand the dynamics and mastery of genuine smile would be able to sieve…
“Banditry is a type of organized crime committed by outlaws typically involving the threat or use of violence. A person who engages in banditry is known as a bandit and primarily commits crimes such as extortion, robbery, and murder, either as an individual or in groups”. I found this definition guite amazing and intriguing. Not many people know this much about Bandits and banditry. We talk and “para” from a position of hear says, following the crowd, buffeting around like leafs in harmattan season. Go back and read slowly what Bandit and banditry mean and judge for yourself who is…
We live in a world where power is seen as the be it all,and end it all .Once one gets it within ones closet and control, nothing else matters. With all the paraphernalia, sycophancies, false adulations etc the once humble, jovial and compassionate person may become a god to be worshiped , adored and spoken to in reverence and awe ,if not disrespect is seen. Back in school days, he was the life of every gathering. Well built, facial smoothness and of course with a resilient mind and brain. To all that come around him then, he saw from a…
It has been raining , ever since, it has rained, never a time one could heave a sigh of relief. Back to back it rains as bloody as it could be. Tears of blood rained, as dry as the eyes could pretend to be ,it rains, rolling down in rivulets, with ached hearts, swears and curses on their mouth, their eyes rain in blood. Who is this blood rain maker? Who is this that contracts these makers of blood rains, that come flooding the entire space, stiring uncertainties, fear and anxiety? Who is this that regales and basks in the…
It sounds so familiar, used often by many. It isn’t high sounding but deep in meaning. There is no place that It is not seen, used or placed. In homes , in humans, in churches, hotels, event places etc It is there, used either wrongly or with good intentions. Reserved! Yes! He is reserved, comes across as one that talks with few words, prudent with emotions, deep but not too quick to let it flow. Reserved! Meticulous, calculating, not easily given to things. Reserved! Knows a lot but avoids the shines and light of social stardom. Reserved! Not easily moved…
Life is what every living thing enjoys. Death too comes to one the very way life comes, unsolicited. Each time we celebrate life, we strike a deal with death, only God knows when it comes, but surely it does come. Life without death is abnormal same way death without a prior life is. Good bye Bro Paul Osinanwata Nwabuzor( Oracle). You saw your life grow and blossom, your birthdays celebrated no less but your funeral you never saw nor celebrated, the irony of life and its futility that oftentimes gets hidden in the euphoria of life transiency. We think about…
What is it that comes to your mind? Words can be tricky and very much confusing. It is not English language alone that has this complexity and flexible meanings, other languages I guess have such, including Igbo. “Usu”! Means a lot both in spelling and pronunciation. Words are laddened in meanings. Flips of ones dictionary will reveal a lot. One word could have several meanings. It takes mastery in English language for one to know which meaning applies in any sentence or oral expressions used. Back to our word BAT. This is one word I like so much. It comes…
Some years back I had the privilege of being in the company of a highly placed individual. It was indeed a pleasure and something that I have ever since relished and cherished. He wasn’t only a man with deep pocket and wide social network, his versatility on issues was obviously sparkling. The few hours spent around him wasn’t just fun but a transfer of knowledge, if placed on the scale of time and value wouldn’t be anything less expensive. “Jarlath, it is on me, take whatever you want”! I never understood the deep and boundless implication of that sentence he…
The worse thing that can happen to anyone is when where one expects help and justice becomes a den or coven of extortion and manipulations. Where one expects a haven, a dungeon surfaces and where one expects fairness, halo effects and prebendary tendencies stand staring to skew and distort facts. The problem with Nigeria and the various insecurity lapses that hunt her isn’t only leadership failures but more of the complacency, connivance, toxic eggs and moles in the Force. They form clusters of holes, channels and windows to misappropriate funds, siphon money, divulge sensitive information, give in to ingratiation at…
This afternoon, I was asked by someone who I consider a brother from another mother to write on the lessons of Osun governorship election as it affects Labour Party. According to him, Labour Party did abysmally poor, pulling a disgraceful twenty something votes. Where were those youths that thronged out in their numbers chanting Obi! Obi!! Obi!!! During the Labour Party rally? He asked rhetorically. He expressed concern that if the middle class fails to come out and vote, the hope and aspirations of birthing forth Obi’ presidency may be a far cry. He wasn’t the only person with this…
Don’t think we don’t know! Just don’t pretend about it, worse still play the ostrich. Your hunchback is obvious, no matter how you hide your face, we know who you are and your very “beautiful antecedence” which among other things have given Nigerians red eyes. You remember your games in 2015? Reinforced in 2019? Too fresh to be off your memory. We have forgiven you, but have not forgotten and will never forget, as long as those very elections keep being an accessory before the fact , making the very ordeal and pains we pass through as a nation very…
We can’t be! Why would we be? How can we be? Who would we be to? Where? How? We can’t just be. It is not possible. Not every Atikulated door is an effective and effectual door to be Obidient to and become “YUSUFUL” by it. You think you are wise? Can’t muzzle and brown beat us into being “Obidient to Atikulated” “BATle” of vainess and frivolities? We are more than rubies and our worth and values beyond the price of a “BATled” diamond even in its “Atikulated” worth. We have gone beyond your pricing? Above your games and entrigues. We…
Politics is a game! Only those with skills play it well. It is equally a battle, those whose armour, sheild and breastplate are good and properly placed, though the bullets and arrows would come, nothing would harm them. I have said it one too often and it cannot be over stressed, politics isn’t for those who can’t take bullets. Certainly bullets would come , shelling in their numbers and hitting either the eye bulls or off targets. In Nigeria and equally in some other climes , there is no limits to things that can be used as a political weapon…
Congratulations to Bola Ahmed Tinubu for the choice of Shettima as his running mate. Right and choice are things no matter how good or bad, come with consequences and responsibility. There is no freedom without a consequence and choice without a responsibility. When choices are made and one lives in denial of possible consequences or gets piqued when reactions in response to the choice made begin to come, then one in the first place was not mature enough to make such choice. Politics is a game, the smarter out of the two or three contestants wins. It is a battle,…
Life is simple, with everything in its natural state to make life easier. The complexity we often experience in life isn’t about nature but more of its adulteration. The creation of the world is without limitations. Everything that would enhance life and its performance was created. The waters, the grasses, the animals, the plants etc were all created to bring forth life and help to sustain it in a give and take manner, the oxygen and carbondioxide , the photosynthesis and respiration. The world was created to operate in circles. As much as the earth rotates around, so also humans,…
Dear Mr. Obi. It is most expected in sane clime to have this kind of comradery communication. It might sound strange and never seen before, however, things begin in a day and habit equally forms in one day too. It is obvious your Excellency, even the blind and the deaf see and hear the many weird stories of insecurity, hunger and corruption that on daily basis make headlines on daily newspapers. We too are not insensitive to all these, the reason we have put up ourselves to serve and rescue Nigeria from this rot. As much as we are politicians,…
Lest you miss it. Before you run with it, with the hope and perception that a Messiah is being moulded out of Obi. He is a man with deficiencies, limited, not all powerful, can’t by-locate, constraint in the realms of omnipresence and omnipotent . He is human! He is human, lest one thinks he isn’t with flaws , without emotions that can snap and fly off the handle. Lest one thinks he is a god, a demi god, with a divine power to speak and it comes to pass, touch and it becomes healed etc He is still human! Lest…
Mel Gibson is good in what he does. The passion of Jesus Christ directed by him made great sense to me, with a lot of emotional connection. He made it look real ,touching deeply the very emotions of many. Only a man with a still and stale heart would stay pleasantly happy, smiling and laughing while watching that passion. Only a “willing Jesus” could go through such sessions of man’ inhumanity to man, wickedness,frustration and lack of empathy without snapping and throwing in the towel. He was willing, even the scary scene or vision at the Garden of Gethsemane couldn’t…
It wouldn’t work! Never! Certainly and surely it will burst eventually. The vibrancy, energetic reactions of the chemicals in the new wine would be too strong for the threadbare nature of the old wine skin. Like terms attract , while unlike terms repel, is another way to look at this saying of “pour the old wine into an old wine skin while the new wine into the new wine skin”. This though, a biblical principle, fits perfectly in every aspect of human endeavours. What would it look like for instance, living in a house, well furnished to taste in the…
Social media no doubt is a big market, quite massive with shops and warehouses that provide adequate services for buyers and sellers. Millions of dollars get exchanged daily, hitting in six and twelve zeroes into individual accounts. Get a smartphone , buy data, do something, anything, once it has some revealing sights and nastily humorous content and one gets it posted like a bang, it goes viral, with likes and views in their thousands, ones account becomes a haven for money alerts. To those who have found vocation and calling in these areas, good luck to them and more creative…
We are all called though differently , nobody is without a vocation to be fullfiled. Each calling/ vocation comes with responsibilities, challenges, difficulties, benefits and consequences ,largely with determination and drive to make a mark what seems like a mountain can be leveled to a flat smooth ground. Nothing valuable comes easy. Anything given on a plater barely lasts, the euphoria and ecstasy of having such without a price can be very alluring, making one so complacent and less involving in sustaining the very gift on the platter. No free meal anywhere ,trying to get such meal has its consequences…
Life begins at forty is a popular saying, the truth of many, even when it is relative. Same with the numerical limitations placed on who a youth is or is not. In all these, age is just a number and the very success or otherwise of a man is not necessarily at the threshold of any age bracket. It can happen at any time. Talking about youths, what readily comes to mind are those within the age bracket of 15 to 35 years according to Africa Charter, while UN and Nigeria have theirs as 15 to 24 and 18 to…
In 1960, this aircraft was constructed, having in mind all the indigenous peculiarities for effectiveness , the first pilots were at their best, having understudied the foreign pilots that managed it for years. They were considerably good ,fair enough to avoid clash landing the aircraft and other things that would possibly mar its operational cost. The weather has not been clement, turbulents here and there, even when it was pretty obvious it would crash land, it keeps moving, struggling to get to its destination. As years go by, the quality of pilots on board keeps dwindling, creating more human but …
