#MyLagos – Thankful For Deflection

It was a typical Lagos morning and you know the mix – plenty traffic (human and vehicular), music and horns blaring, and a cacophony of sounds from the rest of humanity. Then the conversation began, “who never pay me?!” demanded the driver. The mediator in the second row began recounting who-owned-what-money she had sent forward to the driver.

Meanwhile, the “culprit” sat silently, caught up in her world. The driver proceeded to park and start a cross examination with the mediator, whilst painstakingly counting the money in his hands and assigning ‘owners’ to them and their potential change, in the event that he couldn’t find his balance, he would hold onto those.

At last, she came forth and the observers wondered why she was initially silent. She claimed to have been on a call and didn’t hear him until the interrogation began. Of course, no one believed her and none voiced it out either, except one and he got a mouthful of invectives thrown at him.

The journey continued, as did the interrogation. The driver queried why she did that and also enquired to know where she would alight, so he could give her her balance. She rained the leftovers of her abuses on him and that gave the observers something to conclude on – and that’s who she is, despite the attempt to look and dress a part.

But I choose to sing, so I won’t engage an uncouth lady, that’s if she was a lady.

@imanikel 04:05:2023 Frances Kelvin Otung

The Running Thief

Our world has reached a place where everyone wants to be on their own, enjoy their space (so they say)!
Why am I saying this?
I spoke with one of my babies yesterday, trying to tell her about the usefulness of forming and having relationships, not just by name, but by truly having one. She tells me, “I love having my space!” Shocked I was, being a person that loves family, but I tried to see this through her eyes and it wasn’t the having a “me-time” thingy, it was an “everyone-leave-me-alone, I’ll-reach-you-if-I-need-you” and it felt like usury and I’m not sure I want to be reached or checked up on only when someone needs my help. I think it would be sweet to just wake up and see a message for no reason other than, “you crossed my mind”, “I miss you”, OR for “no reason at all!”

With this in mind, on my way to work daily, I don’t do phones, doing phones is another way of saying “leave me to my world and mind-your-own-business.” I watch and take in different scenarios, and trust me, Lagos has plenty drama. The sad part is when you are involved in it directly or indirectly, so let’s say it’s one of the days I was a spectator, not a participant. As the vehicle maneuvered its way through the body of cars, (meaning, we were in a traffic-jam, a norm on any given morning and night), I saw a water-supply truck – not the ones that supply water to tanks, but the ones that delivery bags of sachet water, also trying to maneuver its way through. To move on, the driver had to slow down and allow another vehicle pass to avoid a collision. But that was an ‘error’… in a split second, I noticed a young man weave his way through the jam, grab a bag of water and started running. Hmmm…

Funnily enough, the two young men, (probably his age mates trying to make ends meet by doing the delivery work) were oblivious of what had happened, but will realize the shortage at the point of delivery. I’m thinking, so I woke up on the 1st of February (it happened yesterday) and the first thing on my To-Do list is, “steal a bag of water from a moving truck”. Now, I’m wondering what the second item is on the list, grab bread from the bread-seller or what?!

Who do we blame for this?
Society?
Our lack of values or failure to apply values taught?
Government? (our go-to whenever we need someone to blame)
Our parents? (for not being as wealthy as Mr. Jones next door)
The church? (for not sharing the offerings on the street, despite all the CSR programmes and free vocational training given to point us in the right direction)
Our location? (If only I wasn’t born in Nigeria…rolling my eyes at you for this thought)
Our blaming game is one long list…except ourselves.

Well, the running thief escaped today, will he tomorrow? when he sits in a place of authority tomorrow and has no scruples about putting his hands in the treasury bag, remember the sachet bag he took with ease in public view and the praise he received from other occupants of the vehicle I was in “Sharp guy!” So don’t tell me about how they failed to keep their mandates, because truth be told, they never really had one or a good value antecedent to follow.

Just stating my view on this matter, let’s hear yours.

I remain IMAN – I Manifest Adonai’s Nature #UnapologeticallyMe

@imanikel 02022021 (c) Frances Kelvin Otung

A bit of Lagos beauty

On a night out with the King…

©2017. Frances Kelvin Otung. All rights reserved

The Nigerian in me ;)

I’m Nigerian, proudly AK, I believe in transformation, excellence (thank you Pst Paul of Lagos…LOL), all things leading somewhere to happen, impacting lives and changing statusquo. I’m Nigerian (I repeat) and I’m proud. Corruption has got nothing on me (no thanks Cameron).

People are entitled to their opinion and so I will grant them their due audience, though I made a covenant with my ears (earlier in the year) not to listen to anything negative – visual or audio. I might look at it or listen so as to know how to address it, but I do not entertain it, invite it into my heart and home or give it a dwelling place in my sphere. There is so much negativity trading and showing off already, why would I go a-searching for more?!

That people say we are bad, ill-mannered, fantastically-corrupt, and all dem bad-bad names dem a call we (forgive the fake patwah) does it mean you should wear the tag gladly without making any attempt to work on what needs correcting? Yes, they have pointed all these out, why not take their opinion as a list of things to strike off our pattern of behaviour and form new and better ones worth emulating?

I’m Nigerian, Born-again and Proud of where I drink from spiritually. I am taught to keep my biscuit and chocolate wrap with me till I get to the bin and deposit it nicely. It has gotten so bad that yesterday, when I walked into a mall, I saw a wrap and then a plastic bottle on the floor I almost picked them up before moving on. No I didn’t pick them for many reasons; but the one we do often (my King and I) is we don’t let you get away with dumping your trash on the road whilst driving. If you attempt to or do it, we would drive up to you and inform you to keep it in your car till you are able to do it. I don’t know what it is, but everyone we have told this, always look sober and apologetic. Whether they keep up with the new-found habit is what we cannot tell or confirm.

Last week, someone close to me, absentmindedly dropped something very tiny from the car and before I realised it, the deed had been done. Oh yes, I gave the ‘lecture’ which the person already knows for your information and I also observed on that beautiful day, the response I got innocently was “It’s the Nigerian in me”. I told the person I would write about it, so we all learn to curb that “Nigerian in us” that wants to remain in the not-going-anywhere-to-become-better-arena. Guess what, the tiny particle even refused to drop from the car and got stuck between the window and the door! LOL. We had a good laugh.

We all have “the Nigerian in us” but here is a call to consciously decide daily which Nigerian we allow show wherever we are and whilst you are thinking about it, I hail o! *Twale!

*AK – Akwa Ibom

*Twale – A form of greeting

©2016. Frances Kelvin Otung. All rights reserved

#WQWWC – Change

Can you believe it?! This week’s topic is a phenomenon that reigned (in words) in Nigeria some months back. Why did I use the word ‘reigned’, you see in Nigeria when something is in focus or en vogue for a while, we call it ‘REIGNING’. https://silverthreading.com/2016/05/11/writers-quote-wednesday-writing-challenge-change/

The new dispensation or crop of leaders came in with their Mantra tagged ‘Change’. Has much changed in Nigeria? Yes o! Positively? Depends on who is looking. The person selling the Change story would say YES things have changed and improved. For the sakes of fairness, I will only address what concerns me.

For the past week or more we have been in darkness and PMS (Gasoline) has been up and up and down and upper, sometimes none at all. Do we still get to buy? Eventually, at a cost to your pocket, body, car etc.

• For the Pocket, the guy by the roadside sells his black market at a ridiculously high rate, we don’t patronise him or her, but people do and they are situated right beside the fuelling station. I hear from the attendants “we don’t sell to anyone with Jerrycans, bring your generators” and by the next day, “we don’t sell to generators too!” So we are wondering, how we will have power in the house when we can’t get fuel for the generator or get power from Power Holding Company of Nigeria?
• For the Body, you will suffer bodily wise with dragging on the queuing line with agberos (touts) manning the gates, men of the force and other car-users looking to get the product too!
• For the Car, whilst you are trying to push your car that has no fuel into the station, another car smoothly turns in front of you.

Now, it is Tomatoes whose price has skyrocketted and no end in sight to its increase. The sad part is when you complain, the mallam, tells you ‘nah Change’. I thought Change was meant to be positive or at least yield positive results. In a way, it has made many of us return to other recipes we abandoned and local food.

Whilst there’s so much to complain about the current system, I have decided to work on some changes personally. Watch what I say (as always) because words are seeds and I’m expecting a harvest. Come up with new and creative ideas and strategies to change situations around me. Be the Change I want to see in my home, to my King, colleagues, family and Lagos road-users…for this set of peeps, you need special GRACE, I tell you. But it will work together for good!

Picture Sources: http://quotesgram.com/it-starts-with-you-quotes/

http://ryan30rapadas.blogspot.com.ng/2014/03/i-m-t-h-e-key-to-change-when-we-are-no.html

https://www.pinterest.com/

©2016. Frances Kelvin Otung. All rights reserved

 

 

 

#FreedomFriday: A Kaleidoscope of Colours!

Freedom Friday offers me the opportunity to explore and just be me – uncut and raw…in a nice way that is. I’m thinking quietly – maybe loudly and I’m truly tempted to fill your world with the beauty of culture. In Nigeria, we are surrounded by good food and style. As a believer in beauty and good food, I derive pleasure in basking in the pure joys these bring.

So today, I’ll let you in on personal stuff and people I truly love as they display beauty in all their colours. I hope they are pleasing to your eyes, joyful to your heart and widening the smile across your face. Do tell me about it!

Sunu representing an Efik maiden

Beautiful for the stomach

Even with the colours behind, she stands out

That’s how we do it baby

Of sisters, daughters and bond

Indian meets Akwa Ibom

Sisters with Colours

The King & I

…with the Princess

@Ufan…the Thespian

Igwe and the Queen

More nutritious beauty

Boogie my girly girly!

©2016. Frances Kelvin Otung. All rights reserved

Leaders of Tomorrow?

I’m not sure who came up with this quote that “Children are the Leaders of Tomorrow”, I’m not keen about knowing the author at the moment, but perched on knowing if the quote has been proven right or wrong. If we should still use it as relevant or obsolete.

Hey, hold your stones down for a sec, or else I will pull one of my fav scriptures on you “let him that is without sin cast the first stone” …rolling my eyes at you now with my right eyebrow up and the left one down as I type out my thoughts. Yesterday was ‘Children’s Day’ (at least in Nigeria), the children went out, the Amusement parks were filled to the brim, some more calories packed on as they gulped ice-cream, pizza and all the other sweet things children love and adults too. Now, that’s the fun part of Children’s day. How about the not-so-fun part that makes the parent realise that yes, it’s Children’s Day, but what hope is there for our Children with the Educational Sector being bamboozled by external factors, like extended non-payment of salaries, fuel scarcity, and other threats?

I daily listen to some ‘crazy’ station (my King finds this particular one amusing) that bash any matter being brought before them whether it is serious or not. And I wonder, if they would swap places with these teachers or doctors (or whoever they are bashing on a said-day) and do their work better, given all the restraining factors. Well this is a discussion for another day, when I’m ready for them.

We were discussing the other day and I made the comment to take care of Children as they are the Leaders of Tomorrow and the response I got was “Tomorrow never comes!” Why, would they say that?! And the two gentlemen I was discussing with flooded me with history of how Nigeria has been handed from one Leader (please use ‘OLD’ as a pre-fix) to another and the recycling goes on and they wondered if the Children will EVER be allowed to lead and if TOMORROW will ever come for fresh brains and ideas. Some leaders need to REALLY RETIRE and stay out of politics and all the other matters that affect this nation. They are causing us more pain than needed. Let him/she that hath an ear, hear what the children are saying “Save some ‘National Cake’ for us too.” NO! Rewind…you have finished your old recycled ‘Sectional Cake’. Please leave! We have some fresh ones to bake.

So what are we (you and I) going to do about it? If these recycled leaders have refused to leave the ruling arena for other ideologies and fresher thoughts, then we have to teach the children from birth, from kindergarten, from the playground, from church, from the mosque and society that they have what it takes to move this nation forward positively. Regardless of how far it has sunken in some areas or all the bad news that surrounds her.

We have to fill their minds with endless possibilities of who they are and can be and what they can achieve. Also prepare them for the journey ahead. I am not a Political Analyst or an Economist, but the little I know of what goes on around here is that it’s about time to really CHANGE and do what is right for the Children and for their future and ours too. By the way, I am not senile either just a concerned mother who will not keep silent!

Source of picture: http://www.methodistcollege.org/images/yootheme/widgetkit/Childrens-day.jpeg

© 2015. Frances Kelvin Otung. All rights reserved.

Lyrical Monday

For you my Beloved Country…

© 2015. Frances Kelvin Otung. All rights reserved

Ekpang Nkwukwo

Humming … “I can only imagine”

Yes o! I can only imagine the multitude of people salivating at my topic. Well, that is relative and dependent on my crowd being mostly Nigerians and a few people outside Naija and Africa who know what I’m talking about.

My friends (FK and Lucille) and I had a discussion about a dish I could cook and I chose Ekpang Nkwukwo amongst so many more. To ensure it wasn’t just about something I picked up from the net and forwarded, I made up my mind to cook the main thing and send via web to them. I’m so looking forward to the time when you can cyber-taste food, so Lucille won’t have to travel all the way and neither would I.

Dear Dream Readers, here’s what I came up with and for your information, the Periwinkle is for FK alone as she plans to cook Ekpang Nkwukwo also, but can’t seem to find Periwinkle to add – so I’m sending her these. Hope it will suffice FK. *wink*.

I guess most of you would want to know the process and the ingredients to use, so I’ll suggest this link http://www.mybelledonfull.com/2012/05/18/ekpang-nkwukwo/ to you. Don’t tell FK I said this, but that’s where she’s learning to cook hers. LOL

Periwinkle aka Mfi

Getting cooked with other ingredients

As for the final thing, I can only give you a plate, as I have so many mouths waiting to enjoy it with me. Besides, I made mine a bit dry, so by the time you add enough liquid to get the porridge, it should go round everyone that wants to taste. I trust I made your evening pleasurable.

Behold…Ekpang Nkwukwo

Pray tell, how did it taste, what would you like for me to cook for you next time?

© 2015. Imanikingblog. All rights reserved.

When Two Elephants Fight

I heard this saying when I was really young…I’m not that old either, but I have progressed steadily in the growth department for some years now, don’t let my looks deceive you… and it said “When two Elephants fight, the grass gets hurt.”

For the life of me, what prompted the Elephants to fight? Were they trying to share the forest and one laid claims to more lands than necessary, given the harvest his own end of the forest was bringing? OR Was it a case of wife-snatching? Just my ‘crazy’ mind doing what it knows best, thinking out loud, so as to hear another’s opinion. Not like I will take it o! But then who knows?

Thinking about it, are they not supposed to fight in a ring? Why on the poor grass? Who is their referee? Who organised the fight? All these ‘Whos’ you say, yes I need to know. What brought about the fight? Who stands to gain when the storm is over? Hmmm.

I have seen many DPs and appeal for and against the two main parties in the race. Some are really hilarious 🙂 and gets one thinking when all is said and done, what will we gain from all the bad-blood we have generated amongst ourselves. Why are we letting the Elephants use us to achieve their selfish/unselfish gains? If they are Men enough as they claim, let them speak for themselves. What do they REALLY have to offer us…we have had enough of bogus promises and no show. We’ve had enough of THREATS and actually TERROR. We want our GRASS back and GREEN the way it used to be before all of these madness (including those of years past). I think it is time the GRASS became slippery, so that by the time both Elephants fall and rise from fighting instead of focusing, they will acknowledge HER.

In the meanwhile, February 14th is on the way, what will your vote say? I rest my case…just for today anyway.

© 2015. Imanikingblog. All rights reserved.