OUR BELIEF, OUR REALITY

Written by: Maryrose Onejeme.           

It’s easy to ascribe spirituality to troubles and misfortunes that life throws our way, especially recurrent ones.

When we do that, our brain automatically shuts down. We stop thinking or looking for another solution because “it’s not normal”, “it’s my village people,” “it’s my uncle in the village”, it’s that mama, she bin dey give me bad eye that day”… 🥴

Some people then start consulting mediums. Some start praying…and keep praying. God is gracious enough to give us clues sometimes about what to do but we easily ignore them and continue to wait on Him for a mind-blowing miracle. Sometimes, the solution is right in front of us waiting for us to implement and for God to bless.

A couple of years ago, I walked in on my boss crying in the office. An African alpha male crying! You’ll agree with me that that is an uncommon sight.

I tried to sneak out but he sensed my presence and cleared his throat loudly, stopping me dead in my tracks. I apologized and told him I was done with the work he gave me and would return at a more convenient time. He waved away my excuse and collected the files.

He then started telling me how he came from a terrible lineage where nobody wanted his children to excel after all his sacrifices towards educating a few of theirs.

I stood, nodding, not sure what to do with all that information. He then told me he just registered two of his children for WAEC (West African Examinations Council) and NECO(National Examination Council…again. The two of them graduated from good schools and were quite intelligent but kept on failing at Chemistry, Mathematics and English after three sittings at both WAEC and NECO.

He said one prophet told him it was his brothers that didn’t want his children to succeed in life. He and his wife bought the items the prophet listed out to nullify the brothers’ witchcraft. They did it at the riverside at night but the next year, the results only got worse.

I felt like I should say something since he had been talking for a while, so I asked him how well the children prepared for each time they took the exams. “They are intelligent children. They read very well and I bought the past questions for them to practice”.

“That’s great,” I told him. “Let me suggest something. Get lesson teachers for them for those problematic subjects. Don’t employ one teacher for all the subjects. I’ll teach them English if you like, at an affordable price.” He agreed, saying he was ready to try anything.

He did exactly that, and that was the last time they sat those exams. True, they didn’t get record-breaking grades but they were enough to get admitted into the higher institution.

That man bought my lunch almost every day for about a month to show his appreciation when the results came out.

Now, the children are on holiday. It isn’t a time to relax. Enroll them on programs that will help them as you groom them into what you desire for their sake. Remember that English (and Mathematics) is compulsory for admittance into any higher institution, at least here in Nigeria.

Finally, it may be true that “village people” happen too but let it not be our first conclusion.