Out Of The Ashes

(Photo credit: Flickr)

I believe in life after death, not every one does, but I do. Human beings aren’t merely flesh and blood, we have souls, and soul are indestructible. I’ve got friends who are atheists, so I’m not going to expand too much on this before I start a debate that would rival a sitting in the House of Commons.

Yesterday marked exactly ten years when people with warped views of life took the lives of 52 Londoners, they also left almost 100 people with life changing injuries and scars. Yeah I know, my post is a day late but the topic isn’t. After work yesterday, I caught a few glimpse on the news and was sad at such wanton destruction of human lives. But I was proud, (in fact, I still am) to be a Londoner. Years has passed, but we’ve grown stronger as a city. More tourists visited London than ever before, I love travelling on the tube, bus or on a private car. It’s testament to the fact that evil will and cannot win.

If we read the news, there’s always stuff that would make our tummies churn (my daughter always says that), but life isn’t all gore and horror. There’s the incomparable breath of fresh air, there’s the sheer joy of clean water, what about the juicy goodness of an orange? The list is endless, life is good, and it’s tough, I won’t dispute that.

The relatives of the 7/7 bombing and the senseless and needless attack in Sousse would be comforted by the love and prayers sent their way. I believe in prayers but I also believe in living each day with a heart of thanksgiving in spite of my circumstances, that, I believe is what would keep me sane and out of the ashes of stress and despair. My husband used to say that everyone has problems, it’s just our ways of dealing with life’s daily grind that’s different.

I would end my post with this simple quote from Groucho Marx, ‘I, not events, have the power to make me happy or unhappy today. I can choose which it shall be. Yesterday is dead, tomorrow hasn’t arrived yet. I have just one day, today, and I’m going to be happy in it.’ NP: I’m still writing, albeit slowly. I’ve informed my publisher of my inability to submit my manuscripts until next year. Life seems to have a way of sending many distractions my way and I always oblige 🙂 I hope everyone is fine. Please, stay safe! Much love to you guys, always! 🙂 🙂

Failure Is Not Terminal!

Jun23

(Photo credit: Flickr)

“I really don’t think life is about the I-could-have-beens. Life is only about the I-tried-to-do. I don’t mind the failure but I can’t imagine that I’d forgive myself if I didn’t try.” Nikki Giovanni

“No man ever achieved worth-while success who did not, at one time or other, find himself with at least one foot hanging well over the brink of failure.” Napoleon Hill

“It is hard to fail, but it is worse never to have tried to succeed.” Theodore Roosevelt

When we have peace within ourselves, we can think clearly. I stared at this picture for ages and it gvae such tremendius joy!

Just like this amazing creature, let’s pause and gather our strength, we can succeed!

I love these three quotes on what I’ll call ‘the near success syndrome’ a.k.a failure. Life is so dynamic yet mysterious and sometimes, what we call failure could well be delay. My dad used to say that the fear of failure mostly propelled him to succeed. He did failed miserably in some aspects of his life, but he succeeded in several as well. To ignore failure or looming failure, we must have courage. Courage is also borne out of the ability to build on one’s failure and squeeze success out of it, Abraham Lincoln failed continuously before he became the celebrated figure most people adore today.

I also believe that dreams have a way of taunting us if we don’t do much about it, I don’t think losing or failing should discourage or cut our enthusiasm short. Succinctly put, don’t give up! There’s more to learn from failing than not attempting something in the first place. I also believe that success derived from failure is the sweetest of all.

I don’t why I’m writing this, but if it touches someone to continue living and not give up on their dreams, then I’m happy.

NP: I’m still hard at work writing my books, it’s not as fast I would have loved but it’s still worth it. I’ll still ensure I visit all your blogs as time permits. I appreciate your friendship and visits guys, thank you!

I hope everyone would enjoy the rest of this great week!!

Much love, always. 🙂

The Hagglers

Nov25

(Photo credit: Flickr)

***

When the world haggle senselessly,

Stoning themselves with hatred endlessly,

I simply laugh continuously.

They fail to see my beauty

They fail to see my work.

They only see their evil

splattered all over their world.

I weep for my clouds,

I weep for my mountains.

My hills groaned with displeasure.

as my leaves danced with agitation.

When will sons see their foolishness,

and embrace joy?

Until I steal the wind? Or make

my rivers dry?

They haggle for the price of peace,

when they only need to love.

********

I rarely watch the news, but I love reading newspapers and when I do, I’ll check BBC website on my laptop for updates which is ironic, because at the end of the day, I still watch news, albeit, reluctantly. This simple poem didn’t follow any pattern but it just came to me when I saw this stunning picture. I want to celebrate the earth, so I take the place of a creator bemoaning the stupidity of His creations. I hope you like it.

To all my American friends, I wish you ‘Happy Thanksgiving,’ in advance, and to those caught up in the Ferguson riots, please keep out of it and stay safe.

Enjoy the rest of the week friends!

Much love, always! 🙂

Living In The Moment…

Nov5

(Photo credit: Flickr)

The most important thing is to enjoy your life – to be happy – it’s all that matters. Audrey Hepburn

I agree with Audrey on this and I hope everyone is having the time of their lives. Time certainly flies with incredible speed, I can’t believe that it’s almost five weeks since my last post, I’ve been neck-deep in series of projects which is going on fine but I miss everyone dearly. I’ve often squeezed time out to visit some of your blogs, but I find it extremely hard to write my posts. My work load has lessened considerably, I’ve dealt with most of the deadlines, and finally, I can breathe amidst the chaos that was my office.

A lot has happened, I celebrated my birthday on Oct 14th, it was a blast, and the rest of the month flew past. I hope everyone is okay? I’ll be visiting all your blogs often as time permits. I would also be updating this site often now, I miss you guys! 🙂

Now, on living in the moment, on October 29, 1941, Winston Churchill visited Harrow’s school graduation in London and said these immortal words,

”Never give in–never, never, never, never, in nothing great or small, large or petty, never give in except to convictions of honour and good sense. Never yield to force; never yield to the apparently overwhelming might of the enemy.”

I know someone would find this quote helpful, it certainly made me realise that to live my life well, in the moment, I just have to believe and press on towards my goal. I want this to be a short post, so I’ll cut it down now! 🙂

I hope you’ve all had a great week so far, I wish you all joy, peace, and protection! Stay safe friends and don’t get into trouble.

Much love, always. 🙂

Don’t Feed The Troll!!!

Jul28

You Can Soar Above Your Haters!

I love cartoons, and I watched one today with my kids called, ‘Wander Over Yonder,’ it’s hilarious! My kids loved it, and I did too. The story was not quiet childish though. There was a lovely planet inhabited by goats, every year, a troll would come visiting and steal all their food. These goats were strong, and very brave but so fickle minded they could hardly take an unkind word. The troll would insult them, and the more they listened and fight back, the more the troll grew bigger and stronger!

That’s more like us isn’t it? When we listen to haters, they have the upper hand, when we ignore them, believe me, they would disappear! Words hurt, I know, but we can rise above the hatred, we can fight by ignoring evil people because when we trade insults, they would grow stronger.

The goats were finally able to destroy the troll – they simply ignored it. It was an ‘it.’ That’s right, some haters are ‘it,’ inconsequential, powerless. Believe me, sometimes, maybe many times, we encourage people to hurt us… We could always change that by not feeding their hatred! We can soar above them.

I learnt a valuable lesson today, I hope someone, somewhere is reading this, and they can just get on with their lives, leaving the trolls behind!

*****

Children are on summer holiday, mine included, which explains why I’ve not updated my blog in a while. However, I’ve been visiting as many blogs as I could and would continue to do so when my troops allow it.

Have a wonderful week my friends! 🙂

Much love, always!

Insatiable Fools…

Jul16

We Only Have One Shot At Life!

Like ducks, they suck up wealth, gulping with little regards to the poor.

Like darkness, they attract light but powerless to overcome it.

Like mould, they dance with filth in their regale splendour.

Like moot, they put argument forward and steal joy.

Like hurricane, they devastate and destroy.

Like dirt, they accumulate.

Like ghost,

It would all float away!

They are the insatiable fools…

******

I watched a very interesting, and rather unnerving drama called ‘The Joneses’ with my husband yesterday. It was such a very unexpected film. The film dealt with greed, and how humans just like the idea of accumulating wealth, jealous of other people’s successes and the mad, crazy, rush to have it all. It might be because I’m approaching the big four zero, but life isn’t really about all we can accumulate materially but all we can do to reach out to others, and being better people!

Phil Collins said it best in his song ‘Another Day In Paradise.’ It was and still is, one of my favourite songs of the nineties! Check it out;

Enjoy the rest of your week my friends! I hope you’ve all had fun so far, please, keep safe!

Much love, always!!

🙂

Smile

Jun18

A smile lightens up the world!

Smiling is often difficult when you’re tensed, stressed, and things aren’t actually going your way. But smiling makes life beautiful. The person smiling actually makes life better, and they feel better too.

Mother Teresa said it best: ”We shall never know all the good that a simple smile can do.”

”A gentle word, a kind look, a good-natured smile can work wonders and accomplish miracles.” William Hazlitt

Today, why not practice this: Smile at strangers, laugh at yourself, be kind towards people, be less judgemental (I sure need that! 🙂 ) and while there’s chaos and wars elsewhere, you know you can hold your ground, smile and be thankful for little blessings like clean water, a safe environment, food to eat and the fact that your life matters to a lot of people! People like me! 🙂

Or what do you think friends?

Enjoy the rest of your week and have a lovely weekend!

Much love, always! 🙂

Seyi David

Finding Solace…

May9

My dad, always with a smiling face! I got my giggles from him. I can remember him now with fondness!

Before I start on my ramblings, I want to use this medium to appreciate everyone who left a message on my website/blog, sent me poems, visited me at home when I was the least sociable, took me out to the cinema, sent beautifully written and thoughtful letters, dedicate a whole post on their blog to my dad ( Rosy, you have a heart of gold) I thank you all. From the depth of my heart, I am grateful.

I found solace in God and my friends!

My dad wouldn’t want me to mope around the house in drags, besides, the old pal was, well, old (76, I thought he would at least hit 80) He didn’t die young, that thought and the simple fact that he loved life in all its entirety makes me want to live with one singularly purpose in mind, leave a footprint in the sand of time and make people happy than they would otherwise have been.

I’m certain I have missed loads of uplifting, hilarious, thoughtful, engaging, entertaining, and simply awesome posts. I would dive in with the force of a whirlwind and read to my heart’s content; though you’ll all bear with me, it may take a while to catch up and I had started already!

I have lots of things to share, some are pretty mundane (I’m even writing a book, not on death, but living) and others, well, I would make them up as we continue on this race of ours called living!

Thanks once again my friends, your friendship and kindness made my time away bearable. I found my solace in God and You my friends

I love you guys! 🙂

Seyi David

The Gift

Apr2

This man reminds me of my dad. Fiercely optimistic of the future…

Everyday is a gift.

A chance to begin again.

But what would happen when you’re facing the imminent loss of someone you love very much?

I’ve been scarce for a while because my dad is very ill. Although he’s pushing towards 80 and has been ill for almost 13 years, I can’t seem to release him. His illness made him very weak and saddled with old age, he’s sinking away fast. Unlike the hunk of a man I remembered growing up, he’s now withered and grey but still, I just don’t want to let go. The poem below is just a kind of tribute, to summarise how much I love him.

Skating towards the sunset

Your smile melts my heart.

Scooping me up in your arms,

my heart danced with joy.

You said you’ll not let me drown,

that life is like a river.

But when I surround myself with kindness,

I would find help in the storm.

That I would ride on the back of love and rest on the crest of kindness

I don’t want you gone dad!

Stay with me a while.

Please!

I have missed many posts, please bear with me and I’ll be back soon. I would appreciate your prayers friends. I hope this month would be peaceful, joyous, and prosperous!

Much love, always!

Seyi David

The Hope Journey

Mar3

(Photo credit: wingmac)

Ann-Marie glared at the result in her hand, and her heart skipped a bit. That wasn’t what she was expecting. How could I beat cancer and then find out that I have coronary heart disease? she thought in despair as her eyes clouded with tears, she ground her teeth, determined to beat the new monster in her body.

‘I’m so sorry,’ the doctor said and watched her ambled out of his office…

*****

Sharon rushed through traffic, her face beaming with pleasure. At long last, after years of trying, the doctor had finally confirmed her suspicion; she was three weeks pregnant. Countless IVFs couldn’t do the trick, she got pregnant when she least expected…

*****

Roman walked through the park, lost in thought. He was still trying to cope with the death of Jake, his best friend. Jake had jumped from the sixth floor of his hotel. It was sad that he was with him a day before the tragedy; yet Roman saw nothing amiss. If only I could rewind time, he thought aloud as his eyes brimmed with tears. Then he remembered the lost look in the eyes of Jake’s mother, and his feet seemed to have a life of their own as they pushed him forward. He could still save another life…

*****

Nathan could hardly believe his ears. He is finally free, there was no more cancer. As he took out his phone, his eyes involuntarily seek out a nurse, pushing a girl in a wheel chair down the hospital hall; she was roughly the same age as his 10-year-old daughter and by the looks of things, she’s having chemo…

NP: although some of these stories are just figments of my imagination; there are elements of reality there. I’ve had friends who had gone through cancer, life – changing situations but one thing stood out: they never gave up hope, and most of them emerged victorious in the face of seemingly insurmountable problems. In the words of Emily Dickinson, the American poet, I quote:

‘Hope is the thing with feathers that perches in the soul – and sings the tunes without the words – and never stops at all.’

So, never give up hope… 🙂

Have a pleasant week my friends!

Much love, always!

🙂