Sorry for taking your time… This is quite long but kindly read to the END.
Dear Teenagers/Youths in your early 20s… What are you learning from your ASSOCIATION(s)?
Permit me to tell you what I’ve learnt and is still learning from some of the few associations I’ve ever belonged to while growing up… Maybe it will help you examine yourself.
From childhood, I belonged to a small area football club that I can’t even remember the name but I learnt the IMPORTANCE OF TEAM PLAY… Thanks to coach Dodo, the first man on earth to ever give me a prize for doing something good, I was the BEST KEEPER in a local competition he organized… I also learnt from the team that there is always a reward for doing your BEST.
From Our Lady Of Perpetual Help Nur/Pri School Mkd, I learnt from my headmistress, Mrs. Rosemary Korinjoh how to be DISCIPLINED but not WICKED… I also learnt to differentiate the two.
From Mt. St. Gabriel’s Secondary School Mkd, I learnt that God is my strength and so I can do anything. I learnt also that failure is not an option. With wonderful mates who will laugh at every mistake you do and awesome teachers that can YAB for Africa, I learnt how to THINK before ACCEPTING or SAYING anything. From my principal, Rev. Fr. ANGUS FRASER, I learnt SELF SACRIFICE, HUMILITY, KINDNESS and GIVING WITHOUT EXPECTING.
In Church, I belong to the Catholic Biblical Movement of Nigeria(CBMN) which I joined at an early age and to a very reasonable extent helped to build my public speaking confidence and sharpened my use of GRAMMER, lol.
In BENUE STATE UNIVERSITY MAKURDI, I joined SIFE now ENACTUS that simply thought me how to have A HEAD FOR BUSINESS(SUCCESS) AND A HEART FOR THE WORLD. I also learnt how to accept RESPONSIBILITIES including those without FINANCIAL GAINS from SIFE. I look good when I dress corporately… Thanks to SIFE.
And then, I joined YWAP an acronym for Youth With A Purpose… Of course the name explains itself but the most important thing I took from this set of friends is KEEPING MY REFUSE UNTIL I CAN FIND A SUITABLE DISPOSAL POINT… I dare not litter.
Now, I’m not saying my life is perfect… I’m just trying to let you know that, as a child growing up and a youth especially in your early 20s, the kind of associations you keep can determine the kind of person you will become in future… But do you even know WHO YOU WANNA BE?
DEAR PARENTS, we seriously need YOUR HELP with this one.
Again, all the above mentioned institutions have their own little little flaws but I focussed more on what I wanted to learn from each of them rather than their mistakes. Always look at the BRIGHT SIDE of every situation… It works for me, I think it should work for you too.
Now the BIG QUESTION IS….
WHAT’S YOUR ASSOCIATION?
What is it teaching you?
What are you learning from it?
Is it DEVELOPING YOU POSITIVELY or just DEATROYING YOU?
Think about it… It is not too late to make a turn.
Your FAMILY, STATE, NIGERIA and the WORLD need a POSITIVE you… We all need YOU.
Thanks for reading…
#VoicesInMyHead.