#14:older and wiser.
Helloooooooo guys,
It has been two weeks since I wrote a proper letter to you and I have felt so bereft. Not to be dramatic (well kinda); I have developed such a strong emotional connection to this substack and this community such that when I do not post, or when I post a short-temporary post, I feel like I have let down someone somewhere. Now this may be delusional (it is) , but that is genuinely how I feel. So much has been happening and last week was too busy for me to even stop and think of something interesting or witty to write. I did post on Sunday – an off-beat joke about eliminating men that pee on the roadside – but I deleted it the next day. It was never meant to stay up. Anyway, I am back ooooh. Posting quality every week is not easy, I'm not going to lie to you, but I promise to try my very best to deliver every week. 💌
what i have been up to:
No one asked, but I am going to let you all in on what has happened in my life in the weeks gone by. I think I have had a pretty eventful couple of days.
Preparing for my Uni’s International Relations week. I'm the interim president of the society (I've not been sworn in yet), and it has been a ride! It has been meetings upon meetings, planning here and there and running helter-skleter.
Hopefully it all goes to plan and runs smoothly.
Being extra and having a birthday photo shoot. I really don't know why I did it, lol. I'm just turning 19. But I felt like it, and I did it. My ultimate life goal is to be a willing participant in life; to have excitement for the most mundane things. Pictures shall be posted on instagram, as usual.
An early birthday dinner with the best of friends because the real day is a serious Monday (as per we are standing on business this year.) We had a rollicking time. The girls made my weekend.
My friend Emma said the vibe of this dinner is “2005 nostalgia” and I couldn't agree more! 
Hostess with the mostest. Attending a concert of some sorts that Deeper Life Ghana organized. If I was Ghanaian and understood half of what they were singing in Twi, I know I would have had a time!
Watching the AFCON with enthusiasm, which is coming to an end today. Hopefully Nigeria lifts the trophy; that would be the best birthday gift everrrrrr.The day Nigeria best South Africa was one the funniest days on social media this year.
Sleeping, waking up going through the motions of life.
birthday blues?
Birthdays have always been a warm memory for me, soothing and special. Growing up I used to count down my birthday with joyful anticipation. My parents have always been one to go the extra mile to celebrate a birthday. I always looked forward to my birthday because I knew that my super-parents, in their magical ability to do just about anything, would smother me with affection. I'm an only child, you see. There is enough affection to go round. I would wake up with a bear-crushing hug from my mum, and a pronunciation of blessing from my father. Phones would be ringing incessantly – my aunt, uncle and cousins are calling to wish me a happy birthday. For breakfast I would have chicken nuggets and a pack of haribos. I was only allowed haribos in the morning of my birthday. I loved it. Sweets in the morning?! And as a meal? I was living life. That day at school, in the middle of a lesson, my auntie and my great-aunt would crash the class bearing the hugest pink cake to ever exist and gifts for all. Everyone would sing the happy birthday song at the top of their lungs. I would be the most popular kid for a day. It was pure, unadulterated bliss.
I've never been one to experience birthday anxiety, but this year, in the days leading to my birthday, my stomach has shown me its athletic abilities. It has somersaulted, twisted, turned and danced a pirouette. My trepidation has unnerved me. In a bid to sort out my feelings, I sat and soul-searched. I have concluded that I am overwhelmed, again, by the passage of time. There are a few times in life where we stop to take in the power of time. Our birthday is one of them. On your birthday, you consider two things: the joy (or at least acknowledgement) of your new age and the acceptance that you are a step closer to your grave. I have waxed lyrical about time before. I am moved and fascinated by time. Time is powerful. Time is spiritual. As we grow, time seems to thin, seems to speed up and spin out of our control. We are taken aback that babies are growing so fast. “I remember the day you were born!” we exclaim. It never ceases to shock us, the swift nature of this spiritual element called time.
Birthdays are a time to reflect on the year gone by, and that action of reflecting is a powerful tool for gratitude. On gratitude, the Bible says “give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, and His steadfast love endures forever.”1. I am hung up on the word steadfast, because it is loaded.
Think about it. The steadfast (stable, unchanging, anchoring) love of our Lord never ceases. His mercies never come to an end. They are new every morning. How comforting is the knowledge that God never stops loving you and me? How soothing is that? God's love never changes. In fact, it regenerates; that is, it is new every day. Every day, The Lord loves afresh. Everyday, the Lord loves anew. And as He loves, He keeps. A new age has come, and I am still alive to celebrate it.
Yesterday, my friend Krystle and I were watching the Hallelujah Challenge Day 5. It was such a spiritual experience. The theme of Day 5 was Thanksgiving. As Pastor Nath read from Scripture and led us in prayer I was moved to tears. It's so overwhelming when pause running this rat race called life and consider all that God has done for you . I think about my near-death experience just in February last year. I think about how a car almost ran me over some months ago. I think about all my clumsy falls and missteps and how they did not morph into nightmares. I think about situations I have no idea of, but God intervened to stop evil. I think about the little pockets of mercy God dispenses to me, to us, and I cry with gratitude.
How can we thank the universe when its Emperor reigns supreme on His Throne, making the world and the worlds we have no idea of, go round? Birthdays are so much more than a celebration of your birth; they are a testament to the One who made you and has kept you to see another year.
Happy Birthday to me. Hopefully, as I grow older, I become wiser.
and lastly….media matters!
books, movies and podcasts i listened to, read or watched in the past few weeks that i enjoyed and deem worthy of sharing.
In reading, I have been ravenously reading anything that Lisa Kleypas has ever written. Currently ravishing the Ravenel series. I am having a time and a half! So far I have read Chasing Cassandra, Hello Stranger, Devil’s Daughter and Devil in Spring. I am currently reading Cold Hearted-Rake. These titles are soooo funny to me. I love them all. It's so hard to pick a favorite.
For podcasts, I have been re-listening to old I Said What I Said episodes. Oh my goodness! I miss my faves. It's February and they have still not resumed recording. I thank goodness there is a catalogue of episodes one can just binge. I really enjoyed listening to the Outshallah episode as I was doing chores the other day. Ms. Jola and FK are a hoot!
If you haven't been tuning in to the Hallelujah challenge, I suggest you do! It has been amazing thus far. I cannot even begin to explain to you how powerful that program is. It's also fun and spontaneous. Ogima conga!!!!!! On Wednesday after the Super Eagles win the way I danced ehn?! (btw, i'm a horrible dancer). Hopefully tonight we will dance in Thanksgiving for our victory at the AFCON.
Psalms 107: 1-3; 1 Chronicles 16: 34.
Thank you for reading dear blessing. See you next week!💌
Happy birthday Blessing💕
Awwww