Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is a holiday celebrated in the United States and Canada as a way of expressing gratitude for life, family and more. Thanksgiving was made an official national holiday on the 3^rd of October 1863 by the United States president Abraham Lincoln. 

If you want to read about the history of thanksgiving, I suggest you go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thanksgiving as it highlights the history of thanksgiving both in Canada and the USA. 

The essence of thanksgiving is the fact that we are alive despite the many things we have gone through. We should be thankful for family despite the fact that they make us want to hit our heads on the wall sometimes. If it seems like you can’t find anything to be thankful about, consider the air you breathe. Start from the seemingly little things like the fact you awaken every morning, the fact that you can read this post, the fact you have access to the internet…anything seemingly mundane.

Have you lost a loved one? Be thankful for the fact that he/she is in a better place and if you do not believe in the afterlife, be thankful for the strength you have every day to bear the loss. Has your business crumbled over the last couple of years? Be thankful for the ingenuity and courage you had to create a business and indeed start one that failed. You would learn from your mistakes and create a bigger and better business.

I absolutely hate what I call comparative thanksgiving e.g. thank God for the food I have to eat because many poor children have nothing. That is absolute crap. Why compare yourself with others when you can be fully satisfied independent of other people’s status? Yes, some have more or less than we have but that gives us no reason to base our thankfulness on that.

I am thankful for so many things and they include (in no preferential order)

1.      I am alive and have the will to go on living.

2.      I have a job I absolutely enjoy.

3.      I have access to the internet (where I meet a lot of interesting people and can post write-ups on my blog).

4.      I have a loving family.

5.      I have crazy friends who would do anything for me and vice versa.

6.      I have the zeal and yearning to achieve my goals.

7.      I have time.

8.      I have good health (well, seemingly so since I haven’t gone for a check-up in a while and I haven’t died yet)

9.      My country hasn’t gone into another Civil war despite the various issues we have.

I could go on and on but won’t bore you with my long list of things I am thankful for. Please feel free to comment and let me know the things you are thankful for…trust me, you would go on and on.

Book Review: Living Life in the Zone

Living life in the zone is a 40 day daily devotional for men written by Kyle Rote Jr. and Dr. Joe Pettigrew. 

The authors call it a 40 day spiritual game plan for men (I guess this is because it is written in a sports format that appeals to most men).

I took my time studying this book as the authors intended and found it to be a very reflective and inspirational daily devotional.

The authors acknowledge the fact that forty days is considered by God as a spiritually significant period of time in which he accomplishes his purposes. The authors further prove their point by giving us eleven instances where God used 40 days to change to change lives and situations.

The book covers a wide range of topics and is divided into 6 sections that cover every facet of a man’s life. Each week there is a different theme that makes you stop and ponder about your relationship with God, your wife, children, friends, co-workers and your future plans.

It sports oriented as it seeks to relate to the active/sporty side of men. As a woman, I was not bored with the book, I actually found it fascinating and I can imagine how much more interested the men would be.

This is a book I would recommend as a gift for a male figure dear to any woman. It boosts the morale and serves as a Spiritual guide. Although biblical passages were sparsely referred to, the authors tried as much as possible to make you dig deeper by giving daily assignments.

Check  http://www.amazon.com/Living-Life-Zone-Spiritual-Gameplan/dp/0849946522 to buy the book.

Photography (2)

Hello everybody, welcome to by first photography exhibition. Okay, not really an exhibition but a post of a few of my pictures. I love photography ( I am an amateur) and my Nikon goes wherever I go. The pictures I am bold enough to post today are pictures I took in June 2010. It was a TG1stFriday event at Silverbird Abuja. I wonder why they stopped hosting the event. Oh well.

What I really love most about the few pictures here is the way I captured the fountain in different lights. Please enjoy and feel free to criticize.

This picture was taken with a focal length of 105.0mm, and an ISO of 800. I love the green background and the fact that the people were oblivious to my camera.

Focal Length: 105.0mm; ISO:800

This time, the two beautiful ladies saw my camera and struck a pose.

 Who knew the fountain could be this beautiful at night.

  Focal Length: 34.0mm; ISO: 800

Focal Length: 25.0mm; ISO: 720

This is my friend and partner in crime (my photography buddy) Dr. Olamide Craig.

F.L: 50.0mm; ISO: 800

 

To me, this is the most beautiful picture I captured that night. Let me hear your views.

F.L: 52.0mm; ISO: 800

 Finally, a close up of the table arrangement. This was actually such a random picture that came out quite nice.

 

I should thank 'whats my name' who commented on my blog last week and encouraged me to post some of my amateurish pictures.

Writing

I find it difficult to write sometimes and most of it is largely due to lack of self discipline. I could blame it on a number of factors: lack of constant electricity, busy schedule at work, the fact that I am always on the move...but they are all bloody excuses. After all, Shakespeare, C.S. Lewis and the best of them had no computers to write on and they wrote perfectly.

Truth be told, I enjoy reading immensely and I know that I write well but I have to get rid of the laziness I succumb to. I have subscribed to a number of websites that encourage you to write, give you tutorials and the rest. To be honest, the Word Queen (Keidi Keating) has helped me a lot. I found out about it one idle day on twitter and I have been blessed with the tips and weekly advise (almost daily advice actually). Please visit http://thewordqueen.com/

Another person who encourages me to write is Gordon McCleary. He is the author/writer of 'A Yankee's Southern Exposure' (here is the link to his blog http://yankeeexposure.blogspot.com). He has an intricate way of infusing humour in his writings. His blog is actually educating as it tells you the experience of a native Northern American's experience in the South. It has actually given me ideas as to topics I should write on.

Another person who inspires me is Erere Jennifer Abayowa who is a prolific writer and has the blog http://www.lightherlamp.com/. Oh my...I cannot describe how inspiring and enlightening her blog is ( I use it as a devotion sometimes). 

There are so many writers that inspire me, I would not mention the classic writers, I am focusing on the bloggers right now because I can read their blogs on my phone and smile, be inspired, pause to ponder and use their articles as a platform for my articles.

Over the next couple of days, I would analyze/summarize the writings of my favorite bloggers and I what I enjoy about their blogs (so help me God )

Photography

My love for photography started when I finally accepted the fact that I could not draw to save my life. Yes, I am proud to say I was one of those people who fooled themselves in Secondary School that they possessed artistic prowess.

After years of what I would call mock pottery and 'abstract' art, I put aside the clay, paint, paper and brushes and told myself it was not necessary for me to tap into my artistic side any further.

Technology then blessed me with the art of digital photography (hugs to the group of people who worked tirelessly to develop such a wonderful thing). My first camera was actually a nameless camera (no, I would not admit I have forgotten the name of the manufacturer). I would buy countless rolls of film and take countless pictures.

My second camera was a Kodak digital camera and I absolutely loved it! My love didn't last for long as I got a Sony DSLR A 200 and it became my constant companion. I took so many pictures with that Camera.

Now I use a Nikon D 90 and I absolutely love this new baby.

I cannot tell you which camera is the best in the world but what i know is this: do not give your self an excuse for not doing what you always wanted to. I always wanted to capture images and I let my little mind think I could do that only with paper/canvas and paint. Once I realized that technology can help me with my lack of natural ability to draw, I embraced it warmly.

The conundrum that plagues the world (1)

We are all hypocrites. I know that statement has earned me a few self-righteous retorts but it is true. I lay on my bed pondering on a lot of things. Why am I hesitant about inviting my non-Christian friends and Christian friends for a small soiree? Here are my reasons:

1. My non-Christian friends would want to drink anything other than sugary and fizzy drinks; my Christian friends would wonder why I have lager, alcohol or the like.

2. My non-Christian friends would want to play ‘fun games’ while my Christian friends would be satisfied with sharing testimonies.

3. My non-Christian friends are oblivious to the term ‘indecent exposure’ while my Christian friends perpetually point out what’s decent and what’s not.

4. My non-Christian friends are ready to watch anything and everything while my Christian friends would have to read reviews about a movie before they watch.

5. My non-Christian friends are generous with sharing their escapades with the opposite sex while my Christian friends either have no escapades or they ‘code’ such escapades.

I can go on and on about this but life is not meant to be lived this way…or is it? Having different groups of friends? (Trust me; I have different groups of friends for different aspects and facets of my life). It all boils down to the fact that in reality, we are all hypocrites. I finally have matured to a point where I do not care if people disapprove of a friend because of ‘what she wears’, ‘how she speaks’ etc. after all, you also grind some other people’s gears.

Why is it difficult/almost impossible to accept people the way they are? We all want to change something about people so they can fit out idea about how a perfect person should be. We really should learn to accept people the way they are and stop forcing our beliefs down their throat. My previous statement is just an example of how we try to force our beliefs down people’s throats as some people are of the opinion that their beliefs should be forced down other people’s throats. This is the conundrum that plagues the world.

There are different ways of doing the same thing. Do not delude yourself otherwise. The most important thing to note is the fact that you need to find out which of the different ways works best for you….and stick with it or change it as often as you want to (whatever catches your fancy).

Don’t get me wrong; this is not an article on Christians and non-Christians, its one about our different set of beliefs and how we try to impose them on others. It’s about finding that delicate balance between adhering to your own set of beliefs and respecting the beliefs of others. I wish I could say I have fully mastered the art of achieving the perfect balance but I think I know how to describe the balance that we should strive to achieve.

Over the next few weeks, I would write about various double standards that exist and plague our world.

Availability

When do you draw the line between being available and your availability being taken for granted? I have always had that problem. I am the kind of person that can do anything for someone I care about, someone I call a friend. It never ceases to amaze me how I always 'give the benefit of the doubt' to people I know are just taking advantage of me.

The truth is we all take advantage of each other but in varying degrees. I know that I love being needed and this is perhaps the reason I always want to be there for a friend when he/she calls.

The fact is when you are always there for someone, you would always be taken for granted no matter what. Live your life without necessarily trying to bend over backwards pleasing people. Its hard to do this but of what use is it pleasing your friends at your expense, without them appreciating? The resentment that builds isn't worth it.

Learning to say no is indeed the first step. It is impossible to always be there for someone...and when you find your self in such position, then you know you are killing yourself slowly. There is nothing wrong in saying 'I would like to help you but I am sorry I cannot' or 'I am indisposed at the moment' or something of that nature.

I still have not achieved that delicate balance but I know that I am not interested in being anybody's foot-mat. If it is not convenient for me, I would say so and I do not care how you beg and plead.

Remember the law of diminishing returns.