On Why you may never be fine

It's the Journey, not the destination

Photo Credit: Jelle de Gier

When I was younger, I used to think that if I could just pass my common entrance exams, I would be fine. Dad said the stakes were high and the schools competitive. I studied and studied. I got into the school, spent a few years and thought, if only I could do well in my WAEC and JAMB. Just enough to get a direct admission, I would be fine. I studied. And studied. I got in. But I wasn't fine. I decided I would be if I changed my course. I like the ring of esquire after my name. If only I can get into law, I will be fine. So I studied. And studied. I got into law. I wasn't fine. It got harder. I was determined not to flop my only chance at undergraduate studies (I am not sure my love for education spilled into multiple undergraduate studies). So I studied. And studied. Well, I did make my good grades. But I did find out one thing. That it never ends. I may never be fine-in this sense.

Life is a marathon, not a sprint. We rest when we tire. We stop for gulps of air. To take in our scenery. To play. To help others run better. To heal when our toes bleed. But that's it. We never stop running. The race never ends. The common entrance exams. The WAEC. The JAMB. The change of course. The final exams. They were all just breaks, bus stops but never the destination. From afar, they looked like the horizons. We think they are ends in themselves. Our finish lines. We run. And run. Barely stopping to catch our breaths. Barely looking out for others. If only we can reach the sky.

When we begin to see life as a process, we find that everything matter. From the rising of the sun to the setting. From the scenery to the people we meet. From our panting to the resting. Everything! We find that they are all part of a whole. Our becoming. We will take our time. Take care of ourselves better. Love people better. Take in our environment more often. We’ll await each day with anticipation. And finish it with relish, knowing well that even this is important. Tomorrow, we may reach the horizon. Another horizon. Another bus stop. But for now, nke m ji ka. We will savour each fleeting moment.