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#BN2015Epilogues: 2015 Was a Year of Opening Bigger Doors for Oluwaseun
Happy new year to all our readers! As promised, we are continuing the 2015 Epilogues due to the volume of responses we got. We’d like to thank every one who sent an entry, and if you sent your story before the 15th of December 2015, you will see it published on BellaNaija.
If you’re reading this and wondering, ‘What on earth is the series about?’ please catch up HERE.
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“The yr ws 2011, d place ws cross river, Nigeria.ws at a conference where a wise preacherman said; dnt write aptitude tests or attend interviews witout a go ahead frm God (wel, not d exact words but…smthin like dat).I saw d sense in it bt after a few mnths of slow post NYSC ride, I decided to pull Mat. 7:7 on God. U see d problem in these sort of situations is dat He’s always true 2 His words.Sure enough, me got d job on a platter (pun intended).in fact so fast was it dt some mite consider it a miracle…about 2yrs later, things have gradualy come to a point wher my entire life (and salvation)boils down to a decision to leave or stay…after careful consideration I chose d former and set a date-and twice I shifted.reason? Fear, lack of faith…Anyway, now dt I finally found d courage, I walk away in less dan 30 days, and when people ask me, wat r u going to do now? And i say oh,am going to teach nd design.dey give me dat luk-like r u nuts? And d realy christian ones say (with a low tone) it is well!-now d point in all these?…I av learnt d hard way dat if He doesnt say move, u do so at ur own peril.u see,we r like soldiers on a parade ground (thnk God for NYSC)for every soldier, every column, and every guard, ther’s a place to stand at every point in time, and there is a time to move to a specific place, in a specific manner, following a specific order-u could do a slow march wen u should be doing a quick one, u could keep marking time wen d rest of ur guard have come to a halt.u could even break rank and go for a drink-non of these would get u a court marshall or throw u out of d army, but u can bet ur life ther wuld be consequences…sure, I av gained alot in d last two years, but for all dat, I av lost even more! Do not trade a glorious dream, vision, ministry, or calling for a few hundred thousand/mnth. D likes of OD Reis would understand me more-it pays to wait on Him Isaiah 40:29-31!”
I have copied this post verbatim from my facebook wall, facebook.com/Martinson Oluwaseun, posted on July 2nd, 2014. I had in a nutshell, walked away from my job at a Commercial Bank. People said I was crazy, and I might as well have been, for though I was good at my job, I was far from happy.
So I waltz into 2015 jobless, with bills piling up. I gave one of my short stories to someone to read by the beginning of the year, a completely random action. He was just a church member at the time. Today, he’s a Mentor and Brother, who tutored me through the year, recommended me to an Ad School, helped me get funds for tuition, watched me graduate and helped me get a job as a copywriter two months ago. I am not earning so much right now, but I love what I do, and I see new, bigger doors just ahead. I have also found a most amazing friend, sister and confidant in his wife, Adenike.
I also ‘found’ a friend about this time last year. The joys and pains that this friendship has brought me, I wouldn’t trade for all the gold in Fort Knox. I said and did things that could have ruined this friendship, I was caught up in flirts from women who could have ruined it, but it survived. And now, every day I am filled with hope of what the future holds for this friendship with Anike, who by the way, is the most amazing woman I have met yet.
I am thankful for my mother, who in this thirteenth year of her widowhood, has plenty to be thankful for. I am thankful too, for each of my three siblings, all of whom have moved a step further, academically.
I am thankful for all my friends, whose weddings I have attended this year, whose babies I have carried in my hands, whose convocations I have attended.
I saw the call for this feature, barely 24 hours to the deadline and I typed this unedited draft in minutes. I am thankful for so, so many things, but above all, the grace to write.
Photo Credit: Dreamstime
