There's No Shame In Being A Broken Man

You reach the bottom of the mountain much quicker than you reach the top. In other words, it is a pretty difficult task to climb your way up the ladder of success but dame easy to fall off and find yourself back at the bottom of that very ladder. Be silent and pray. You will need it. The truth is, not too many of us make it to see the day we would be able to make a statement. So amidst the pain and life struggles, be grateful if you eventually make it through. 

It is not how soon but how well as a very popular saying goes, but that doesn't necessarily mean you should sit your lazy ass down and always wait on luck to come to the rescue, because you just might run out of it sooner than you think and get knocked out by life. Success will never lower its standards to accommodate you. You have to raise your standards to achieve it. God provides food for every bird but not in their nest. Rise up to the challenges ahead of you and conquer your fears.

The fact you woke up today and your precious life hasn't been taken away from you is yet another great opportunity to become the man and woman you've always dreamed off. However, you must know that you have a lead role to play in this life's greatest adventure of rediscovering self and fulfillment of destiny. Do not ask God to guide your footsteps if you're not willing to move your feet. Success is sought for. You can't just sit down, you have to get up and act. Heaven they say help those who help themselves.

Although I know you may be scared because you're not sure of what awaits you at the other side of the line but may I remind you that courage is the commitment to begin without any guarantee of success. Choose to start a new reign over lack, disappointment, failure, impossibilities and watch God crown your effort with a golden platt. Every path we take leads to another choice and some choices could change everything. Every dame moment for the rest of our life hangs on it but I've got a choice I have to make and I suggest you do the same.

I know things have been pretty difficult and you might be at the point of giving up but just before you do, I want you to realize that the depth of your struggles will determine the height of your success. God allows us to go through the test to create a testimony, that's how it works. It is not over until you win my dear friend. A present inconvenience may be necessary for a long term benefit. Your current position isn't as important as the direction you're headed in. Don't look at where you've been but where you're going to.

When the pain is deep, go deeper in prayer. And though I cannot promise you to have a smooth journey but this I can, God will never abandon us in times of trouble. When storms come your way, just remember you know the master of the wind. And may I conclude by saying, "The world breaks everyone; the good, the bad, the brave and those it doesn't break, it kills. There's no shame in been a broken man, you just have to pick up the pieces and start rebuilding." 

Kay Magnate

Your Legacy Lives On..

On the 31^st day of October, 1945, a great man was born and a selfless, hardworking, ambitious and a very intelligent and resourceful individual he was because he no longer lives with us, death had to take him away from us on the 21^st day of May, 1995 when I was just a young lad trying to know the amazing man that brought me to life. I remember vividly well that very day in my dormitory when I got a call from my house captain informing me that I had a visitor waiting for me outside and with so much joy filled up in my heart, I raced out in anxiety wondering who it was and the second I approached the gate, I saw my dad’s car and immediately the distance from the gate where I was and where they were parked seemed too far and wished I had wings and could fly.

But then of course, I couldn’t and was only able to make it there with my foot as fast as I could and got my first surprise when I eventually did and realized my dad wasn’t there and it was my brother and the driver who had darkened my door step. However, I wasn’t totally disappointed as I was told they had come to take me home because my dad was launching his new house and a newly acquired automobile which of course wasn’t so much of a surprise to me because at the time I left home to school, he was actually preparing for his 50th birthday and had series of plans in motion so I thought, what a great way it was to surprise me but little did I know I was headed for a shocker.

By this time I was still ignorant of what’s really happening and hurriedly ran back into my hostel to pick up a couple things I would need, as I was going away for the weekend and dashed right back, waving my friends goodbye as we drove off. And getting home, I saw a white paper pasted on my gate with my dad’s picture smiling back at me and I wondered why anyone would decide to make such am awful looking poster of him, with crosses sticking all around and announcing the date of his birth to the entire world. You know, at the time, I didn’t really understand what obituary meant, I thought it was just my dad as usual in a hot romance with one of his big vocabulary. I mean, my dad could speak well and words literally took turns at his feet.

Well, let me get back to my story before I get distracted because over and over I had wished he willed them over to me with a couple textbooks to brush myself up with and by now I’ll probably have been a professor of English language and those same words taking turns at my feet, only that this time, I would have them rocking Adidas because I love to buy myself some great shoes. Anyway, I stepped out of the car and walked right in and saw my mum rocking some black attire and was amazed at when she became a model because my mum hasn’t really been a fan of the color black but when I looked at her closely, I realized she had been crying, as she had a swollen face and so I thought I concluded too soon and on the contrary, she had become an actor and had met them shooting a movie scene but looked around and there were no cameras beeping and for the first time I pondered for a bit, puzzling what was really happening and it was then I was told my dad was gone and to be seen no  more.

You know, it’s been 22 years but still fresh in my memory is the sound of my mother’s voice as she broke the unpleasant news to me. I cried my heart out and for days I couldn’t come in terms with the fact that my hero was gone and I was never going to see him again and that left a permanent hole in my heart and even till this day, I still feel a void in me and only hope that the ink pouring out from my pen as I write this piece fills it out and these tears wetting my pages comforts me. Joshua Akintunde Falaiye, you were a great man alive and yet a great man in death. It’s true what they say that the dead still lives because I carry you along with me everywhere I go. You were the father of five amazing children who you loved so much and never hesitated to trash their asses whenever the boundary was crossed. And because I was the naughty type, your cane could make its way to my room even in the dark.

Daddy you know, for years I lived with hatred and anger because it’s been pretty tough since you left. Your family practically abandoned us because mum refused to marry your brother and at some point in my life, I decided to denounce that name but then I thought about it again because going ahead to do that will be me denouncing you and denying myself of my blessings and everything you lived for. Besides, it’s possible to disown the name but I can’t disown the blood flowing in me, so I decided to keep it anyway and hope they live to regret every tear I cried growing up in this lonely and wicked world. I miss you so much and I know you’re in heaven smiling down at the man your little boy is becoming and be sure you didn’t die for nothing because through me your legacy lives on.

And no doubt daddy, your son has been a very naughty child, I smoked, drank, womanized and reaped your wife off her hard earned money to hit the clubs and pop some champagne but today I know better and thankful to our creator for calling me back to order and helping me to retrace back my steps before I ruined myself. Today I’m living right but still waiting for that big break and although I might still be single but be rest assured that someday I would find that special woman to spend the rest of my life with and together we would have a son that would be named after you.

Apparently, God has been very faithful, your other sons are married and doing well and so are your daughters and beautiful wife. She didn’t remarry by the way but stayed married to making sure that we are all succeed and may the good Lord keep her alive to be able to enjoy the fruit of her labor because she’s been great and remains the best mum in the world and wouldn’t trade her for anything in the world. Thank you for all the times I was stranded and you came to my rescue even though at the time I didn’t know it was you but you never really left, did you. Like so many  people, I didn’t use to believe in life after death but now I know for a fact that the spirit of the dead are here with us and their memory lives on.

                                     (In Loving Memory Of Joshua Akintunde Falaiye)

                                               

                                                                Kay Magnate

If I Could.. (Special Dedication)

If I could, I will be optimistically optimistic that I should, and guess this piece would have had a better and more reassuring title like ‘heaven is good’. Life is painted in black and white and if you are not careful and vigilant enough, it just might offer you a couple more stripes. I’ve seen, I’ve heard and awakened it and above all, I’m pregnant with an ever burning desire to live it but the day to day hustle and bustle got me stuck in between doing right and wrong.

Who is to blame for all these misfortune? God created the world so beautifully and however went on to create man in His own image but we chose to eat the forbidden apple, leaving the shawarma to burn. Now, there’s nothing ‘Eden’ about our gardens anymore, what we have are just flowers surrounding our drive way with not even a single fruit to pluck. So I ask again, who let the dame snake in?

Well, I guess we should have been more conscious of the creepy creeping creature and gather up some boiled eggs and throw them all over the place, hoping it chokes to death. And Eve they blame for all the infelicity but I say Adam must have already been thinking of owning a surname as ‘Sandler’ and that’s why he decided to eat the dame fruit.  But then, I guess it’s a little too late for regrets and pointing accusing fingers because the remaining four actually points back at us so why don’t we stand up to do something to make a difference individually to the life of the man next door.

As a matter of fact, I’m really baffled by a couple of stuffs and only hope someone out there might have the right answers. You know, we all ate the fruit and instantly gained our sight and became wise so why can’t some solve a simple arithmetic. And also on the other hand, we were made to understand that Adam and Eve knew they were naked and rushed to cover themselves up with some leaves immediately they ate the fruit so why do we still find some ladies out there walking about the streets naked all in the name of a fashion trend, I guess they must have eaten the leaves and not the apple itself.

Crazy right, that’s what I thought, but then I wouldn’t allow that derail me as I’ve got my eyes locked on the head of the nail and with these words I’ll be hammering into us the essence of today’s inspiration and hope I reach out to a soul or two.  And with that said, allow me to quickly make a wish list in my head and hope with that I’m able to relate to you all some of my concerns and maybe they just might become yours too and together we can make a change and make the world a better place to live.

You know, I hate to slap the taste out of anyone’s mouth but if I could, I would have the president of this beloved country of mine get back in his uniform and rule again as a military leader, reintroducing the ‘War Against Indiscipline” that was first introduced in 1984 and have those so called untouchables locked behind bars and their stupid legacies can rot in hell for all I care. They are nothing but a total disgrace to this country and everything we stand for. People fight to cast in their vote so that they and their children can have a better life but it’s their private jets that are landing and their containers taking turns at the sea pot and yet they expect us to keep our mouth shut.

Well, I don’t know about you but my voice must be heard because it hurts to see an elderly man who must have served the country all those long years in service, still mounting the gates at our local stores and neighborhoods, when provisions should have been made to enrich them for the rest of their lives. Our mothers doing petty jobs just to survive and there we are cruising Lincolns and Bentleys, cursing our heritage. It’s an unforgivable abomination to suffer so much for a child who grows up to forget us and I pray that wouldn’t be our portion. If I could, I would have our fathers and mothers take trips to the Bahamas and we all can return back to the farm to cultivate a better tomorrow. If I could, I would stop piracy so that our hard working musicians, actors and film makers can begin to enjoy the fruit of their labor and royalties payed to them for their outstanding work.

Nigeria is fast taking on the world, what are you doing to contribute your own quota? Are you involved in some internet scam and destroying the image of this glorious country? Well, it takes only a while for time to catch up with you and when it does, you’re sure to vomit every pounds and dollars you reaped a fellow human off or you can as well right now just follow my lead and choose to stay clean. We’ve all made some wrong choices at some point in our lives but how long do we intend to keep acting ignorant when we know the truth. My brothers and sisters, if I could, I would bring back our girls and bring back the glorious days when the world was afraid to get toe to toe with our senior national football team, what about you?

Kay Magnate

The College Dropout

Say Cheese, his sister said, joy evident in her voice as the camera clicked away. Kayode was ecstatic, he still had a problem believing it. He had to be dreaming and if he was, he did not want to be awaken. “I have graduated”, he whispered, savouring the words. It rang true and it felt wonderful. He observed his family and friends rejoicing around him with barely concealed joy. Left to him, an intimate celebration with family and a few friends was enough but of course, his family refuted the idea.

He couldn’t fault them though, they were all just so glad for him, but then, who wouldn’t? The story of his life was in summary, a miracle. Who would have thought that the college dropout would amount to anything? Although, it would seem that he hasn’t achieved anything, he felt like he could capture the world and he could even see himself doing just that. If not for him, then for his mother, who at that moment, was looking at him with so much pride. That look always made his world feel alright.

He would never forget the look she gave him about seven years ago when he told her he had dropped out of school. It was full of disappointment and hurt. He promised himself that expression would never be directed at him again. He wanted to make her happy always, he figured he owes her that much. He didn’t think one could be in love with his mother because that’s how he felt about her. Saying he loves her sounds too superficial to describe the way he appreciates her.

She is his strength and he knows his siblings feel the same way about her. How many women recovered so boldly and remained unmarried for the sake of their kids after losing their husband at their prime? Kayode sometimes felt she did not grieve enough for her lost love because she wanted to stay strong for them. She became both parents to them without so much fuss and whatever each of them became, they attributed to her unwavering believe in them.

 Kayode was in junior secondary school when he lost his father and although he would never admit it to anyone, he lost all motivation to succeed. His father had always been his driving force, he did well in school because he wanted his father’s approval. After his father’s demise however, Kayode lost his morale to succeed at something. He figured, “what’s the point?” Unfortunately for him, by the time he realised he was travelling on a dead end, it was too late.

He was already in college studying a course he had absolutely no passion for, moving with the wrong friends and failing woefully. Now that he thinks about it, his admission into the university was a mystery and the situation was too overwhelming for him to do anything but be bad at it. Frequent visit with his faculty examination officer over his grades overstretched him and eventually he gave up.

The first person Kayode opened up to was his immediate younger sister, Sade and for some reason, she understood. But then, he didn’t know why he was surprise, she always seemed to understand him. It was probably because she was closer to him than his elder brother and youngest sister. Sade was the one with him when he finally told his mother and from her reaction that day, Kayode expected nothing less than a disownment. Surprisingly, after a few days of walking on eggshells around the house, she summoned him.

He cannot say exactly what he was hoping to hear from her but the last thing he expected her to say was that she loved him and she believed he could put the past behind him and work on making a future for himself. Kayode couldn’t possibly find the words to explain how he felt that day, all he knew was that was the day he decided the world will hear of him. His mother probably doesn’t know it but those words pushed him to where he is today.

Kayode smiled at the memories as the noise of jubilation geared him back to reality. He knew he still had a long way to go, this is just a stepping stone but he couldn’t help but feel fulfilled. He no longer felt like a disappointment but a success.

The future is uncertain but why does it look brighter? Why did it seem like the world was waiting for him to come contribute his quota? Why does it seem like the sky was beckoning on him to soar?

He did not have the answers to these questions but one thing was clear, He was going to leave his footprints on the sand of time. The world is waiting for the solution to a problem and the college dropout would supply it.

(Inspired By A True Life Story)

Kay Magnate

Stay Motivated.... Be Positive !

No matter what setbacks you may encounter, continually stay motivated to the best of your ability. Don't back away from what's right because it's hard. My father use to say plant your feet and stand firm, the only question's where to put your feet, and l admonish we allow our dreams, our purpose and the ever burning desire in us that can't seem to stay still until its goals are achieved to help find that balance.

Without hard work, nothing grows but weeds, so make yourself some comfort out of your best advice. Real power comes not from hate but from truth and it's time you empty that heart of grief and fill it with courage. Life has no remote, get up and change it yourself. The best I can do is show you the path to the stream but I can't force you to fetch water. And what good is it when I put my hands to work and you disregard everything the pen says?.

My goal is to make you better, that's my reward. Until every man is safe, we are all slaves. And if I may ask, what's your contribution to the emancipation of mental slavery?. History prefers legends to men, it prefers nobility to brutality, soaring speeches to quiet deeds. However, what would you be remembered for when history comes calling?.

Never try to spoil someone's life with a lie when yours can be ruined with the truth. Don't let your demons take you to hell, introduce them to heaven. Wheel the unborn stone and end the reign of darkness before it begins. You can reach out to someone today and help paint a new meaning to the life they live rather than those negative energy you carry around.

The fear of offending is stronger than the fear of pain, but they always come willing. There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man, true nobility is being superior to your former self. Kind words can be simple and easy to speak but their echoes are truly endless. Why not associate your life with a little more "Positives", there's more reward in making people smile than making them cry.

Life is beautiful, so live each day appreciating the moment being the best you can. Remember you were created to fulfil God's purpose for humanity and when you choose to abandon your duties, you're only calling for a replacement. And if you feel you're so important, why not stick your finger into a bucket of water, pull it out and see how fast that hole fills up. Everyone is replaceable, including me.

You may have lost the chance to determine how you will start but you still have the chance to determine how the end would be. You may have made a wrong turn once or twice, dug your way out of blood and fire, taken some bad decisions but that's alright, now it's time to take life by the horn and do what's right. Change is the law of life and those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future. Let go of the past and embrace the future, the future is now and it begins with you.

Kay Magnate

Our Scars Remind Us The Past Is Real

You've been circling this theme for some time now, it's time for you to stop playing the victim and start taking an active role in your own happiness. Our scars remind us that the past is real and rather than allowing ourselves to keep dwelling in it, let those scars constantly remind us of the pain, which is okay, but only if we are ready to forgive that past and make it the source from which we generate our strength or else all that we've been through would only be a waste of time.

We all have our stories, there's no one walking through the surface of the earth without a gun to the neck at some point and wished the trigger was pulled. Everyday we are caught up with circumstances that are out of our control and may have given up a couple of times but that's the beauty of life. Whatever we go through in life only prepares us for the next stage. The creator is in the business of building lieutenants and not cadets that often give up at the first sight of a real life situation. So therefore, if you ever want to fulfill your destiny, you better be ready to sting the bee, roar at the lion and bite the dog, heaven celebrates warriors and legends, not quitters.

Our scars I repeat reminds us that the past is real, a past that prepares us for the future. The truth is, without a past, there can never be a future and most people often throw the most essential part of their journey away and loose track by doing so. I mean, how can you know where you're going when you don't know where you're coming from? It breaks my heart when people develop so much anger towards their past and curse the people that hurt them and circumstances that got them crawling with their back against the wall because those people and circumstances you despise so much are actually the hammers, chisels and charcoals banked at the mold ready to receive the true metal that the goldsmith; your creator uses to mold you into the gold you were created to be.

"Rome was not built in a day" and "A journey of a thousand miles started with one", these are regular quotes that your life should be accustomed to. Your creator never rushes his mission, you should take a quick stare into the life of the acting sensation well known to us as "James Bond" and see how critically he looks at things and carefully analyzing and planning them before setting his plans in motion, that should give you a clue of how God operates. You're a script in his hands and until a scene is well interpreted by the character in play, which happens to be you ofcourse and the purpose for which it was created has been fulfilled, the camera will not be rolled for the next scene.

Well now I guess you know why some people often spend more time struggling through a particular stage of their life. No one is holding you captive, you're the one preventing yourself from graduating to the next stage because you've refused to pay attention to what God really expects of you at that present situation of your life. We often complicate issues for ourselves when a single lesson is all that was meant to be taken and would have loved to make references to some of these things but then ofcourse that will be me depriving you of a self criticism which I say are the best critics that should make our headlines, so I choose to leave you to yourself and let your conscience do the trick.

What are those things you've been through that constantly serves as a force pulling you back each time you try to make a move forward? What set of people broke your heart and made you loose your self confidence and respect for others? Well, I have a good news for you today even though at some point they seemed like enemies of your destiny but they were actually helping you to get to your destination in time. So rather than hating and cutting them off your life circuit, embrace the past and set the future in motion. There's never a mistake with God and everything happens for a reason, even your loved ones that died may have given up the ghost so that you may live. Don't regret who you are and what you've been through, treasure those times because at the end they define who we are.

Kay Magnate

Take It...

Not everything you want is given, you'll have to take it if you really want it. Don't be like a spoilt baby crying over his mother's breast forgetting it initially belong to the father. Life is not a bed of roses, you have to fight for what you want. If it came easy, Jesus Christ wouldn't have to take that long walk to the cross and all those bruises so that you and I may live free. We want it all; the extravagant, the pretty women, the good life, we all want to be rich and famous, but then, what are we doing about it?.

If wishes were horses, men would ride. Don't be a dreamer, be the man living that dream. Wake up everyday with a "To do list" and not a "Wish list". Wake up dreaming of how wonderful it was to purchase that automobile and not how you would love to drive it. Be a Go-getter, you can and you will. Just pull out a piece of paper and a writing board and draw out a new plan. It's never too late to start afresh, it's better late than never. The truth is, if you haven't fallen, then you haven't even started. So now that you have, it's time to pick yourself up and get those pretty laced out Nike shoes and hit the track.

Forget about your friends and those ahead of you, you're not in competition with anyone but YOURSELF. And the only one that can truly stop you is YOU. Forget those in the dark ragging war against your destiny, you can retaliate by not giving up. It's not over till you win, success is the only revenge worth celebrating. Stop praying for your enemies to die but ask for an extra fifteen years for them so they can eat the bushes while you're flowering your garden and watching the sunset. If you want to get somewhere, if you want to be somebody, you have to get up and pay attention.

As kids, we all had set goals and aspirations even though at some point we may have lost touch with what we really hoped our future will be due to the circumstances life threw at us but I want you to know those dreams are still achievable. Like my father will say, when there's life, there's hope so don't ever give up on yourself because your creator never will. It's time to dust yourself up and get fired up in time for the ride ahead. Your engine has been off the road for too long and it's time it gets lubricated and serviced back to action. You can no longer make excuses, you just have to reach out and grab that which belongs to you.

A lion never waits for his food to be killed and fed to him, he goes all out to take it. You just have to be in charge and dictate the pace henceforth. It is your life and so your rules, don't let nothing or anyone order you around. What do you see when you look into the mirror? Well, I don't know about you but when I look into the mirror, I see an individual that has been greatly cheated and pushed around for too long and it's time to recover all that which was lost. I was blind but now I see and this time am not waiting for anything to be handed over to me, I'm going all out to take it. Everyday they say is for the thief and one day is for the owner, well I guess today is that day and now is the time, so let's make it worth the while.

Kay Magnate