Writing Hours

👄 Winter’s taken to the skies A cotton wooled field With wells of blue Floating cotton on Zebra horizons Striped white and azure There’s blankets of snow From memory’s view We don’t  complain much From underneath quilts about grey sidewalks From next to heath Sipping hot drinks, Unwrapping presents For it’s Christmas The season’s advent.

Shame, humiliation and embarrassment will not kill you if you’re tough enough. Photo from Global African presence. (Facebook group)

Tales  🏠   A few years ago, my family and I went to the doctor’s surgery to see a nurse. Two of us were obese, two of us were alright and the rest were underweight. We    shopped about three times a week, cooked in one pot, every one ate the same thing and a lot of food got thrown away. Now we do a weekly food haul and everyone is better. I also discovered that one of would eat cereal morning, afternoon and evening if no one said anything to him. Some of us like coconut porridge for breakfast and someone prefers soft boiled eggs. Some of us don’t eat breakfast but brunch it on the way out to work. There’s a right way to do things. You might not have heard it here first.  😁

The Rain. It rains for half the year in Africa and doesn’t for the other half. When it rains, it pours and when it doesn’t rain, dew is hard to find.  It was an early July morning in Abakaliki, one of those weeks in which the river Ebonyi burst its banks and little baby tilapia swam alongside you in concrete roadsides of clear water, accompanying you to your Aec lectures. Rows of market women leave their wares in the rain and seek shelter, appearing only when you approach with money. Rows of ice fish and okra sitting in the rain.  It’s a fun day but only in retrospect because:  A few fathers are on involuntary neighbourhood patrol. With heaven and earth joined as one heavy grey sky filled with relentless rain, they haven’t left for work yet. They corner a callous fellow in the streets,  Fathers : (in unison) what did we just hear? What happened?  Callous fellow: (with great feeling) it’s her fault, she has no respect for me!  Fathers; you kno...

👁 The muse says you cannot mix up points of views in narratives like your forefathers used to do. For instance, if a mother tells her daughter, “go and do your laundry!” whilst thinking, children nowadays are so lazy, in my days, we had to travel down to Ngene with the laundry and beat it on a stone then bring it and water home. All she has to do is pile it in the machine, add Ariel gel and press a button!  You can also write that the daughter replied, “I’m coming mum, I need to finish this project and email it to my teacher by tomorrow or I don’t get the grades!” and continued listening to I made it (cash money heroes) by Kevin Rudolf in front of her computer.  But you cannot write that she’s thinking, this mum self, she too dey send, it’s always, do this, do that with her, she even thinks that nursery school children should do introduction to calculus just to get them thinking about the next level. Which next level? Some of them still wet the bed!  You h...

👨‍🍳 One of my earliest memories and moments of inspiration was me jumping up and down next to our cooker at home. My mum was making home made chips and I wanted to see what was going on up there but was too small to see the top of a three feet cooker. Later in Nigeria, families cooked soup on a four centimetre high tripod so my interest continued and I could see everything which is how I know my mum must have been horrified to see me jumping up and down next to a hot pan of oil. So I stand in my early morning kitchen wondering where my son learned to want to cook a caramel latte and pasta for breakfast.  👨‍🍳  

👁 I had a neighbour who always offered us ripe banana on Fridays. I thought it was a little weird. She explained that she went to market on Fridays and when it went well, she gave me freebies because we were neighbours, we’re almost the same age and both had twins. So I told her that we have grown to love her generosity and her banana so if she delivered a kilo to my house on Saturday mornings each week, we will pay her for it. The next Saturday morning, my front yard was yellow and green with assorted banana    like the banana aisle of a market . I called my friend and asked her what she learned from my story.    She replied that she regrets nothing, that if you cannot share bargains, life’s lessons and good news with your neighbours and friends, what can you share? My boss made us purchase two kilograms this morning even though there were seemingly riper and fresher ware on our front step. So what did you learn from all this?  Keep walking  🚶🏾...

Besides the cave drawings discovered in almost every continent on Earth, the first forms of writing were Egyptian hieroglyphics from ancient Egypt.  Nsibidi which dates back to 2000BC. The history book was written by Herodotus. A Greek Author around 5bc, The Bible was written between 1446-1406bc. The Dead Sea scrolls date from the last three centuries BCE to the first century CE.  Egyptian hieroglyphic inscriptions on ancient caves and pyramids were used as early as 3000BC. Fiction -The epic of Gilgamesh 2000bc. The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith was written in 1776.  And this has been a small original history of the written word   📜

👁 CATS You are a Jaguar but I told them you’re a cat My little furry ball, sitting on my window pane.  Tiny and ginger, blending like chameleon  Soft and cuddly in one fluid movement. Your beauty is in your size, Your baby fur, your delicate bones,  Your trust shown through innocent vulnerable eyes,  Young, soft voice, cute, tiny paws.  I fear for you, seeing your little jaw And can’t wait for time to reveal your  Sleek and agile future,  Powerful shoulders, solid fore limbs. But then I’m reminded  Of your father’s cruel snarl, His dark, narrowed eyes, His sharp, yellow fangs And the scars on my arm.  👄 A woman who refuses to leave an abusive relationship gives birth to a son and wonders what she’s doing with her life. 👄

👁 BEN Since you’ve been gone, the heating’s gone cold Our memories together blurred and old The dull chill within me; to thaw has refused I dusted the pictures and polished your shoes  I played your music, your favourite tunes Stared at your toothbrush, kissed your pillow  Hugged your towel with it’s picture of a Swallow  I was lonely, the Winter was cold, Our favourite place, just down the road  A colour you liked, I dressed in blue, walked in to the wine bar, sat on a stool,  A man on a chair sighted me and drooled, edged up to me, bent his pillar- like form And touched my hair, whispered in my ear “You’re beautiful.” He said,    to my delight, “Mon cherie, venir, I’ll show you all night,” I still missed your voice, your throbbing throat,  Your beautiful skin, I went with him,  I darted a look at those smouldering eyes Had red wine and crepes till stars rose nigh. Still smothered in feelings, I d...

An ageless dance  Spinning round and round  I strut my stuff Spreading summer, cheer and manna In the dark ballroom  To which I ‘m the light My timeless dance My rippling skirts Entrances all present  And keeps them persistent  My face sought after, by my nine partners  One catches my eye I nurture him by And true to my word I never get bored Ages crust like baked potatoes  Time peels like onion skin Creatures sink into dust like worms I’ve caught his eye He remains nigh All transfixed and waiting  For my veil to rise For his sake I pray otherwise.  A poem about the solar system The relationship between Earth and sun.🌞 enjoy! 

Borrowed from Pinterest. It’s Good Friday. 👁👄🏠

👨‍🍳 One of my earliest memories and moments of inspiration was me jumping up and down next to our cooker at home. My mum was making home made chips and I wanted to see what was going on up there but was too small to see the top of a three feet cooker. Later in Nigeria, grandmother cooked soup on a four centimetre high tripod so my interest continued and I could see everything which is how I know my mum must have been horrified to see me jumping up and down next to a hot pan of oil. So I stand in my early morning kitchen today wondering where my son learned to want to cook a caramel latte and pasta for breakfast.  👨‍🍳  

For the children coming of age right now. I know you’re feeling a lot of pressure    but that’s how it’s meant to be. Don’t run away. Just take a break from it sometimes, play video games and share chicken wings with friends. Sleep. It’s a good thing. Before you can successfully run a race, you have to train for it and the GCSE’s are no different. And I know you want to ditch your school uniforms because it feels like five years has been forever but we’re asking you to wait a little longer. If your sixth form school is as good as this secondary school that is teaching you what it means to feel pressure. Don’t run. Go there, a little more and you’ll be almost done.  ✅

Dear diary,  Some people don’t seem to understand that prayer is communicating. and that they should meditate and listen out for an answer. Mainly because His answer could be that you asked the wrong question or that you need work done in your personal life before you can receive that or why would you need a third red dress when you already have two. What about yellow and blue? don’t go home to wait for a red dress that is not coming. 😍

Diary, did you know that growing up with people who criticize you for feeling your feelings when they treat you awfully then turn around to criticize you again for noticing that they treated you awfully, calling you overly sensitive and idle could make you  unknowingly transfer your old habits of keeping your feelings to yourself to your children. Happy Mother's day and may God give us the grace to be better parents. Chrysanthemums because they kinda rhyme with mum. Happy April, time to pause marching and smell the flowers.

Did you know that the supermarkets peel and cube extra mangoes then flash freeze them for smoothies later in the year which is why this can be called lunch weeks after mango season. Yum, it tastes like mango ice cream but it's basically mango. 

Eden. A Mountain blocked the Tornado It is moved, we’re cold, thin Confused, goose-bumped in Eyes watering to brims How do we get back? Our natural shield Your eves deep with valleys rich The streams that sprung from rocky feet, All high and steep The Tree in which we nest'd and lived In shading leaves The storm that raged, The branches that swayed then blocked the rays The river that swelled and took the flood You burst your banks that we might stay Shielding us from harm’s way? Now that you’ve left We need cotton vests Sheepskin boots from the west  Food, fuel, fiscal policies Exchange rates, indifference curves and monetary policies, Sketched pilot schemes to pick what’s best. Would we have got it right? Or you’d looked at us in delight! Affection works both ways We learn this at the end of our day As we sink weary knees to offer you praise The night curtains barely shielding our faze We look at your life from a somewhat...

👁 The little things. If you had breathing problems as a child, you’ll understand how horrible they are and if you didn’t, you’re blessed.  When I was younger, I found out ginger was a natural cough remedy so I gave my baby ginger biscuits and cookies to lick or suck on as a baby. She’s in her twenties now and I just realised she never developed any of those scary loud, echoing coughs that make everyone in the hall turn around and look at you and judge you. Isn’t God great!  

This is us hoping that January has helped you set the pace for the rest of your year. God willing and if we’re alive,  Career wise and  Financially and that your bills are no longer out of control and you say your prayer and do your squats the minute you get out of bed, more stairs and less elevators, more saving and less spending, more lemon water and less fizz. More rest and less worry. Let the strongest, most diligent part of you take the lead in your life if you haven’t yet.  🎉 💥 💥

Happy New Year again my people, We would normally talk about January with all the sales around but no extra finances to sponsor that new year retail therapy dash but we won't. we will focus on post Christmas euphoria , how good the turkey tasted and less stressed topics. It appears New Year resolutions don’t work for everyone so as the arguments rage on, we’re going to talk about habits and harmful sayings. I hurt one hand a while ago and while I cradled it close against my body as it healed. The other hand had to do just about everything. Do you know how frustrating it is to wash the injured hand and not have it wash you back when it’s one of its sole responsibilities? You have to go unwashed or get help from other people’s hands. Now, the right attitude is to not do too much so you don’t tire it out or you’ll be screwed after all you’re basically one handed. That meant my house looking more somehow than I wanted it to but just as undesirable behaviour has to be manage...

It’s January again. Time for the best parts in life again. Work, Multitasking and... lists. The best app for list management is the notepad app on on the App Store. It’s a little white notebook icon with a yellow heading. My list for today 16/1/19 -Daughter needs clothes, take her to the shops with you. -Son needs to steam his hair and needs a dress pant and new jeans. ✅ -Renew passport (which means new photographs! 🤗 ) ✅ -Buy bread. ✅ -Collect items to create a winter spritz for family hair. -Shop around for clothes -update your blog. ✅ -add something to your reading list for 2019. -Find a tailor. Ticking them off ensured no chores are left undone and prohibits procrastination. It also encourages the laid back, the procrastinators and evening people to behave especially when it’s dinner time and there’s a few items left unticked. There are tips for spritzes at https://youtu.be/DhMxvn8aYos or A happy, jubilant and effect...

Tales from the muse  👁  Lionhearted. Hands up if you ever went past the humble town of Obiagu in Enugu and thought Lionheart. Alright then. Well, if the dialogue is finally changing from  “Don’t slouch, sit down and shut up!” And “sit like a woman!” To “She’s too tiny. Are you sure you’re feeding her?” “The biggest legacy I’m leaving for posterity is you, my daughter.” then I’m on board. The casting, the aerial view, the fro and her stylish simple wardrobe too. Gene, you have done it and we couldn’t be prouder. You should be lionhearted too.  😔 Show more reactions