I heard the voice of my little sister saying "big brother, big brother, daddy is calling you” be fast. I dropped my call and rushed to the parlor and my dad asked me to look at the television.

Immediately I looked at it, I recognized the speaker; A very respected and lovable person, the principal of the secondary school I graduated from, Mr. SP Simon. Jatutu, the former principal of Government Senior Science School, Jalingo.

I took a closer look at the screen and I could see some of my classmates, I could recognize Nuruden Inuwa and a few others. It was the 10th anniversary of my classmates, the class of 2011, that is from 2011-2021. Bothered by my being unaware of the event I got more bothered when I said “How time flies”.

It's 10 years since I graduated from secondary school yet, I'm yet to be a graduate, I am only a 300L student, I thought of how the COVID19 pandemic ASUU strike has taken a toll on our academic session, thereby prolonging it.

It's 10 years since I graduated, I wrote 5 JAMB, I did remedial, I did diploma and toward the end of it, I missed an exam that almost cost my sanity. It's for 10 years! It's for 10 years.

“This wasn't my plan, according to how I planned my life, by now I should have had my 2 degrees, a masters degree and set for the third one. But I'm yet to be a graduate”. I thought to myself.

While I was still in my thoughts, immediately I lost my happiness. The very happy I came into the new year with, the happiness I planned to end the year with. And I said to myself “Affos, its 10 years:

In the last 10 years, several of my classmates died
In the last 10 years, some of my mates got admission but couldn't graduate - I thought of my good friend, Dorcas, who had an accident after her first semester in university.
In the last 10 years, some of my mates couldn't even secure an admission, but I am in 300 Level & a diploma.
In the last 10 years, I wasn't deformed.

I thought of so many positive things and immediately my countenance changed.

Funny enough I was bothering about something I can't even change; I can't undo the mistakes and how things happened but I'm faced with the reality of life; to learn from the past, enjoy the present to have a better and desired future.

Maybe yours is more than 10 years, probably you are a single father or mother and the stigmatization that comes with it is much. Probably you are of age and yet to get a spouse and the thought of your plight keeps weighing you down, yours might not even be listed.

Does it matter what you have lost, does it matter what life has taken from you? The good thing is you are alive which by implication means, though you can't undo the mistakes you have made but you can learn from them to have a more secure and desired future. Not everyone gets it at the trial, even the president tried severally before he emerged the president and after he emerged winner, he won again.

A living Dog is better than a dead Lion because a living dog can still bark but a dead lion will be fed on even by the least of all creatures.

I decided to pen this down, hoping it will motivate someone.

Musa Affos (Rhapsodi) Is a blogger, & Social Media Activist.

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