Better Societies

 FIFTY YEARS OF LOVE AND MORE! Fifty years of love and more! Just like yesterday; Today, you are 50 in this journey! But that is not the end; We see you waxing stronger! Fifty years of love and more! Many times of learning patience; Putting up with each other’s frailties! Fifty years of parenting; Many years of thanksgiving! Fifty years of love and more! Your days never begun with boom; There were moments of gloom! Your days were of imperfections; Yet, you grew into such perfections! Fifty years of love and more! From existing all by yourselves; You grew in numbered children! You begot children and offspring; Lo! You have become grandparents! Fifty years of love and more! You began all alone as a couple; Today, your blessings are unnumbered! You may not have them in material terms; Yours are gifts of people and relationships! Fifty years of love and more! Yours are years of service to God; Serving humanity selflessly! Yours are of sojourning and ministering; Years of learning and i...

 NIGERIA, THEY HELL THEE! Nigeria, they hell thee! Once prospective and successful; Now merely destructive and stressful! Once a giant to be reckoned with; Now living and glorying in the past! Nigeria, they hell thee! The land that gave Africa hope; But now hopeless as an egg with a toddler! The land, blessed with riches and wealth; Scarcity, hunger and strikes, are our trends! Nigeria, they hell thee! Blessed with natural resources; Struggling to make developmental strides! A land where food used to be in abundance; To afford garri now is to live in affluence! Nigeria, they hell thee! A land where the naira competed with the dollar; But now a sack of it cannot afford a dollar! A land of economic strength and boom; But now the capital of the world recession! Nigeria, they hell thee! Our fatherland as we sang in the recent past; Our motherland we have to sing today! A land where change of Anthem is possible; But the change of character is impossible! Nigeria, we hell thee! Your troo...

 WHEN I BREATHE MY LAST!  When I Breathe My Last! I shall be alone in the journey; With no one accompanying me. I shall travel and never return; We may only meet in the Great Beyond. Only if you make it there with me! When I Breathe My Last! I shall travel and leave you in marvel; You will wonder if we will ever meet again! No one can stop me on the voyage; We might only journey here together. Only if you behold what I see in the Land! When I Breathe My Last! My wife will look for me; She will call me out the way she has so christened. Mine! Mine! Mine or Baby; But reality will dawn on her. Only if she beholds where I am going! When I Breathe My Last! Posterity--JokNom--JenA̱gwaza; Will only remember that they used to have a "daddy." There may be no one supporting them; That is when they will muse and miss me. Only if they know that this life is transient! When I Breathe My Last! My workplace may only mourn for a day or two; And someone will assume my responsibilities! The Ch...

 WIDOWHOOD AND CHILDLESSNESS by Zwandien Bobai Nnyeni became a widow shortly after her sons, Da‌̱wali and Zwaa‌̱khu got married to Ndi and Kuvwuon as their young wives. Di‌̱dam, her husband had been bedridden for years before his eventual demise with what appeared to be a stroke. While he was in the condition, he suffered amnesia, too. He left the wife, Nnyeni and the young couples to fend and cater for themselves! Theirs was a context in which women did not work and young men like Da‌̱wali and Zwaa‌̱khu were not trusted with any responsibility since it was reasoned that they could not deliver. This family was left in a quagmire. In such unbearable condition, the sons left to continue the lineage of Di‌̱dam also died after just 18 months. They had gone to farm on that fateful day to harvest sweet potatoes across the stream known as A‌̱khaak which served as the boundary between A‌̱taknjei, their village and A‌̱shonga‌̱shyui, their mother’s ancestral village. They did not know it had...

ON THE POPULAR "REST IN PEACE" (RIP) PRAYER: CAUTION FROM PROF B.A. SARMA Prof B.A. Sarma in an Alumni platform observed that anytime there are announcements about the passing of alumni members, many people respond with "Rest in Peace." He responds accordingly in the paragraph below, thus: "'May his gentle soul rest with the Lord Almighty' has become a popular prayer for the dead. But this is Catholic and Muslim tradition who pray for the dead. Surprisingly, it has now gained ground even among ECWA elites and theologians! From an evangelical perspective, no prayer or wish could alter the fate of anyone who died. From our evangelical heritage, we praise the Lord because our loved one is now resting with the Lord until we meet to part no more!" Not long after he asserted the views above, members continued to use the prayer. So, Prof Sarma corroborates further that "We are back to this again. Grammatically, 'may his soul rest with the Lord...

 CHRISTMAS: A SEASON OF “LOVE?” Traditionally, apart from Christmas widely regarded as a day on which the birth of Jesus Christ is celebrated, it is a day of public display of merriment! This is indicative of a season in which love is shown abundantly? My cursory look at many Facebook users’ walls proves this reality beyond doubt. Today, in my opinion, sees many more people active on social media, especially this one (Facebook) than most of the previous days, weeks and months of the year. And I am not sure we would have another day better. At the end of all the things people mentioned today on their Facebook walls, there are always one or two of the following conclusions: “Jesus is the Reason for the Season,” “It is a season of love,” “Merry Christmas,” “Happy Christmas,” “Enjoy the Yuletide,” “It’s Jesus’ Birthday,” “Happy Birthday Boy-Jesus,” and many more.  Many messages today centre around the birth of Christ, the Saviour of mankind and the world. It is true that His birth...