How Much Is Enough Money?

I remember when I used to believe that one hundred naira (less than a dollar) was a lot of money. I felt it was more than enough for anybody. My daily allowance in primary school was five naira. Yes, I was in primary school and like every other kid at that time, I now know better. There is a direct link between the bills you have to pay and the amount you perceive as enough money. A Pastor believing God/his congregation for a private jet will consider himself poor if he has 'just' a million dollars. If a Nigerian Senator's dream is to pay the bills of his entire lineage up to the sixth generation, his statutory earnings won't suffice. Irrespective of how fat that monthly paycheck is, once your bills exceed it, it is no longer enough.

You don't know how little you have until you start paying bills; you don't know how much you have until you calculate the total amount of bills you pay monthly or yearly. Surely, the size of the pocket shouldn't determine the size of the dream but at times I think it's best to cut your dreams temporarily according to the size of your pocket. Once you have enough money, you are covered. The rest is extra. Enough money is not a fixed amount, it's a situation-specific figure determined by dynamic exigencies. What is enough at this moment might not suffice for another moment. Every individual has the responsibility to control his/her dreams and bills.

Making money is a continuous chore. We will keep doing that till kingdom comes; hoping that we will always have 'enough money' at  those critical moments. I am not against having loads of cash in excess, in fact I love that. I want to have more than enough money but I keep reminding myself that what I really need is 'enough money'. When you know what you need, you will know how to use what you get.

Separating Issues from Personalities

Education basically informs and transforms; the latter, in my opinion, is more important. Until you have been transformed by the facts and figures you have learnt either in school or in life, you are not yet educated. Education expands our minds and reasoning. It fosters intellectual tolerance which gives us the ability to separating issues from personalities. It’s worrisome; really, that many will accuse a man who can easily separate issues from personalities, of being a hypocrite. For some Nigerians, once you speak out that you don’t like what someone has done, you are not allowed to like whatever he/she does in the future because you have been filed under Category ‘H’ (Haters).

I am not a fan of the late Goldie and to put it more appropriately, I am not impressed by her ‘talent’. But I felt sad when I heard about her death. She was just too young to die and her sudden death hurts. Some of us who shared this view were castigated and there was a lot of name-calling. A popular female Lagos-based OAP even chided those mourning Goldie’s demise for not showing the late singer enough ‘love’ while she was alive. I agree that the late Goldie and everything she represented went through hell since the moment she started releasing her musical videos. Her brand was further rubbished in the Big Brother House. Many got angry because she ‘fell our hands’ and didn’t ‘represent’. These views were expressed via social media platforms and they were really intense and very insulting. I agree that all of that happened. In a few tweets, I registered my displeasure then about her ‘exploits’ during the reality TV show.

However I mourned her demise because I can separate issues from personalities. I had an issue with her music and brand not her as a person. I agree that there were some people who, even after her demise couldn't find kind words for the late singer. Their minds had nothing but hatred and bitterness. These ones are irredeemable and perhaps, will be glad to be filed under Category 'H'. I will advise that we should all consciously learn to separate issues from personalities. You are allowed to hate her music but that gives you no right to be glad she died. 

You can hate his sense of hygiene but I bet you will always love your dear husband. You can complain about her time-wasting habit but she is still the love of your life. At age 11, Junior still pees in his sleep but I am sure you still love your son. Your boss might be the most annoying animal on planet earth but I am sure you still obey his orders. God hates sinners and one would expect that He hates us all but He doesn’t, because He can separate issues from personalities.

Get Real!

Being ‘real’ is misconstrued and over-hyped. Someone goes on rampage on twitter, abusing everything in sight without any form of mental restraint and his/her followers gather to cheer the ‘realness’ of the tweets. It seems the definition of ‘being real’ is making unguarded statements or having no form of mental restraint. These days your realness is measured by your ability to insult others (especially celebrities) and talk about sex with zero restraint. It is not uncommon to see people who say everyone is just a silly faker and they are thirsty for ‘realness’. Many try too hard and they tweet silly things, do stupid things and release shameful pictures and videos.

Realness in my personal dictionary means, being honest, outspoken and having a constant character. A good boy in church is real when he is also good when he is on twitter. A chronic womanizer shouldn’t be seen as the ‘spirit-filled’ head of ushers in church. A gentle worship leader mustn’t be something else at his/her workplace. A responsible husband and father must also be ‘responsible’ when left alone with the neighbour’s daughter. 

A real person is constant, unashamedly. Get real guys. Life is too short, don’t live it on other people’s terms.