HELLO SEPTEMBER! HOPE YOU BRING MORE GOOD TIDINGS THAN AUGUST DID?

Dear September, it feels good to wake up this morning only to find out that you are here already.

‘Already’ in the sense that we just celebrated Christmas a couple of months back and with the memories of last Christmas still lingering, you have caught up with us, once again taken us by surprise and bringing the ‘mber’ months to our faces whether we have achieved anything or not these past couple of months. Who are we to hold you back? Sure we can’t! laughs.

Nevertheless, September, before you take full ownership of the month, let me first of all thank August for listening to the Almighty God by delivering some of the blessings assigned to us and many of our loved ones. So August, thank you even as you take your leave.

Hey wait a minute August! Inspite of some few blessings delivered, we must express our grievances by letting you know that some people witnessed some form of pains, shame, losses, disappointments and more. Some people committed suicide while a few others attempted it due to one form of hardship or the other. There were cases of adults defiling and abusing children, we hope that September will visit destruction upon all the unrepentant paedophiles and many others who indulge in vices which have negative effects on innocent people. And so August, we admonish that when you return in the coming year 2017, please do better by coming with more than enough blessings that you brought this year and exclude all of the pains. Now you can leave even as the sun gets eclipsed for a while today, take all the pains with you.

Now back to you September. Interestingly you are starting off with an eclipse of the son according to forecast, so let’s assume it’s a good sign of you wiping off the pains and hardship of last month hence starting on a clean slate. We do not want cries, pains, losses, shame, disappointments, failures; you already know the rest as the list can go on and on. Just know that we DO NOT want any of the experiences on that list.

What we want in this month is celebration of new babies, birthdays, weddings, admission in schools, graduation, new jobs, promotions, house warming, new cars, visas, breakthroughs, contracts, and all the good things and occasions of life. The list is endless and you know them so just bring only the goodies so that at the end of the month, we will be able to say “hey September! You sure did a good job and so see you again next year, 2017” while smiling with hope.

September, hope you understand all I have said so far? May you be truly a good "September to remember". And on that note I say “Hey everyone, welcome to a blessed month of September! *smiles with hope*  

2016: A YEAR OF 'OVER-HYPED' GRADUATION CEREMONIES!

Before now, you simply would hear that a child has moved from crèche to kindergarten, to primary, secondary and then the university.

Apart from very low key graduation ceremonies in the schools even though some other schools rarely had, the one graduation that used to come with loads of celebrating or what a few others have termed ‘noise making’, was that of a child going to university as most people see it as a huge milestone in the growing child.

And so it’s with total amazement and awe that since the month of July, nearly every school has had one party in the name of graduation ceremonies to the other. The social media has been agog with pictures of graduants from every angle. Even the play school, crèches, kindergartens, nursery and many other names they are now called were not left out including those in primary schools.

I heard there was a new introduction to the ceremonies this year in a couple of the schools. News had it that three women had a huge fight over who would emerge the ‘best mum graduant’ or was it ‘best graduant mum’. Spare my rambling, I can’t remember but it sounded in a way as such. Anyhow you understand what I mean.

As absurd as it sounds, the fight was said to have started weeks before the day of graduation on who would emerge the graduating mum of the year. I was told it was a way to generate more money by the school as the nominees were given some sort of ‘coercive’ option to give a free will donations or token which of course we all know will not be a token in the real sense of the word as women, trust them would always try to outdo one another thereby helping the school rake in some extra ‘cool’ cash on their part. 

Unlike the years before, this time around, many parents were made to pay so much for the graduation ceremonies by the schools of their wards even though parents were still made to cook and entertain invited guests irrespective of graduating class and of course serious looking graduation gowns were won by all graduands with loads of pictures which almost broke the internet from ‘hyper-picture-posting’ were taken.

Just when I thought the razzmatazz on graduation was over with July gone, a close friend walks up to me only to inform me that he was having a graduation ceremony  and when I asked “from where” he replied “from the school of theology, my wife and I”. I wasn’t shocked but just rolled my eyes with an expression of “yeah right, here we go again with July activities playing out in August as well”. My friend just laughed and walked away.

Interestingly, after the ceremonies, I realized from the pictures on facebook that he wasn’t the only friend who graduated on that day from the school of theology as I saw a few other couples, friends of mine who also graduated on the same day.

In all of these hype, the non-academics refused being left out as my attention took another turn when I saw on social media a trending picture of a young man, a supposed ‘car washer’ striking a pose for the camera even as he held what looked like his certificate and of course he had on a complete graduation regalia. The venue was the car wash center and of course the young man was graduating. Shikena.

Before you ask what business a car washer had with wearing such regalia. Let me stop with a ‘Sssshh’ and also with the question of ‘what if the guy was gaining what many people call “freedom” from his boss and decided to have what academics graduands had, is that not a typical form of ‘changing levels’ or graduation? So why then was his picture singled out and made to trend as though it was absurd? laughs.

Simply put, if the picture was real and not some persons trying to gain attention via funny posts on social media, one would be tempted to put a take that there is nothing wrong in the young man and his attempt at celebrating being among those moving ahead in life. Life they say is what we make it.

Nevertheless, I still need to mention here that the idea of graduation has really being over-hyped this year thereby taking most of the shine off the very important graduation ceremonies due to the proliferation of ceremonies held all through the month of July and into August making families, irrespective of the ‘tough’ times, spend unnecessarily given the huge bills parents had to pay for their wards all in the name of graduation.

I strongly affirm that as parents, we need to have a rethink on how far and at what levels these hyped celebrations should get based on the classes of our wards.

Let’s save ourselves some unnecessary ‘wahala’.

I know a few people would still say things such as "it's their money let them spend" or "what has class got to do with it" and many more. It is expected to here such lines anyway.

My thoughts though!