Black 14th

The events of the weekend was really emotionally draining for me. Yes, I am aware that bad things happen, that there are evil people in the world, but I am still unable to wrap my head around the senselessness of what happened in Newtown Connecticut on Friday. Beautiful, innocent children whose only care in the world was to eat, sleep and play and wonder at what Santa was going to bring for them this Christmas, only to have their lives snuffed out of them. It is just incomprehensible.

I can totally relate with people moving to quiet neighborhoods that are supposedly crime free to raise their families and this was one of those kind of neighborhoods.My children were going to school in a different county from where we lived before because of the safe environment. With this shooting, we are reminded that nowhere is safe. . This could have happened to anyone. The parents can't be blamed like in the Aurora shooting at the cinema hall. This is school; School is supposed to be safe.


Not everyone walking on the streets is sane. There are many borderline mentally ill people. Many of them have lived like this even as children and nobody is doing anything about it. Rather they are being pumped with all sorts of drugs that might or might not help. I know a woman whose foster kids ages 9-14 years, throw unreasonable tantrums, threaten her and use all sorts vulgar words to her.  They are also very quick to tell her this is America and they know their rights.Initially I felt they were just an unruly bunch. But now I see that they are mentally ill and even though they had their good days when they behaved well, they also had these spurts of bad behavior that even got more frequent with all the medication they received. I don't know how they can be helped what I know is that many people are sick out there and they need help before it gets out of hand.


My heart goes out to the families and the people of Newtown Connecticut. May the souls of the people who were killed in the shooting rest in peace and may God grant their families and community the fortitude to bear the loss.


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Hurricane Sandy

A big thank you to all those who left comments on my last post.  Thanks for the warm reception back. I appreciate it. It sure feels good to be back.

Over the weekend, hurricane sandy was all over the news. What to expect before, during and after it makes landfall, what to do, how to prepare, measures that are being taken to reduce the impact etc. Everything was so frightening; More frightening was the fact that it was going to hit the most populated part of the US. It was comforting to know that states on the path of this superstorm were actually preparing/prepared for the storm. This got me thinking about my country Nigeria and the way we handle disasters. We are rarely prepared for anything. I bet those places hit by the recent floods didnt even know they were going to have rains of that magnitude. Yet, all we know how to do is to form committees and create avenues for people to "chop" money to the detriment of the citizens.

Hurricane Sandy has made landfall and left a lot destruction in its wake. A lot of money will be lost. Many people will have to start over. My heart just goes out to them and I can just imagine what they are going through.  Apart from the strong winds and light rain, things were quite sane here, so the little ones found it difficult to understand why they couldn't go to school, even though it was a school day.

I read an article on Punch news online about Lagos state raising alarm over the ripple effect of the hurricane on the coastal areas of the state. The commissioner for waterfront development and infrastructure, Mr. Oniru, made his statements based on past experience, records and study of past happenings. Everything he said was based on assumption as he wasn't even sure and the only advise he had for people was that they should be vigilant.Is it that we don't have meteorologist who can give something more concrete? This is Nigeria I am talking about.

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Breast cancer awareness.....

Phew! I didn't know that it would take this long for me to settle down and create time for blogging again. Back to school hasn't been easy for me, but my children seem to have adapted so well. While I still drag myself off the bed every morning, sleep walk to get everyone ready, my daughter is bursting with energy, ready to hit the new day. I guess Pre-K is so much fun. I wish I had that kind of energy. A big thank you to all who checked on me while I was away, I appreciate you all. Thanks to the new followers of my blog, though I wasn't here to put up anything, they still had hope that I would come one day. Today is that day. Thank you. So many things things happened while I was away, blog rounds coming up so I can catch up. It sure feels good to be here again.

This year is almost winding down and there is still so much we can do as regards our goals for 2012 before we usher in 2013. September flew by and October is following in its wake. Every day is a new opportunity to do that thing that we have been planning to do; to get closer to God, to be physically fit, to read that book, to write that book, to help that neighbor, to mentor that child.... the list is endless. There is no time to wallow at the setbacks, as long as we have life, then a positive attitude is what we should have.

There are many awareness programs lined up for October like Disability awareness, Head Start  awareness, National Cyber Security awareness, breast cancer awareness, bullying etc.
I remember my first encounter with breast cancer. It was an elderly friend our family. All my young ears heard was that she fell ill and they had to cut off her breasts and for a while she had  a skin hair cut. Everything was hush-hush, Naija style. The next time I saw the lady, I was looking at her chest to see if she still had breasts. I guess that was why it was hush so people like me won't go looking at her and making her feel uncomfortable. Last week sunday, I joined a walk to raise money for breast cancer. Just seeing the survivors and hearing their stories with their positive attitude, was a lesson for me. These people have gone through so much and they still had the courage to smile, they mustered the strength to come out and create awareness so people will also not fall victim. That is selflessness right there.

Early detection is very important . Gone are those days when they said, it was a disease for old women, of course their risk is higher, but these days, young people are also getting it. Ladies, know, love and take care of your breasts. Try to do the monthly check and look out for anything that is not normal, be it lumpy mass in the breast or armpit,swelling,irritation or dimpling of the breast skin, redness of the nipple, nipple discharge which isn't breast milk, change in size or shape, anything. Know what they look and feel like. For those over 40, talk to your doctor about a screening mammogram. Please this is very important. Just as we tell friends to do kegels, please also tell them to do the breast check because early detection can save someone's life.

It is also good to know ones family history of breast cancer. If you have a family member with breast cancer, talking to your doctor on how you can lower the risk would be helpful. You can also lower the risk of breast cancer by controlling your weight and regular exercise.

 
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.....On to blog rounds

Olympics

Hi all,

Is it just me, or there are other people who also make mini resolutions during the Olympic season. Just watching the athletes and how fit they look and how good and sometimes phenomenal at what they do, has also made me make some resolutions. At the back of my mind, I know that after Sunday when the Olympics games come to a close, I will probably also just lose motivation, but I am not worried.

'Citius,Altius,Fortuis' (Faster, Higher, Stronger) is the motto of the Olympics games. They say it is more important to  take part than to win, * It is very good to win too * and all those who participate are winners in their own right which is true. You can just imagine the effort and dedication it will to take to even take part in such a competition. That is already a lot. Then to go and compete and win a medal, a gold medal? Shut the front door.
So hearing that people who sat in their homes to watch other fellows make history are throwing potshots at a 16 year old girl and complaining about her hair is not just mean but also very disappointing. And the most annoying part is that most of the jibes were coming from African American women who should be happy that one of their own is making history. Instead they are concentrating on something so trivial and menial as hair when the bigger picture is that this girl at the young age of 16 is not just phenomenal at what she does, but she is also winning. Why do people have to bring others down to feel good about themselves?It is not like she is competing for Americas Top Model or the Miss USA pageant that her hair being on point would be an issue. There are people with all their Brazilian weaves and human hair suffering from obesity, HBP, diabetes and its brothers and sisters, it is time to get your own priorities straight. Enjoy something good and stop trying to bring down the spirits of people who are taking charge of their own lives, making a difference and gaining recognition for it. Gabby Douglas has made history and there is nothing all you haters out there can do about it.

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