What's Your Story?

This morning as I walked down the street of Accra Central, I thought about the numerous strangers that I’ve passed by.

What's their story?

There was this crazy looking man by the crosswalk yelling at almost everything that passed by, whether cars or people. What's his story?

Did he sell drugs to rich friends so he could attempt to keep up with their lifestyles and now he has an addiction to the commodity? His friends nowhere to be found. Tired of his shit?

What about the smartly suite-up lawyer who was caught jumping the traffic light while speaking to someone on the phone?

Is he late to work because he had to take care of the kids ?

Or the heavily built guy with his old and dirty clothes with headphones in his ears, whom I couldn’t tell who he was or what he does? He turned out to be my angel. His presence kept the crazy man from yelling at me as I crossed the street.

What was his story?

Perhaps he was oblivious to my gratitude. Maybe he is one of those guys who carry heavy loads for market women and others for money.

Do any of these people wonder about my story? The school girl with curly hair with a backpack slung over her shoulder. Do they know how I carry the weight of the world on my shoulders? Do they see I am trying to stay strong as the storm rushes in and makes changes in my life?

Do they know I'm worried because a lot of responsibility on my shoulders? Do they know I face financial uncertainty? My girlfriend expects me to meet almost all her needs.?

No they probably don't know this but maybe they know as I know that no matter what is thrown in our paths the ultimate purpose is love pulling us closer to it.

Broken Hearts

He wants to get married to her.

She wants to marry him too.

Their relationship  may not be perfect but whose is?

He's good to her and reliable.

They are best friends.

She knows he loves her despite her flaws

He loves her.

She brings excitement.

She stood by him through thick and thin.

There's a comfort level.

She really wants a wedding.

She wants the proposal and the ring.

It doesn't have to be big or fancy.

Simple and small is preferred.

However her family says no.

They are supposed to support and be there for her.

They said no because of some ancient fallacy  with no logical reasoning

Family has broken their hearts.

Where's the love they've always preached?

They've destroyed young love and lives because of tribal sentiments.

And he knows if it doesn't come from their hearts, it is not free.

And he doesn't want to be into it.

Because he doesn't want to incur the wrath of her family

So what happens next?

Do they fight for their love; their happiness?

Do they denounce their families

What would you do?

A Boy's Fantasy

He sat on a circular wooden centerpiece, the smooth ceramic pot just behind his back, and there were people mingling all over the place. The entire hallway beautifully illuminated by a strand of light bulbs. The atmosphere, so serene, and the breeze which came towards the hallway were gentle and warm. There was a low continues background voices as people laughed and chatted among themselves. There were only a couple of people he knew there, and even them he knew from his college days. So it feels very awkward to be there with people he hardly knew; just like the feeling you get when you are surrounded by more people you don't know at all. He had no idea why he came. He figured on a whim, why not? He usually don't hang with these guys and he begun to question why he bothered coming out. What interests these people does not interest him. He doesn't really like to do what the like to do. The closest link was that they were class mates.

As he was deeply lost and buried in his thought, he noticed that there was someone sitting close to him. She seems to have similar thoughts on her mind, frustrated and nervous as he was. He saw an opportunity to kill his boredom, and felt he should start a conversation. She's a cute girl, clothed in a very beautiful flowered blouse over a blue jeans trouser and a pair of red shoes.

He sort of started a conversation. She'd laugh and giggle, he'd concur with what she said. Then a few drinks and the two of them were in loose tongues as they engaged in an in-depth conversation about a popular local TV series called "YOLO."

Later that night, they went to his place and engaged in a further conversation, with a recall of a few good moments from the earlier part of the night, which became more than that. There was an embrace, then a kiss, so deep and passionate..., and for the rest, your guess is as good as it can get. The next day, neither he nor she had regretted what had transpired the previous night. It then went on for weeks and weeks became months, and soon he asked the question she wanted to hear, "will you be my wife?" With a few tears of joy, she responded "yes."

Before his eyes, there she was walking down the aisle, in the gown of her dreams, and it was as white as snow. And him suit up in a smartly cut Italian tuxedo, in the midst of his friends, in his boyhood church. They both said "I do." And there it was; what every guy dreams of. Then he looked around him, and the church, the snow-white gown, the excitement' all gone. Just the light that illuminates the hallway was all he could see, and he was left there sitting on the circular wooden centerpiece only to realize he was daydreaming.

Baffled, he looked round to see if he could catch a glimpse of the mystery girl. Then he looked to his right and saw a girl that fits the description of his mystery girl, and the first question he asked her was, "what do you think of YOLO?" She looked at him and said, "I love YOLO!"

Limitless Possibilities

Initially, I was very reluctant about the idea of writing, not alone contemplate the possibility of blogging. I was really skeptical that my thoughts, ideas, feelings and perspective on things were important enough to share. The thought that someone might read my stuff and criticize me about how bad a write I am was what terrified me, so I said to myself, "why even bother."

Twumwah is a very special friend. The first time I ever had a face to face conversation with her, it felt as though we had been friends for years. Perhaps, she was very receptive and such an amazing communicator. This fact I've established over the course of the duration of our friendship.

During the course of our conversation, she asked me, ''if you're given the opportunity to ask for one natural ability, what will you ask for?'' In my response, without hesitation, I said, "the ability to express my thoughts, ideas, feelings and emotions on paper; to be a good writer. That's what I'd ask for."

"What's preventing you from doing just that?" She asked. "I'm not sure I have the capacity to write," I replied. "Let me tell you, you can write if only you want to write. Don't sell yourself short. The possibility is there, don't limit it," she said.

She telling me to give it a try because the possibility exists did not guaranteed that I'd be a good writer. However, I wouldn't know until I decide to write. All along, I use to think that you have to be some scholar of a sort in English to be able to write. But then I realized that I don't have to be an English scholar or someone with a major in English to be able to express my thoughts, ideas, feelings and emotions. For some reason, I decided a blog was, maybe, the best way I could explore this possibility. To say the least, something has changed.

As simple as my writing may seem, it does not change the fact that my thoughts, ideas, feelings and emotions may be important enough and needs to be shared. Limitless Possibilities is more like me and for me. It is a medium through which I express the thoughts and ideas wondering on my mind, as well as my personal feelings and emotions. I don't suppose that I have a large readership, but if you decide to read these feelings, emotions, the thoughts and ideas of mine which I have expressed, then I crave your indulgence not to say to yourself, "he's such an amateur." For I'm fully cognizance of the fact that these expressions of my feelings, emotions, thoughts and ideas are nothing more than a roughly organized ramblings, but it's who I am - absolutely raw

I've decided to name my blog Limitless Possibilities because that's what I've come to believe in, that the possibilities are limitless. I now live every moment of my life with the mentality that whatever I wish to do, and whatever I wish to become, the possibility to do or become that which I wish to become exists and there's absolutely no limit. The only limit there is are those which we have created in our mind. That's why legends have it that, "if only you can conceive it in your mind and believe it in your heart, then you can achieve." Bible then says that, "whatsoever things ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive and ye shall receive." And so, your faith in God will carry you through every moment and make it glorious.

I'm talking about Limitless Possibilities because, the Possibility of whatever you wish to do or wish to become really exists and I for one have realized it.

                                                                                                         

  

My Super Dad: The Hero Within

When I was a child, it was easy to look at my dad and think that he was without a doubt the coolest, bravest, strongest and the most successful man in the world. I watched him cleared hectors of land within days with  his crocodile branded machete (cutlass) alone, build a tree house storage facility for the end of season harvest, taught us, his children, about everything, from being successful on the farm to being successful in almost every aspects of our lives, and I pretend he was a superhero. My imagination equates him to the likes of the superheroes I've heard of and seen in science fictions - the Superman, Thor, Achilles, Arrow, etc who did everything with the greatest of ease.

As people, we are born to worship. We have the inborn desire to idolize something or someone. We find that which is good and make it into something great. This is the ultimate reason why we have superheroes in the first place. They have the outlook of the ordinary everyday people, but beneath this ordinary everyday people's appearance, they are so different, and are set apart. As a child, I idolized my dad and ranked him up there with these super-humans because he was the closest thing I had to a superhuman.

But as I grew up into a man, I've learned that my dad was flawed. He became less and less superhuman, and more and more ordinary, perhaps, because I was fast coming up into a man of my own. I've seen that life is not just about a sequel of glorified success, but a journey of daily failures and accompanying victories. I've watched him work and hurt and toil and grow and be frustrated and he has made mistakes. We've pulled the pedestal out from beneath him and he fell down and became just another man, getting by as best as he could in this confused world.

Then something truly amazing happens, I've come to realize that my dad really is a superhero, and he has been all along; not as I've imagined as a child but in a way that makes him worthy of truly being a hero. A real dad, I realized, is one who spend hours of his day on the farm for every single day that I've lived., working on the same farm doing the same thing for decades, who wakes up at 2 am and goes into the woods to tap palm wine to raise money for his children's school fees. A real dad is one who, for the sake of his family, break the bones in his fingers, had his skin and finger nails peeled off without even knowing.

A real dad, I've come to understand, is one who after a long day on the farm, still comes home to help in the kitchen. A real dad, you've taught me, is one who disciplines and mentors his children. He's their best friend, and very importantly, pays the bills, and all of this not for his own sake but for the sake of those he loves. What makes my dad a superhero is not that he's an extraordinary man, but because he's an ordinary man who sacrifice his own glory and became a selfless man for our sake.

In this light, dad goes from being an ordinary man to being a superhuman because of love, the greatest power of all; the selfless kind of love that put us, his children and wife before himself. He sets aside his personal desire, dreams and glory so he could be the best dad and provide for us. Rather than worship you as a superhero, I aspire to be like you because you are normal and real, and ordinary, and because you are an ordinary man who has done extraordinary things.

There's no other better and ordinary way to be grateful than to say THANK YOU DAD for setting aside your desire, dreams and personal glory for our sake. Thank you for teaching my brothers and me to love the ordinary man's way.

You're my Dad, my Superhero 

A Thirst For Love

Like an affection unfulfilled

You hold me in an elation, thrilled

And now

The consummation of that elation in your arms

Is all I wish from you.

In my heart of hearts

How I wish 

To splash you with my colours of life

In every mood to match my rhythm

That's all I need from you

If only you say yes

Then life can spring forth

From the fountainhead 

I'd pour my pearls of life 

Upon your path

My gossamer dreams are cast in glasses

As I ford my night in dark

fearful, lest my fantasies shatter

My hopes are inflamed

Yet I fear, lest some tempest

Put out my flame

As I wait for a lone yes to  turn on the spring of joy

In a culmination of my dreams

In the euphoria of your embrace

That's all I desire

The Moon over me in the skies

Where dense dark clouds hover

I wish this Moon is never overcast

A fervent solitary; a pacing heart

And not a moment's peace

Makes my story beautiful

Relentless is the desire

For an affection unfulfilled

Your provision of sufficient response

For the thirst of my love

Action vs Inspired Action

Often times, a lot of us wonder why some few people are more successful in their endeavour, or seems to be very successful at whatsoever they lay their hands on. Some are even of the view that these group of people who seems to be successful in their field of endeavour, are simply more gifted or more endowed with some form of supernatural ability which is beyond the reach of the less successful people. This misconstrued perception that some people are gifted whilst others are not is something of a phantom. I believe that every human being who is on the face of this earth is gifted with some form of ability. There's no denial of the fact that we all have varying abilities. The difference in what makes some successful and others less successful isn't some supernatural or gifted ability which is beyond the rich of others.

Here's what it is, these successful people have an understanding of the law of attraction - thus they understand that the universe is working in their favour. The word action means different things to these two groups (those who are struggling/unsuccessful and those who are successful).

To those who are struggling, the word action means work. But to the more successful people, it is actually called "Inspired Action." To the first group, action means work because they are trying so hard to make things happen. They are people who probably have dreams of their own but doubt that these dreams can be lived. They fear taking risk and charting thier own course. Instead, they are more of conformists.

To the more successful people, action means hobby. They don't try had to make things happen. It happens effortlessly. "It's like a fast flowing river, moving in a certain direction. When you are trying to make things happen, it will feel as if you are going against the directional flow of the river. For inspired action, you will feel as if you are flowing with the current of the river. That's is the feeling when action is inspired

When action is inspired, time stops and you could do it all day and not be concerned about the commensurate reward because your satisfactions is in the action.

The universe, through the law of attraction, gives us this understanding and it's for us to move with this understanding. This universal phenomenon is not skewed towards any particular person or group of persons, neither does it delay. Don't second guess, don't doubt. when the opportunity is there, when the impulse is there, when the intuitive nudge from within is there, act. That is your job. And that's where the difference lies.

Lessons From The Old Girl: A Tribute to My Grandmother

Dadaa, meaning mother, as we affectionately call her, is a woman like no other. I called you mother because you possess deep-rooted virtues of motherhood. You are my mother not only because you gave birth to the woman who gave me life, but also because you nurtured me, taught me, shouted at me when necessary, but most importantly you loved me unconditionally.

At a very young age, when I was just three years old, you took me in and made me the person I am today. It was as though I was your last born child. Not once have I ever felt the absence of my birth mother, to the extent that along the way I thought you were my birth mother. We had that connection, and that's how good a mother you are. You took me along with you everywhere you went. Even when you had to travel out of town, whether far or near, you always had me by your side. I still recall some of those memories, and it feels like just yesterday. You taught me everything I know. You have taught me some invaluable lesson which I think is worth sharing. Your lessons which you have given to me, are lessons I believe anyone from any corner of the earth will give anything to receive. They are simply priceless.

Lessons From The Old Girl

My lessons from the old girl, which you could also termed philosophies, are not in any particular order, but just the way remembered them. Four of these lessons are as follow;

Believe in something

At a very young age, one of the lessons dadaa(mother) taught me which shaped my life was the need to discover something worth believing in. Dadaa was an advocate of good health and she never compromise on the need to live a healthy life. She taught us good nutrition, and she ensured that there was good nutrition for the family, and I was a beneficiary. My Dadaa would prepare some good and healthy food for us and she would as well prepare some local medicine, then she would insist that we drink it. Usually, she would say drink it, you know, if it doesn't kill us, it would save us. The end result was astonishing, absolutely incredible. She never really suffered any major illness and so too was my fate. All this was possible because she believed in something.

Now, this is a priceless lesson or philosophy for life.  You'd realized that, all over the world, the most successful people or the greatest achievers are those people who have discovered something worth believing in and they believed. forget about what people would say and believe in your discovery. Besides, people will always have an opinion, but their opinions should not stop you from believing in yourself and your dream. Believe it to fall through and it will fall through. That is why the greatest book on earth says "what things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall receive them."

So it's important what you believe in, that's gonna carry you into the next chapter.

Trust your instinct 

One Friday afternoon, Dadaa and I were on our way to the farm to fetch firewood after I had closed from school,when we met one of our neighbours returning home from his farm. He looked exhausted and there was anger written all over his face. He and Dadaa took a moment to exchange pleasantries. I had to move ahead because we were taught that listening in on a conversation between adults was a sign of disrespect. The conversation lasted for just a short while, and Dadaa came to meet me. And as we continued our journey to the farm, I asked Dadaa if I could ask her a question. "Yes", ask she replied. "Did you noticed that he seemed angry, and do you know why?" I asked. "Apparently, there was a misunderstanding between him and his wife", she said in reply.

"Dadaa, tell me, how can I choose the right woman to marry so I don't encounter any problem like this man in the future?" I asked. " That is a good question my boy," she replied. I'd teach you a valuable lesson today, and I want you to listen very closely, she said.

I'm going to teach you about choice and an important natural disposition which will give you the power to make the right choice. This natural disposition that will empower you to make the right choice, this is what it is called, Instinct, she said. "Instinct, what is it?" I asked. Hold on, don't jump the gun, she said in reply. You need to understand choice first and this understanding will automatically awaken the internal power called instinct for you to know what choice to make.

Choice, she said, is the right or the opportunity to decide on the right thing to select between two different things. It is the decision to choose one thing or the other. There is either a wise choice(good choice) or an unwise choice(bad choice). What you need to know is that, the choices we make determines our destiny. What we are today is as a result of the choices we made in the past.

I want you to know that, "everyday, you'll face questions of right and wrong, and a decision about whether to take an action or stay out of the game. It is when these choices are clear that you will draw on your conscience, to follow up on your instincts and reveal your true character, she said.

Your instinct, she continued, on the other hand, is the inherent voice that tells you what action to take and what action not to take. The human instinct is the most magical or closest thing to a supernatural power possessed by all humans. Trust your instincts. It is nature's way of inspiring you to act in a particular direction. This inherent power, call it supernatural power, gives you the ability to make the right choice.

Throughout the world, people with the most success, whether in their business, in their relationships or any field of endeavour, they are people who trusted their instincts to make the right choices regardless of what the world thinks.

In her conclusion, she said, "my son, all that I want you to know is that, we all have the God given ability to make the right choices in life. It is not good enough to know the right choice to make. The whole key is to make the right choice. This you will do by trusting your instinct.

It is not what happens that determines who you become. It is what you do about what happen.

When I was in junior high school, one critical lesson Dadaa taught me was when she said "my boy, you see, it is not what happens to you that determines what or who you become. Who you become is determine by what you do about what has happened." This came on the backdrop of the fact that I had expressed my interest to join my school's athletics team that would participate in the subsequent inter-schools Athletics competitions. As usual, to become a part of the school team, you have to prove that you deserve to be on the team by first of all competing against other athletes from your school. But for some strange reason, our athletics coach thought that I was too small a boy to participate in the trials. It looked as if my hopes of running the race in the competition came crushing down. Dadaa was a food vendor at a canteen in a nearby school. She sells there because that school had somewhat a bigger population compared to ours. So after school each day, I had to pass by to eat and then help her pack the things home. That day when I got there, she could tell something was wrong with me. After I had finished eating, she asked me what the matter was. When I had finished narrating my ordeal, she held my young shoulders and asked me to sit down and she told me a personal story. Then she said, "I have learnt a valuable lesson a long time a go and today, I want you to also learn this lesson." The lesson she said , is that, "in life, it is not what happen that determines who you become. It is what you do about what happen." Then she said, "tomorrow, when you go to school, find a way to show your coach that our body size has nothing to do with your ability to participate in the competition." The following morning, I went to school with a smile on my face because I had figured out what I was going to do. Soon, it was time for practice. I quickly changed into my sports gear ready to join the 400 meters team with or without the coach's consent, and when it was time for those running the 400 meter race to take on to the field, I joined the group. The race was so competitive. It was in fact the most difficult thing I had ever done at that stage of my life. I came in a comfortable second place, at the end of the race and it was now difficult for the coach to ignore me. That was how I found my way into the school's athletics team.

May years later, I came across the same principle being taught by an extraordinary mentor, one of the most profound thinkers and mind expanding individuals, Jim Rohn. This is how he put it, "in life, like a little sail boat, it is not the blowing of the wind that determines your destination. It's the set of the sail." This is a vital principle or philosophy of life which I was taught when I was just about 12 years old, and this was expanded further after listening to Jim Rohn.

"The same wind blows on all of us. The wind of disaster, the wind of opportunity, the wind of change, the wind of ups and downs, the wind of what's favourable and unfavourable. The social wind, the economic wind, the political wind, the same wind blows on everybody. The difference in arrival, is not in the blowing of the wind but the set of the sail. And that's what life is all about, learning to determine your fate in a particular situation because you have the power, and not letting the situation determine your fate. This is an important philosophy or lesson of life which we need to understand even as kids, and Dadaa made me understood it earlier.

Therefore, it is not what happen, it is what you do about what happen, that's what makes the difference.

Learn to be of good service to people.

One Saturday, morning, an elderly man who happens to be a close neighbour walked into our house. He came to ask permission from Dadaa so that he could send me to a nearby town to collect an item for him. He offered to let me go on his bicycle, but to me, riding his bicycle wasn't an incentive enough for me to go. So I asked him what he would offer me as reward when I get back. But Dadaa intervened and said, you just go, I would have something nice for you when you get back. I was happy because when Dadaa promised you something nice, it definitely gonna be something nice. when I got back, Dadaa had prepared my favourite food in addition to an amount of money the man had left for me. Then she said, "I have something extra for you when you finish eating." I was eager to know what that extra package was but she wouldn't say a word until I finish eating. So I hurriedly went to the kitchen and ate my food. After I had finished eating, Dadaa sat me down and said "I want to talk to you about something very important." Then she asked, "do you want people to respect you, do you want recognition, and do you want to be a person of influence?" "Yes I responded." "In life, you must learn to be of good service to people. Good things come to people who serve. If you want people to respect you, care about you, if you want to have influence and be recognized, then from today, and for the rest of your life, be ready to be of service to people without expecting any reward," she said. I found out many years later that this same principle was first taught in the Bible.

Service to the people was first taught in the Bible because the question was asked, "how can we achieve recognition?" Thus how can we achieve great influence, great recpect, great self-esteem?, the master teacher was asked. And here is his formula for achieving recognition. He said, "find a way to serve people. For service to people leads to recognition and greatness."

Dadda, you are a true mother like no other. You are an ideal woman full of great values and your counsel is impeccable. Having talked about gratitude in my previous post, it is only proper to say that I'm most grateful for everything you have done for me. Thank God you are still here with us, that's why it feels even better to speak of your greatness. You've always being my hero.

Dadaa akpe na wo, mawu ne yra wo ( Thank you mother, may God bless you)

                                                                                                                                  Best Regards

                                                                                                                                  Segbornya

Gratitude Changes Everything

I became fascinated with this word, Gratitude, and so I took it upon myself to study it, and to find out why it is so important, and such a big deal for the world's greatest achievers.

So I picked up the dictionary and, Gratitude, according to the Merriam Webster Dictionary, is a "feeling of appreciation or thanks." It is the state or quality of being grateful or thankful.

So the question was asked, why do we have to be grateful? - why do we have to show any appreciation or be thankful for anything at all?

In my mind, I wanted to know why being grateful is such a big deal so that people always talk about it, to the extent that, one of the greatest books ever written, "The Science of Getting Rich" has gratitude as its longest chapter.

Quite a number of great texts i have read made me understand that, being grateful brings so much into one's life. There's so much we can do to turn our lives around through gratitude. The obvious question then is, how do we do that?

Gratitude, I discovered, is not just a word; it's a way of life. Therefore, the very fist step to start from, is to list the things we are grateful for. Day in day out, we desire one thing or another- good health, material possession, good relationship etc. Regardless of whatever it is that we desire, we must first and foremost be grateful for those things we already have. We must learn to develop an attitude of gratitude. Say thank you to everyone you meet for everything they do for you. Because this singular act transpose our energy, which in turn transpose our thinking. And just as one of the greatest avatar said, "whatever we think about and thank about, we bring about."

Psychologists and quantum physicist say that our thoughts have frequencies and are magnetic. So as we think and thank about something on a consistent basis, those thoughts and feelings of gratitude are sent out into the universe and they magnetically attracts like thoughts and feelings that are on the same frequency. Eventually, just like the magnet, these things return to the source, you - the one who's emitting those thoughts and feelings of gratitude.

Wallace Wattles says and I quote, "if it is a new thought to you that gratitude brings your whole mind into closer harmony with the creative energies of the universe, consider it well, and you will see that it is true." Therefore, being grateful means everything.

Now, am an amateur when it comes to the Bible, but if you really are a student of the scripture, you will agree with me that, there's a biblical perspective to this effect. You will find in the book of Psalm for example that David demonstrated gratitude through his songs of praise. Because David was grateful for even the smallest thing that happened in his life,he was able to achieve even greater things. If you can be thankful to God for everything in your life, regardless of how small it is, God will lead you to even greater things.

I can testify that, having had this understanding, my life has really changed. Not that I have everything I want, but I have an incredible inner peace. I'm so much content with life. I don't worry anymore about things that I don't have, but instead I wake up every morning and I take a moment to appreciate everything that I have.

Guess what I realized, that anytime I express a feeling of gratitude to anyone - whether my dad, my mom, brothers, or anyone else for even the smallest thing, whenever I approach with a bigger situation, they are happy to help and they have always found a way to help.

My message to you is this, whenever you wake-up, take a moment and be grateful for everything in your life including your life itself. If you can be thankful to your wife or your husband for even the smallest thing, if you can be thankful for the job, regardless of what job it is, if  you can show gratitude, your life will be meaningful.

Let gratitude be your way of life and you will see that gratitude is not just the greatest virtue, but it is indeed the mother of all virtues that can change everything.

                                                                                                                                         

                                                                                                                                    Best Regards...

                                                                                                                                   

                                                                                                                                  Segbornya