No One Is Kicking This Bucket Yet!…

January 23, 2016 jacquelineobyikocha49 Comments

Thanks but no thanks WordPress. I still have a lot of life in me. I have no bucket list, thus no item 11 to talk about.

This is not something that I have gotten around to doing and doubt if I would do so, even though I know that it might seem the fashionable thing to do and what not, I have honestly never dwelt on it.

It’s not necessarily because I feel that I have all the time in the World because I don’t, but I am holding on to God’s promises of satisfying me with long life.

I am holding out for the blessings of seeing my children’s children and that my children will be like olive trees. As we know, olive trees are very long lived and bear bountiful fruits. I am holding on to this promise that I will not die before due season, but live to declare the good works of the Lord in the land of the living.

That said, I think that might be part of the reasoning behind my never having spent the time to make a long drawn bucket list. Where exactly on this list do I want to start from, because it would be a very long one.

Secondly, I am my own worst critic and tend to beat myself over the head when I set a long list of goals and fail to achieve them. It automatically sends negative signals of failing a promise to myself and I am seriously trying to get rid of those negative energies swirling around.

What I am trying to do is to look at the things that I aspire to achieve, break them down and focus on getting them done as much as possible without turning it into a do or die affair.

In some part of my mind, I feel as if a bucket list is self-limiting. What happens when I get to the end of that list?

Does it mean that I am ready to kick the bucket? No can do!

I think I shall pass on this assignment because, I truly believe that the journey of life should be savoured as much as possible, enjoying the joy that comes from the journey and not turn my life it into a big boring To-Do list.

Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha

The Daily Post Kick It.

What’s the 11th item on your bucket list?

Health · Hope · Inspiration - Motivation · Photographs

The Buoyancy Of Optimism…

January 23, 2016January 23, 2016 jacquelineobyikocha45 Comments

Yesterday, I watched my very dear friend, Ekaete Augustine-Edet run her very first Marathon of 42.195 km in Dubai and that made me so proud.

She flew in from Nigeria with other queens of marathon. These are women who are mothers, wives, workers and all. They are in their late thirties, mid-forties and late forties.

The interesting thing is that most of them only started training several months ago.

What impresses me most is that she wasn’t sure she could do it. She was nervous about it, but she set out to do her best and she did it.

Running 42.195 km for over 4 hours is not a walk in the park. Now that is optimism and determination.

‘Well done Ladies.’

P.S. I didn’t run, but I was there to whistle and cheer them on and of course to take pictures 🙂

The Daily Post Photo Challenge Optimistic.

How do you fuel the fires of optimism?

Challenges · Hope · The Great Book Of Lists · Travel · Weave that Dream

Desires of Mine…The Big Book Of Lists

January 22, 2016January 22, 2016 jacquelineobyikocha25 Comments

For Laduchessederat’s great big book of lists challenge for this week, some of the things that I presently wish for, might be daydreams, but, I so love daydreaming.

I wish that I could breeze through editing my manuscript so that I can move on to the next stage. Editing is not as much fun as writing the rough manuscript.

I wish I could get better toe-hold of my health/weight. I know that I can do better than I am doing right now.

For no specific reasons, these two cities have been on my mind: Vancouver and San Francisco. They have always sounded very posh to my ears and out of the long list of places that I would love to visit, thoughts of these two are dangling in my head.

I wish that I would be able to start my authors blog soon, but then again, that is tied to number 1.

I wish to put my short stories together, dust them up and publish them. *Sigh* There is so much to do.

I wish that I could continue with my piano lessons, but over here in Dubai, things tend to cost an arm and a leg, so I can’t afford that right now

I am holding my cap out for a Mediterranean cruise or a repeat tour of Europe by train.

My wish for each day of 2016, is to remain at peace within myself and give the best of myself for each day in achieving my goals.

This thought is rather a far-fetched thought, but a wish that seats deeply in my heart. Sometimes, I am scared at the rapid rate of my children’s growth and other than taking as many photos as possible, as well as trying to appreciate my time with them as much as I can, I wish there is a way to encapsulate these memories, so that even when I am very old, I will remember. If you have an idea how, please do share 🙂

Fiction · Friday Fiction in Five Sentences · Hope · Short Stories

The Bill…Friday Fiction In Five Sentences.

January 22, 2016 jacquelineobyikocha29 Comments

She counts the coins over and over again.

It would barely be enough to purchase meaningful grocery.

‘Dear Lord, where will the next meal for the babies come from?’ She wonders in despair.

Hearing a shuffle of feet and a rap on the door.

She rises wearily to check who it is, but there is no one at the door, just a little note wedged into the space under the door, with a 50 dollar bill nicely folded inside.

Creative Writing · Fiction · Friday Fiction in Five Sentences · Hope

Her Wintertime…Friday’s Fiction In Five Sentences.

January 15, 2016January 15, 2016 jacquelineobyikocha42 Comments

The tiny cry is simply magical.

The best sound that she’s ever heard.

For sixteen years she waited in the Lords chambers, until her faith had virtually shriveled to nothing.

Raising her tired arms, she holds them out for her brand new bundle of love.

At last, when she no longer expected it, fate chose to visit her in Wintertime.

Image credit: Pinterest.

Devotions · Gratitude · Hope · Inspiration - Motivation · Life · Love

I am grateful and blessed to have you as my friend…

January 13, 2016 jacquelineobyikocha47 Comments

Life brings friends our way who turn out to become our families in almost every sense of the word and I am particularly grateful for such a friend as my dear good friend Mrs. Ekaete Augustine-Edet.

We have journeyed together from our days as single ladies working at the French Embassy, Lagos Nigeria almost two decades ago, to today as mothers and wives and she has remained such a steadfast friend, sister and motivator.

She is one of the driving forces behind my starting my blog, because she believes in me and my writing skills. She kept asking me when I would start my blog, until I got started.

She is there anytime I call with a need or something on my mind. I had reason to make such a call and as usual she selflessly gave of herself, her time and her pocket.

I thank God for a friend like you and really don’t have much words to appreciate your kindness.

On another hand, I have been blessed with running into interesting characters since last week.

Two lovely neighbourhood dogs, Lola and Cookie and Meow, The cat seem to have adopted me for reasons best known to them, though I do stop to say hello to the cute dogs when I am taking my walk and they are out and about.

Meow is a lone ranger, but always appears by the chair where I sit sometimes to watch the World go by and he rubs himself on my pants legs seeking attention.

I am more a dog person and not particularly a cat person but strangely, this would be the third encounter where different neighbourhood felines come up to say hello.

Since I don’t know much about felines, maybe those who do can tell me what this indicates.

I am grateful for little meaningless moments like this. They end up meaning a lot when we appreciate them and each moment that I spend in a state of gratitude, the phrase that the best things in life are for free couldn’t be more true than it is.

There is so much to be thankful for. Just look around and you will see.

You can join Colline’s or Maria Jansson‘s gratitude challenge platforms

Regards and blessings

Creative Writing · Haiku · Hope · Lifestyle · Poetry/Poems · Social Issues

Crystal Meth…

January 12, 2016January 12, 2016 jacquelineobyikocha34 Comments

A fascination of the Stars it held,

Purported to pleasure he heard,

Hope he keeps away from the Meth.

PLEASE NOTE! ‘The usage of crystal methamphetamine is dangerous.’

This is my first time participating in ‘Ronovan Writes Weekly Haiku Prompt Challenge‘ with the prompt words, ‘crystal’ and ‘hope.’

Five Sentence Inspiration · Hope · Inspiration - Motivation · My Thinking Corner

Tuesdays Trickles

January 12, 2016January 17, 2016 jacquelineobyikocha15 Comments

Every Tuesday, I share snippets of thoughts that I call ‘My Thinking Corner.’

I would like to invite you to participate. The challenge is quite simple.

Each Tuesday, share your very short snippets of positive, inspiring, motivating, health, spiritual, writing advice, clips, posts etc, that can serve as a prop to motivate others and simply add my link to your post.

I call it my thinking corner because, I actually take out a bit of time just to think through things, encapsulate my thoughts as much as possible and detoxify my mind.

It might work for you in a different way, but the idea is to get the positive thoughts flowing.

Every last Tuesday of the month, I will publish a post with the links of all those who participated through the month and their thoughts.

I hope to see you join. Best regards.

When you run your own race, the chance is high that you will win, but when you run another person’s race, you will spend your time looking at their behinds.

The beauty in you, will only shine when you start to see for yourself that you are a masterpiece.

Motivation comes from the constant recharging of the muscles of your mind.

Remember that the lessons from the heat of a fiery experience, refines you into a more exquisite quality.

To those who still have hope, the strength surely comes.

Hope · Humor - Bellyful of laughter · The Daily Post

I Like Your Way Of Thinking These Days…

January 9, 2016January 10, 2016 jacquelineobyikocha49 Comments

Don’t you think that it’s rather late in the day to start asking me what the worst possible situation to my day could be, seeing that your prompt arrives at my part of the World at past 5pm in the evening, when it has basically missed out on a whole lot of the day’s exciting ups, downs and mundane stuff.

So, since I am not in the mood to conjure up a crystal ball and start imagining all sorts of horrendous stuff, I will by-pass the worst case scenario and quickly meander to the best scenario which I have on the tip of my fingers.

The best scenario dear WordPress prompt my good friend, would be to get an alert on my email box, from one of those brilliant agents/publishers who is writing a letter to court my prolific fingers in literary wedlock, asking very humbly if they could be tied to my words for a lifetime and have me hammer out excellent sentences to their hearts delight and my bank accounts content.

I am not going to look a gift horse in the mouth since you’ve been asking and I have been dropping hints to let you know the things that I want. 1. That fabulous supersonic camera that I am coveting and 2. A mouth-watering book deal, do hurry up and deliver my wishes quickly.

Now, no more asking me about bad things anymore, because I refuse to dwell on those.

Let me bid you goodnight and go and have a lovely dream about these good things coming soon.

The Daily Post prompt Worst Case Scenario

Of all the awful possibilities, what’s the worst possible thing that could happen to you today? Now, what about the best?

Hope · Humor - Bellyful of laughter · Photographs · The Daily Post · Uncategorized

I knew that you would ask…

January 8, 2016January 8, 2016 jacquelineobyikocha34 Comments

Why yes of course and thank you too for asking WP.

I have always known that you would prove to be a valuable friend and a late Christmas gift or even an early Valentines gift is highly welcome 😊

There’s a gadget that I am coveting very much but can’t afford right now.

It’s one of those fantastic high performance cameras, so that my clicking fingers can click to my hearts content.

I used to love posing for pictures, as time goes on, I find myself loving staring through camera lens and snapping away happily.

I have one that I use for traveling and she has served me faithfully for years now.

It’s a small one, not bad but the little darling is due for retirement and pension.

These days that my photographing juice is flowing, I find myself staring through the display window with glazed eyes, drooling and rubbing my palms together and doing all sorts of mental calculations on how to acquire such a beauty.

Now that you ask, things are suddenly looking up and I can see the generous Secret Santa in you.

Let me go and wait patiently.

Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha.

The Daily Post prompt, Keeping up with the Jones’s.

Tell us about the one luxury item you wish you could afford, in as much detail as you can. Paint a picture for us.