Family · Life · Lifestyle · Parenting · Personal story · Quotes For You · Three quote challenge

Your Harvest Comes In Heaps And Spades…

‘Icho ime ife, ime e ya ofuma.’

These wise words echoes in my ears as I write this post and it translates to mean ‘ anything worth doing, is what doing well.’

I remember growing up and having to go to our farm with my parents to till the ground for planting maize, cassava, potatoes, pumpkin and any other crop that was due to be planted. Back then we grew most of our food.

With my hoe, I would make what I considered a nice mound of red earth and when my dad comes round for inspection, he would call me by his pet name for me and in his gentle way, he would say: ‘you’ve done well, but it would be better if the mound was just a little higher’ and would complete his correction with that sentence up above.

This was repeatedly applied in so many ordinary things that we did, from our house chores of sweeping with the broom, washing plates, clothes, weeding the compound to our studies.

Thus it became embedded in my mind, that if you choose to do something, give it your best shot.

If you choose to love someone, love them without placing the conditions that they must fulfill to become worthy of your love.

If you are working for someone, do it wholeheartedly because some day, someone will probably turn around to work for you. As my people would say ‘when you respect the King, Kingship will also come to you.’

In everything that one does, they should do it to the best of their ability. Not for the sake of eye service, but for the sake of self-service.

Sow and Water and leave the bountiful harvest to providence. It always pays in heaps and spades.

Let me leave these three extra farming proverbs for you to mull over with your cup of coffee:

‘Good gardens are not made by sitting in the shade.’

‘As the farm grows, so does the farmer.’

‘If you tickle your earth hard enough, she will laugh for you with bountiful harvest.’

I would like to thank Maria Jansson for her generous invitation to participate in the quotes challenge and would like to extend the invitation to these lovely bloggers.

Melinda

Kay Morris

Sarah C

P.S. No hard rules to participate.

© Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha

Inspiration - Motivation · Life · Lifestyle · Midnight motivation and musings · Quotes For You · Self Help

Midnight Motivations and Musings # 11..

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I deliberately did not use the word ‘Suicide,’ just in case you are wondering. I chose murder, for those who take steps to snuff out the essence of who they are in an attempt to replace themselves with who they are not.

It’s a shame to see people suffering setbacks and deep insecure troubled lives due to lack of sense of self and identity crisis and it seems this situation is getting worse in recent times.

They have lost all sense of belonging and have forgotten that they are not mistakes, but are unique, wonderfully made individuals with purpose and a lot to offer.

Some spend their entire lives apologizing for being themselves, the colour of their skin, their background, physique, financial state, religious inclination, gender or physical disabilities and a whole lot of unmentioned issues.

Due to these things, they feel pressured to please and change and fit in until they are totally confused, depressed, oppressed and demoralized.

You owe no one apologies for who you are.

You must own who you are and cease trying to be every woman or man, thus developing confused multiple personality syndrome and having deeper issues.

It’s okay not to be liked by everybody, but the most important person that should like you is you!

You are a hero within yourself and all you need is to surround yourself with the people who love and accept you as you are, and rise to the person that you are meant to be.

© Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha

Poetry/Poems · Quotes For You · Uncategorized · Weave that Dream

Brevity…Thursday Trivia

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Sometimes,

The brevity of my words

Is not for lack of what to say

….But a reflection

Of the state of my mind

Where the invasion

Of dream-filled thoughts

That pervades them

Leaves me breathless

…..Unable and reluctant

To trap them in words.

So,

I let them float free.

© Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha

Inspiration - Motivation · Life · Lifestyle · Midnight motivation and musings · Quotes For You · Self Help

Midnight Motivations and Musings #9….

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In so many ways, a lot of us have been hurt and the hurt that we carry inside now serves as a parameter to determine a whole lot that goes on in our lives.

Our hurts become a cloak that we use to cover ourselves, dampening the true person hidden beneath the bushel of pain.

Even though bad experiences cannot be easily chucked out of the window, these past hurts should not be the ruling yardstick over our lives.

Not only do they cut short our expectations, but we remain victims to the pain.

To heal, we have to and we must find a way to channel our painful tests into positive testimonies.

© Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha

A link to my neighbours/Community · Blogging · Quotes For You

Lessons Learnt And Feedback To My Committee Of Friends…

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Honestly, I don’t know where to start from on this post, but I will take it from the middle and make it brief.

The outpouring of support that I received from my fellow bloggers over the weekend was what I would call Fantabulous’ a word coined from fantastic and fabulous.

The turnout was way beyond my expectations and the ripples of the party still bounces off my walls.

As blog parties go, this was totally off the hook to my surprise.

‘There is no greater honour than the giving of your time and you guy’s gave it full time.’ 

When the seed of the idea was planted in my heart and I sent out little feelers, I must confess that I had trepidation and indeed, I received a couple of hints that the timing I chose may not be right because it was a Valentine weekend, but a good number of voices that were keen to see how it would all turn out boosted me.

You know how the negative sometimes does it’s super-best to overshadow the positive, the feedback that didn’t quite support kept ringing in my head and reminding me that I am a small blogger, but the little voice of encouragement within me kept reminding me that Valentine was even the more reason to have a party ‘because it’s a love thing and love is everything.’

Love is not meant to be restricted nor kept covered only to be exposed in one day. It should be a lifestyle. So, I dug in my heels and got to work on the hurdle that I had set for myself.

I didn’t want to leave the taunting voice of regret to hound me with the fact that I failed to try.

I also try to practice what I preach ‘do it, even if you are afraid,’ so we did it, and boy, oh boy, was it a sweet interlude.

A blog party attended by over 105 awesome bloggers with over 1,060+ comment thread is one big party.

We had live music, good food, drinks, dessert, stories, poems, pillow fights and talks, slumber parties, dancing on tables, auctions, smooching in corners, our very own Cupid, super company and lots of blogs falling in love with each other. Now tell me that wasn’t sweet.

I made a good number of new friends, had a swell time and hope that everyone else did.

The last few words I would like to say, I will say them in a quote:

‘There is strength in unity and love.’ Unknown

‘Stand your ground, for today’s mighty Iroko tree was yesterday’s nut that held it’s ground.’ African proverb

‘When you have a dream, hold on to it, work it out and never let anyone talk you out of it.’ Jacqueline.

Thank you all for keeping me company, for supporting me and for being my friend in this place.

With all pleasure, I say, let’s do it again sometime soon.

© Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha

Five Sentence Inspiration · Five Sentences · Hope · Inspiration - Motivation · Lifestyle · My Thinking Corner · Quotes For You · Self Help

Tuesdays Trickle…My Thinking Corner

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Aspire to great things, so that even if you don’t land on the mark, you will not be far behind.

When every little issue looks like a big problem in your eye, it becomes a mountain in your mind

Worry has never been known to solve a problem. It only doubles it: The problem and worry. View problems with the mindset of ‘what is the possible solution?’

A talent used is a talent surely multiplied. Find yours, use it and it appreciates.

To change is definitely not easy, but to stay on the wrong path is riddled with heartache and only elongates the journey back to the right track.

© Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha

Last weeks Thinkers Thoughts came in from 

Your life is a gift from Stella of Giggles & Tales

What does your time mean to you from Oba of Kingsoracle

Beautiful nuggets from Deb of Bookyglover

What does Death remind us of from Rosema of the Reading Writer.

**Do share your thoughts. We love to hear and learn.**

 

Humor - Bellyful of laughter · Monday Motivations · Quotes For You

Monday Meme

Continue reading “Monday Meme”

Inspiration - Motivation · Life · Lifestyle · Midnight motivation and musings · Quotes For You · Self Help · Tips for the day

Midnight Motivations and Musings #7

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A good number of us tend to search for all the excuses under the Sun to justify why we failed in something and to credit other peoples success with so many favourable conditions, which they supposedly didn’t earn.

That’s telling one’s self a lie, which is like eating comfort food to feel better about something.

Where there is a will, in there lies your way. Find it.

© Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha

 

Inspiration - Motivation · Midnight motivation and musings · Quotes For You · Self Help · Weave that Dream

Midnight Motivations and Musings #6…

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Need I say more?

Our wishful thoughts on the things that we hope for, will only remain buried, wishful and wasted unless we begin to act on them.

The fear of failure is the greatest failure in itself. Be afraid, but do it!

You just might surprise yourself.

© Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha

Inspiration - Motivation · Midnight motivation and musings · Musings · Quotes For You · Self Help · Weave that Dream

Midnight Motivations and Musings # 5…

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A saying in my place goes, ‘that success refuses to go to the house of those who fail to appreciate the success of others around them, because success feels that when she arrives, you will equally fail to appreciate her presence.’

Positive energy attracts positive things, we should therefore always try to appreciate the humble beginnings while we plan and wait for the bigger ones.

© Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha