Dilly-Dally…..

December 10, 2015December 10, 2015 jacquelineobyikocha21 Comments

They thought they had all the time
With vigour they dilly-dallied overtime
Bright eyes and dashing red lipsticks, they wined and dined
Brawny sinews and husky tones, they were in their prime

They enjoyed lots of downtime
Some simply left it all to sometime
And kept saying in the meantime
Lets have fun ‘cos it’s Summertime

Tick Tock, Tick Tock goes the passage of time.

Seconds to minutes, to hours and to days
The days rolled by and turned into years
Time flew by and they were in tears
There was no going back in arrears

Anticipation gave birth to perspiration
Relaxation gave way to vexation
It was now more than halftime
This game does not allow a second time

Tick Tock, Tick Tock, time was nearly gone.

They struggled to earn a dime
Indeed it was a stiff climb
Some turned to a quick hand of crime
While a whole lot started to whine

Some felt that life was simply slime
And sacrificed their peacetime
While some made juice with their lime
And simply had a good time

Tick Tock, Tick Tock, it’s a race against time

Now it’s past their springtime
No more room for sublime
Now its a game of full-time
There is no more prime-time

With the passage of years and all the time
Which they had lent for a long time to sometime
Who then gave it to procrastination every time
And he is renowned to be the biggest thief of time.

Writing 101, Day 4 – Second

Creative Writing · Life · Poetry/Poems · Writing 101

Baby Batter…

December 10, 2015December 10, 2015 jacquelineobyikocha9 Comments

Head long
He rushed along
Others were behind his tail
All competing at the same scale
Its survival of the fittest
As well as the fastest
Seconds is all it takes
To decide who bakes the cake.

Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha
Writing 101 Day 4 – Seconds
Image Credit: Pinterest

Creative Writing · Humor - Bellyful of laughter · Musings · Poetry/Poems · Writing · Writing 101

Pillow Talks…Pillow Fights…

December 9, 2015 jacquelineobyikocha33 Comments

PILLOW TALK…

My eyelashes fall in love with each other,
Irresistible romance, the lids draw together,
Until in gentle kiss they link…
…And fall asleep within a blink.

In a soft cocoon of pleasant dreams,
Where pillow hugs like a gentle stream,
And bed of sweet affection, I felt,
My body regains its needed health.

…PILLOW FIGHT

A pat, A plump, A punch of pillow!
Where is my sleep; my eyes feel hollow!
The brain is drained, its down to zero;
Yet thoughts flit past just like a sparrow.

Alas! Sleep is won with quite a fight!
The bones so weary, they do so sigh;
The brain is fuzzy and the face a fright;
A battle of might, O what a night!

© Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha

Writing 101, Day 3 – SLEEP

Creative Writing · Photographs · Poetry/Poems · Quotes For You · Writing

Introspective Reflections…

December 8, 2015December 8, 2015 jacquelineobyikocha14 Comments

I can see clearer now the fog is gone.

I can see a lot of silver linings newly borne.

They illuminate brighter than golden urns.

Blurred visions of scattered bones along my way,

Had distorted views to thing’s, I must say,

And had held me dismayed in their sway.

I saw the reflection of split personality,

Of inner difficulties and aspiring destiny,

Casting illusions on introspection of originality.

Many feet scattered in the rubble of times past,

Unbirthed, aborted, buried and dead at last.

I can see clearly now the ghosts are laid to rest.

Broken visions melded and better than the first.

Atop the ladder of scattered dreams and buried bones,

I glimpse the brighter vision reflected and renewed.

Writing 101 Poetry – Day 2, Reflections

Creative Writing · Hope · Inspiration - Motivation · Life · Musings · Photographs · Poetry/Poems · Weave that Dream · Writing

As Magic Abounds…

December 7, 2015December 7, 2015 jacquelineobyikocha20 Comments

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The air is so crispy
The birds are quite chirpy
The magic of nature abounds
As I imbibe all the sounds

My quick strides grow shorter
My eyesight gets sharper
My senses soak in deeper
Pictures become magically wider

The lady and her dog walk past
Bow-Wow says hello
The labourer offers a fleeting smile
And he works pretty fast

So much floral blooms
And golden, droopy trees loom
Scented float of planted perfume
There is simply no room for gloom

More barking dogs
The tinkle of calm waters
The men play a hand of golf
And a bird catches a grub

A deep sense of satisfaction
Of peace I sense within
As the Sun peeks to say hello
I am happy to embrace me

My passion has called
Now, no longer ignored
I hear the reverberations
Of the magic hidden within.

Writing 101 – Day 1: Magic

The Daily Post · writing ideas

For Sure, I Will Read It…

December 5, 2015December 6, 2015 jacquelineobyikocha19 Comments

If the truth be told, what I know for sure is that I would not be able to resist digging into the book about my life and I will probably run to the very last page to see how it ended before taking my time to go through it with a fine tooth comb to know if the author/s got it right to the letter, if they did a shoddy job or if they tweaked it a bit to make the naughty parts juicier.

I am not going to tell you righteous tales of being so good that I won’t read it.

That would be telling a lie and my guardian angel would probably cover her eye’s in embarrassed shame at such a blatant fat gaffe.

It has been written already, so I might as well indulge and remind myself of somethings and possibly prepare myself for the best years of my life which lies ahead.

It actually reminds me of Scrooge and the ghosts of Christmas past. About how he got to mend his grumpy ways after the early revelations.

Without doubts, I know some pages will make me cringe in, ‘how-could- I-do-that’ manner.

Some would make me cry, laugh, get angry, sigh ,moan, feel nostalgic and every possible emotion that will be caught in-between.

I guess I will order up a box of tissue in case I turn into a watering pot, some feel good Swiss chocolate and a nice tub of Haagen Daz ice-cream to help smooth my ruffled feathers back into place or calm raging nerves if need be.

What a lovely exposition that would be, if ever such an opportunity came. After all, ”to be forewarned is to be forearmed.”

The Daily Post prompt This Is Your Life.

If you could read a book containing all that has happened and will ever happen in your life, would you? If you choose to read it, you must read it cover to cover.

Humor - Bellyful of laughter · Poetry/Poems · Quotes For You · Weave that Dream · Writing

All These Names That You Call Me…

December 4, 2015December 4, 2015 jacquelineobyikocha22 Comments

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You called me crazy
But I tell you that’s hazy
I just have lots of crazy characters
And lots of good friends
Who chatter in my head.

You called be lazy
And I said, Oh maybe
What’s the hurry
When my pillow
Is reluctant to let me go.

You called me fat
And I said no, not that
I just have extra layers of awesomeness
And I am built to last

You called me a dreamer
And I said, please add weaver
For I weave my dreams
While I eat fortune cookies and cream.

You called me a writer
And I said, that’s better
It seems I have to go chatter
With loads of characters
Under my hatter.

”Writers aren’t exactly people… They are a whole bunch of people trying to be one person.” F. Scott Fitzgerald

Family · Hope · Life · Quotes For You · Success · The Daily Post · Writing

When I Was Just A Little Girl…personal

December 1, 2015 jacquelineobyikocha38 Comments

I have to hum this song of Doris Day in my head while at it:

When I was just a little girl
I asked my mother what will I be
Will I be pretty will I be rich
Here’s what she said to me

Que Sera Sera
Whatever will be will be
The future’s not ours to see
Que Sera Sera
What will be will be

When I grew up and fell in love
I asked my sweetheart what lies ahead
Will we have rainbows day after day
Here’s what my sweetheart said

Que Sera Sera
Whatever will be will be
The future’s not ours to see
Que Sera Sera
What will be will be

Now I have children of my own
They ask their mother what will I be
Will I be handsome will I be rich
I tell them tenderly

Que Sera Sera
Whatever will be will be
The future’s not ours to see
Que Sera Sera
What will be will be
Que Sera Sera

Doris Day Que sera sera

Like most young children, I had as many aspirations as my diapers were changed, ranging from being a newscaster, an actress, a mother, a singer, a nurse, a pilot, a lawyer, a writer, a fashion designer….just about everything that you could think of in the book.

I don’t recall wanting to be a police officer, because the Nigerian police of my growing up years were not particularly inspiring.

We hardly knew what fire service men looked like, because if someone’s house unfortunately caught fire, they would attempt to quench the thirst of the licking hot flames with buckets of water while watching their properties turn to cinders, so I had no aspirations in that direction.

I fancied being a doctor at some point, because of the films that I watched, where they looked so capable and nice in their scrubs.

I dabbled a bit here and there in living my childhood dreams.

A bit of novice modelling and amateur acting, debating and writing for young magazines.

I learnt how to sew and realized that I would rather draw the designs than sew the clothes.

I studied law but I am not a practicing lawyer.

I went into international relations/French language and spent over a dozen years working with Multinational and Diplomatic corps.

After my children arrived, I waded into entrepreneurial ventures and found it to my liking – I love being the boss of me and having time for my young family.

In all my multi desires, the strongest desire which has not fallen by the wayside over time, but has only grown stronger has been my writing aspirations.

This is the flame that I want to keep stoking so that it can burn as high as possible and I think that my cumulative, diverse experiences brings a lot to bear into my writing.

I feel as if my writing is an embodiment of all my past aspirations and even those that are still at incubating stage such as some of my interests in Life coaching and Entrepreneurship. We shall see how it goes.

Now, I find several me’s embedded inside one me: Me (myself), me the wife, me the mother, me the child of my parents, me the writer, me the friend, me the life student and many more me’s to discover.

Life is a consistent transition and as I roll with the constant fluidity of life, part of the affirmations I make to myself are that:

I will live and not die wishing that I had lived better. I will live to declare the goods works of the Lord in the land of the living. I will live moment by moment, loving my life as it is and loving those around me. I will not live in fear of daring to succeed but will dare to succeed and fail forward.

The Daily Post Ballerian-Fireman-Astronaut-Movie-Star

When you were 10, what did you want to be when you grew up? What are you now? Are the two connected?

Image credit: Pinterest

Blogging · Humor - Bellyful of laughter · Inspiration - Motivation · Musings · Success · The Daily Post · Writing

Yippee! It’s Over Now…singing a song

November 30, 2015 jacquelineobyikocha63 Comments

Tra la la la! Yippee!

I did it, Oh yes I did it!

I am doing a jig and a boogie-woogie at the same time 😉

I managed to finish the NaBloPoMo with a flourish.

Not a prompt missed.

Honestly, there were some mornings that I woke up and wanted to play truant, but the little effervescent encouraging voice in me kept prodding me to try, and this was in fierce contest with the little imp of discouragement that kept saying ”come on, just a day’s kicking back won’t hurt.”

It seriously, wasn’t easy trying to do this, coupled with other posts that I usually make, in essence, each day, I was posting 3 to 4 original articles per day.

Some of the prompts were fly by the seat of your pants prompt like The Daily Post; I love participating in The Daily Post because you just never know what the prompt is going to be all about, so it helps my thinking quickly on my feet.

Somethings did suffer a bit with all these writing and the very first one was my butt. This is my little ditty about a writers flat butt.

The second thing that took the flake was my book. Instead of a thousand words a day, I was limping in at 500 words.

Each night, by the time I read two paragraphs of the John Grisham that I am currently reading, I am out cold and I bet I was snoring too – mind you we ladies don’t snore, we just make delicate noises.

My hubby is too nice to tell me that I am snoring. He knows the side that his bread is buttered on *wink* if he wants his nice hot meals 🙂

Now to celebrate, I am just going to kick back for a couple of days; I will still post each day as usual; but not with the rabid intention of the past few days.

Where is my Irish cream and some deep tissue massage?

Hmm! I feel the relaxation coming on before the next upheaval.

Thank you for staying with me my dear friends and for all your beautiful support.

To persevere and to finish is really a good feeling 🙂

NaBloPoMo prompt – Monday, November 30

What do you like to do to celebrate an accomplishment?

Blogging · Inspiration - Motivation · The Daily Post · Writing

It’s A Consuming Art…

November 29, 2015November 29, 2015 jacquelineobyikocha27 Comments

Until I started blogging, I didn’t realize that not only is it an art, it could also be an intense affair which gets a bit addictive, most especially if a blogger is striving for excellence in content and building connections.

It is also a slow burning, time consuming venture. You’ ve simply got to love writing, learn how to organise thoughts, have a schedule, set sensible goals in order to make it less stringent as well as interesting.

It is easy for a blogger to burn-out if the balance becomes badly skewed heavily to work and just more work. Once it becomes tedium, it loses its appeal, so striking a balance between fun and professionalism is also taken into account.

I am still learning the ropes as I go and making the rules that work well with my circumstances.

There are days my brain cells feel as if they are getting fried from all the original content writing, connecting and browsing other blogs, coupled with the rest of my life’s exigencies.

I notice my stress when I start feeling my shoulders bunch up, which is my main stress point and once I feel that way, it is time to de-stress.

It is time to take a step back and relax. I let the phone and the rest of my paraphernalia lie fallow for several hours and do something different to detox my brain.

An act as simple as a leisurely walk, singing off key to favourites, going to the cinema, watching a comedy that makes you laugh until tears roll down my eyes, spending time faffing around with the kids, going to a spot to people watch, can go a long way in recharging my batteries, then I get back into it with gusto.

One smart blogging practice that I started, which I have found very helpful is that on the days that I feel up to it , at least once a week, I work flat out for hours, producing rough draft’s of different post’s. I go with my feel of the moment. It could be a poem, a story, a haiku, a thought, an inspirational post, prayer…

On days that the energy is flagging or inspiration is not kicking in as usual, those drafts come in very handy and I borrow from there.

This further reduces the hours spent staring at the shiny box, leaving you with more time to just be.

The Daily Post Bloggers Unplugged

Sometimes, we all need a break from these little glowing boxes. How do you know when it’s time to unplug? What do you do to make it happen?