Encapsulate it Please….

October 1, 2015 jacquelineobyikocha9 Comments

In response to The Daily Post’s writing prompt: “Immortalized in Stone.”

The moments spent with my family are priceless to me, especially as I watch my children gallop in growth and at the rate that they are growing, before I can say Hey Presto! they will fly my coop.

If I could compress all these precious moments, dotted with times spent with good friends, then have them encapsulated in a frozen kaleidoscopic capsule, so that even when I am old and my memory is no longer as sharp as brass tacks, I may revisit and relive them as often as I choose.

Are there any words or acts of mine that would add value and minister wisdom to others even when I am long gone? If I should peradventure find such words; those are the words that I will have immortalized in stone. Those words that will nurture, strengthen, encourage, motivate and teach are keepers.

What adjectives can I use to describe the probability of such occurrence? Fabulous, Fantastic, Wonderful and every hyperbole that you can think of.

Alas! The transient state of life makes such dreams impossible Since at some point, everything that has been created by man shall become detritus. Back to planet Earth oh my wishful, illusive mind.

The Daily Post · Writing

Learning is Ad Infinitum…

September 30, 2015February 19, 2016 jacquelineobyikocha31 Comments

In response to The Daily Post’s writing prompt: “Lazy Learners.”

I fretted to get good grades, but that was when I was very young.

Now I fret to do my best because that is what pleases me to do.

However I am not going to fret myself to death;

For those things that I want to learn but haven’t gotten round to doing them for various reasons that are unavoidable,

Learning process is ad infinitum. We learn till the day we die.

I have a long list of things that I would like to learn, because it pleases me to know them.

What I do each day, is to learn something new, no matter how minutiae,

God willing even in my dotage, I shall trudge on to those martial arts classes,

I shall probably learn a bit of Japanese along the way;

Basket weaving for the fun of it,

Taking better pictures through practicing;

It’s a long list of things to learn…..

It just never ends..

Devotions · Family · Inspiration - Motivation · Life · The Daily Post

That Thing That Niggles Me…

September 27, 2015September 27, 2015 jacquelineobyikocha39 Comments

In response to The Daily Post’s writing prompt: “Must Not Fail.”

The fear of failure when it comes to the aspects of life’s material wants has ceased to bother me, because I have really come to realize that we can exist on far less than we tend to surround ourselves with.

I literately and completely believe in the word of God in Ezekiel 34 v 26: that says: I will make them and the places surrounding my hill a blessing. I will send showers in season; showers of blessing.

I have seen this proven true time and time again in my life even when I neither earned it nor deserved it.

I know that as long as life exists that hope exists. That faith and perseverance will sustain me.

It is always wise to keep in mind that failure is only a setback and not the end of the street. It is an invitation to learn from, to grow from and an opportunity to start again.

However, as a mother blessed with lovely children, there is a fear that niggles my heart each day and that is the fear in my ability to do a good job in raising my children.

With the amount of corrosive erosion in human ethics and values, I am concerned and wonder if I am doing enough to raise upright children who will be blessings to their generation. Therefore, I must continue to try.

On a personal note, I live with the fear of failing as a Christian in the true sense of the word. Not the picture of me that the World sees through the acts of Earthly Godliness but the intrinsic me that no one else is privy to.

I however remind myself that it is only by the Grace of God that I am redeemed and not by the arm of my flesh.

These two thoughts drive me everyday and if I do not fail in these two things, then I must count myself as extremely successful.

Let us not fail to remember that success is relative. What count’s as success for me, may be viewed as idiosyncratic nonsense to another.

Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha

Inspiration - Motivation · The Daily Post

Keep it Moving Forward…

September 25, 2015September 25, 2015 jacquelineobyikocha10 Comments

In response to The Daily Post’s writing prompt: “Pay It Forward.”

Splendid prompt! Splendid timing!

I like this prompt because paying it forward just happened to me today, out of the blues. Whilst going through posts on my reader, a little note popped up and I saw this comment:

Congratulations to JACQUELINE who is the Giveaway Friday winner!!!!!! 😀 😀 😀

With the most comments on alocovivavoce.com, Jacqueline has emerged the winner of Giveaway Friday for the month of September 2015. Congratulations Jacqueline!

As a special prize, Jacqueline gets one of the following:

A 2000 (two thousand) naira recharge card of any network of your choice.

Or

A promotion of anything of your choice on alocovivavoce.com. Whether a product, service, idea or writeup, just let me know whatever you choose to promote and I would be at your service.

So once again, congratulations Jacqueline for being the top commenter for September 2015.

Sincerely speaking, I was quite surprised. I thought it was spam. Then I saw the name of the blog that it came from, so I gingerly clicked on it, reminding myself that April fools day had come and gone.

Anyways, I decided to play along and Viola! It is real. Now that certainly put a very big smile on my face 🙂

My initial thought was to ask her to promote my blog, but a little voice whispered to me: “you have received some pleasure and delight from this warm gesture, so why not put a smile on the face of another unsuspecting person” and I decided to go with the voice, so I responded to A Loco Viva Voce:

Goodness gracious me! This is a very pleasant and warming surprise. Not expected in the least and that is what makes it extremely lovely and appreciated.

My dear lady, thank you from the depth of me. This is such a heartwarming gesture. How I wish I could claim the recharge card, but since I am not in Nigeria it’s okay.

Better still, I can pay it forward and bless someone else over there with the recharge card.

Please let me know what you think and once again, thank you. God Bless

She came back with the response that it’s fine to send the gift of the recharge card forward to another recipient 🙂

So there you have it! Easily done and all in a days job 🙂

Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha

Uncategorized

Make-Believe….

September 22, 2015September 22, 2015 jacquelineobyikocha26 Comments

In response to The Daily Post’s writing prompt: “A Storybook Day.”

Reading a lot of Enid Blyton’s books and Hans Andersen’s Fairy Tales as a child helped to form an imaginary World where everything was possible in my developing mind and since I have fancied myself as quite an actress, I simply cannot allow such an opportunity to amend some wrongs and settle scores go away.

We don’t have to look too far, I would love an opportunity to be Cinderella.

Those horrid step-sisters need a little comeuppance. A little pinch, pulling of hair and boxing an ear would soothe my maltreated nerves.

All that sweet syrupy nature of Cinderella was a little too acquiescent!

Second dips, I would love to be a fairy in Enid Blyton’s ”The Magic Faraway Tree.” They had such a delightful time.

Back to reality, as a grown woman, my current favorite fictional character exists in the pages of the novel that I am putting together.

I am still trying to understand her and where she is taking her story to.

Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha

Hope · Inspiration - Motivation · Life · The Daily Post

At a point it was sinking sand…

September 18, 2015 jacquelineobyikocha25 Comments

In response to The Daily Post’s writing prompt: “Mountaintops and Valleys.”

Describe a time when you quickly switched from feeling at the top of the world to sinking all the way down (or vice versa). Did you learn anything about yourself in the process?

Despite conscious efforts not to be a depressing wet blanket, to maintain a sunny and optimistic outlook in life, there are times when life throws you sucker punches that leaves you gasping for breath and almost asphyxiated. You are left grappling at anything that will keep you from sinking down the bog that is eager and willing to swallow you whole greedily.

I can think of personal events that hit me in the solar plexus and dragged me from high to rock bottom.

I hate to pull out the tissue box, but I have also learnt that talking about these things, helps to heal gaping wounds.

The loss of my preemie baby.
2 consecutive miscarriages.
The loss of my dad.
A car accident that took the life of a young man. I was the driver!

Without expending a lot of adjectives and flowery prose, losing a baby or even a pregnancy plunges one from the delight of expectancy to nothing… to the pits of despair, hopelessness, anger, sadness, and a multitude of emotions that I can barely define. I leave the rest for you to imagine.

Hearing placating words during such occurrence was barely sufficient if not upsetting. I remember when I suddenly lost my 28 week old baby, and a friend said to me “don’t worry, another baby will come” all I asked was whether a child is a replaceable item like furniture?

My dad’s passing was not a sudden event. It was a painful, grueling battle with cancer and it was not the best of times. Watching the strong man whom I loved so much bowed down by a vicious ailment which left him the ‘sufferer’ and those around him stricken beyond words is not something that I would wish anyone.

We fought like Tigers, but we were left beaten, bruised, bloodied and we lost. Knowing that he was ill did not make the pain any less. My sole joy is that I can honestly testify that my late dad was a good, gentle and upright soul. I will always miss him.

Another event that struck like a bolt of lightning out of the blues was a car accident that I was involved in. You might want to read this A letter to the young man that died. That saying, that a split second can change everything about someone’s life remains true.

I did not come away from these experiences empty handed. I have learnt and still learning to live in the moment and appreciate it. That I can be strong when there is no other choice and not to take anyone or anything for granted.

My biggest lesson so far has been a spiritual journey in Trusting, Believing, and having Faith in God. He has been my source of strength, sanity and boundless peace during these stormy times.

If per chance sharing my experience (that it is possible for someone to rise from the shadowy doldrums to face the light) serves as a source of inspiration and hope for anyone, then something positive would have been achieved.

Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha

P.S. No more soppy prompts please. I am out of tissue box. Thank you 😉

Image credit: Sayquotable.com

The Daily Post

It’s a Cycle…

September 12, 2015September 12, 2015 jacquelineobyikocha11 Comments

In response to The Daily Post’s writing prompt: “Daily Ritual.”

As therapeutic and as good as consistency can be, monotony can become extremely predictable and boring. I like a bit of spice in my life and I search for simple, cost effective ways to achieve a balance between stable and racy. However, that said, there are Four pillars of ritualistic acts that are constant in my daily life.

Prayer

Writing

Reading

Eating (not to be forgotten)

Every other aspect is slotted into a box around these Four. Call it upbringing, belief, force of habit etc., the first thing that comes to my mind once my eyes peek open, is to give thanks. It depends on how my spirit moves me. I could wake up with a particular song in my heart or prayer thought. I could wake up without much to bother God about, and I would just say good morning Lord. Another beautiful. Thank you. Then there are some mornings or even evenings that I have a pretty long chat with him, followed by scouring through my bible. Sometimes, he responds right away and other times he simply listens to my rants until I have run out of steam.

My second daily ritual is to write throughout the day. Spur of the moment notes or thoughts are quickly jotted as I go about my daily affair and much later in the evenings when all the hungry mouths have been fed and no one is looking at mummy with hungry eyes.

For more than 25 years at least, I have always gone to bed clutching a book. That is my own sleeping pill and my tuck myself in time, when I am satisfied that I have done the bit that can be done for that day. All leftovers will be carried over to the next day if feasible.

Of course I love the ritual of eating and this art of appreciating the fruitfulness of the land is a daily need that must be met to keep me well nourished.

There is no point in searching far and wide to know what happens on a day that my cycle is rudely interrupted, I become a sour-faced grumpus. Each day, I try to perfect the fine-art of observing my rituals. It keeps me calm, more productive and less quarrelsome.

Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha

P.S. Sometimes these prompts make me feel as if I am writing an autobiography 🙂

Blogging · Creative Writing · Hope · Inspiration - Motivation · Success · Weave that Dream

A refreshing Toast….

September 8, 2015 jacquelineobyikocha43 Comments

I am 100 today. Not in age 😉 but in blog posts. In my place, there is an old saying that “you celebrate the small things, in order to pave way for the bigger ones” and this is precisely what I am doing. I am celebrating my 100 posts, my 192 blogger friends, my 4,247 followers and my 5,220 stats on this blog.

Vividly, I recall the trepidation that I felt on May 6th when I made my first post on this blog.

I felt like an amateur fisherman who was sitting in a boat that gently rocked on a calm lake, with an occasional ripple of the water, croaks and chirps from the surrounding shrub to interrupt his concentration. He hooks a wriggly, skinny worm as bait and simply casts his line into the water, in hopeful hope to catch a fry.

His minutes turn to a slow time of humming, sipping his beer and holding his bated breath; then SNAG, the pull of a first bite tugged at the end of the pole and he nearly topples over into the water out of elation and excitement of his first catch.

Now, that was precisely my reaction when I sent out my initial 2 posts and 3 bloggers Stuart M. Perkins – Story Shucker, E. I. Wong and gpicone liked my feeble attempt at getting my toes wet in the choppy bloggy waters.

To say the least, it gave me such a buzz, that the thrill nearly jolted me out of my seat. Thus, my expedition in blogosphere began. Almost each day, like an adrenaline junkie, I return for more jolts; to write, to read, to listen and to learn. I have met lovely blogging souls on this path and I thank you all for staying with me.

Need I say more about this blogging milestone? If truth be told, the warm reception at WordPress exceeds my expectations.

I am going to go off on a festive tangent as a way of celebrating my little drops by re-blogging old posts of mine as well as posts of others that catch my eyes each day for at least a week.

Let’s keeping writing and sharing.

Regards,

Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha

Humor - Bellyful of laughter · The Daily Post

A Soar and A Splat!….

September 7, 2015September 7, 2015 jacquelineobyikocha28 Comments

In response to The Daily Post’s writing prompt: “Mouth Drop.”

I must implore you not to laugh, snicker or snort when you read this ;), even though I struggle to keep a straight face myself as I recall my brief experience in flying without wings. I promise you, it was never my intention to take R. Kelly’s – I believe I can fly too seriously.

As was the case, it was not my mouth that dropped open, but the whole ~~body~~ of me!

Several months ago, I made a decision to start jogging at twilight and purchased spanking new gym outfit to give myself a boost and a rush.

Feeling all geared to go, I set off for my first run and joined by my first son, I took off as swiftly as I could.

The light evening breeze was cool, my music was on shuffle and I was generally having a good time. As my sprint quickened, out of the blues, I stumbled over a cobble stone and I literally flew a few yards in the air and landed in the brush with a heavy thud.

For several minutes, I lay there winded and all I could feel was the taste of pain that rushed from my left shoulder right into my throat. It was a metallic taste.

My son who had shot off ahead of me like a whistle, looked back and when he didn’t see my robust shadow following him, he back tracked and helped me get back on my feet.

I hobbled home and nursed my pain along with my wounded pride. My crazy desire for twilight jogging nicely nipped in the bud.

Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha