Liberating—that's the feeling I can describe about finally completing this one year of service. And, although I had complained about many inconvenient experiences, it was mostly recently at a board meeting at some job that I realised how the last year has been a time of improvements in a completely new dimension.
"I am so not ready. I think I am just going to defer it and join the next batch." A statement I frantically said at the beginning of the service year in July 2023 and that my friends and family now remind me of. I was going to a totally different state, many miles away from home, with people and food from other tribes that I wasn't used to, and the notice came suddenly.
And so when I was asked how I have improved as a person because of this program at a board meeting between my community development service group and a hotel we wanted to collaborate with and that I was a spokesman for, I recalled many of my experiences so far.
You see, prior to living in the south-south region, where I am now, I only knew things about where I am from, the south-west region of Nigeria, and never really cared much about anywhere else. Now, I can say that I have not only met and interacted with people from different tribes but also learned some of their languages and eaten some of their foods.
Travelling isn't something I like to do, but I have had to travel between states for various reasons. And each time I get to be in a completely new environment, I feel excited about the new sightings, mostly to feed my eyes, as long as there aren't too many inconveniences.
I was sent to teach at a secondary school, and I was assigned physics. At first, I didn't think it was a big deal since I loved physics back then in school, but I have now concluded that that profession, teaching, is so not my calling. And now, having completed this program, I feel so liberated.
What's next in line for me is to start my life, get a good job, build my career—which is totally different from a job—make a lot of money to take care of myself and my loved ones, then get married as soon as possible (because what else would I be waiting for again?)and on and on...
You know how you're not sure where to go next or how to move on, but you're holding on to faith that the morrow's going to take care of itself and you're just going to live in the present? Yeah, that's what I'm focused on now, as well as allowing my curiousity take me on adventures.
By the way, there's a new community I started called Digital Lifestyle. It's a hub for interesting, insightful, and useful things that could potentially improve how you do things in this digital world. Check it out, will you? Read more here.