He worked in Akure at that time. I had just completed my second degree and was living with my family in Abuja. We planned to get married and settle in Akure. He had found an apartment for rent at a rate we could afford and located in an area with easy access to public transportation. It seemed we would be fine without a car for sometime.
I planned to get whatever reasonable job I could find in Akure so I could provide some financial support. It clearly was going to be a humble beginning for our new family but we were young, we were in love with each other, we both had potential and we trusted that we would be just fine.
Well, heaven smiled on us about a month to the wedding. He was posted to work in Lagos and I got a job in Lagos too. We resumed at our new offices a day apart and we just kept marvelling at the fact that we were now in the same town, both employed, and earning much more. Everything changed.
A few days ago we saw a little boy trekking to school without an umbrella on a rainy day. He wore his shirt over his school bag so his books would not get wet. I assume his parents could only afford to pay his fees, buy his books, and his uniform. This was a reminder to us that there are people who really cannot afford some of the basic necessities that make for a better quality of life.
We were filled again with a sense of gratitude that we are better off than we could have been, and faced again with the reality that our advantage is not for our benefit alone. We all are blessed to be a blessing and we must continually find ways to reach out from the platforms that we have been so graciously given, to meet the needs of those around us and in some way improve the quality of their lives.
I AM BLESSED TO BE A BLESSING AND SO ARE YOU.
Picture credit: www.trem.org