Embracing the Journey: A Manifesto for Lifelong Learning

 

Entwined within the labyrinth of existence, I am but a humble thread, weaving my way through the intricacies of existence. I do not claim wisdom; instead, I humbly acknowledge my perpetual state of curiosity, forever eager to learn and grow. This, I believe, is the essence of living—a continuous journey of exploration and discovery, fueled by an insatiable thirst for knowledge.

Life, to me, is not a destination to be reached but a journey to be embraced. With each passing day, I am reminded of the infinite mysteries that surround us, beckoning us to delve deeper, to ask questions, and to seek understanding. It is through this relentless pursuit of knowledge that we truly come alive, transcending the boundaries of our own limitations.

I have learned, through trial and error that the key to unlocking life's greatest treasures lies in the simple act of asking questions. No inquiry is too trivial, no curiosity too insignificant. It is in the asking that we open ourselves up to a world of possibilities, where even the most mundane of moments can hold profound revelations.

But asking questions requires courage—courage to challenge the status quo, to confront our own ignorance, and to embrace the unknown. There have been times when fear has gripped me, when doubt has clouded my judgment, but I have learned to push through the discomfort, to lean into the uncertainty, knowing that on the other side lies enlightenment.

I am often regarded as "annoyingly witty," a moniker I wear with pride, for it is a testament to my relentless pursuit of understanding. I scrutinize processes and procedures, not out of a desire to criticize, but out of a genuine curiosity to uncover the underlying truths. It is this insatiable hunger for knowledge that fuels my creativity, propelling me forward on my journey of self-discovery.

In my quest for understanding, I have come to realize that no one is the sole custodian of knowledge. Each of us holds a piece of the puzzle, a fragment of the truth waiting to be discovered. It is only through collaboration and sharing that we can hope to unlock life's greatest mysteries, standing on the shoulders of giants who came before us.

Nature may have endowed some with greater intellect or talent, but I firmly believe that we all have the capacity to learn and grow. It is a matter of willingness, of dedication, of paying the price for knowledge. With each step we take, each question we ask, we inch closer to our true potential, standing out amidst the vastness of existence.

So, let us embrace the journey that lies before us, with all its twists and turns, its highs and lows. Let us ask questions, seek understanding, and never falter in our pursuit of knowledge. For in the end, it is not the destination that matters, but the journey itself—the journey of a lifetime, filled with wonder, curiosity, and endless possibility.

MY THOUGHTS ON FAILURE

               

Failure is not the worst thing that could happen to a man. Your refusal to get up is worse than the misfortune of falling. 

All men fall and have fallen at some point in life. While some made their beds on the grounds they have stumbled, others made bricks from the earth upon which they had fallen and built mansions for themselves. 

It is difficult to convince a man who has lost hope to believe, it is nonetheless the best thing you can offer him. There is a natural tendency in man to want to preserve himself before anything else, and so we chose the path that is easiest to trod. And this applies to every one of us. Knowing that we are all susceptible to failure, condemning those who have failed will not be the wisest thing to do even if you have not experienced it. 

However, we cannot also celebrate those who have given up on trying just because we are fallible as everyone else. So, while it is good for others to extend hands of help when you are down in the gutters of life, the onus lie on you the most to lift yourself up and out. 

The idea that people must help you as if they owe you does not and will not help you in any way. It is your life we are talking about here. The decision to live or not is yours to make. More over you are the person living the life. If you succeed or fail at it, you will ultimately reap the benefits either way it turns. It was Soichiro Honda (the founder of Honda Automobiles) who said; if you believe you can or cannot, you are right. Think about it. 

Do not get me wrong, we all need a little help from time to time. I have always said; no one is self made. The richest man in the world was helped. Notwithstanding, do not go about demanding that people help you. It is the prerogative of the helper to offer help or not. So do not live your life expecting that any one is under some obligation to help you. As a matter of fact, living without such expectations is less burdensome. You suffer from less anxiety and tendency to hate or to be bitter. 

And if you are in a position to help, please do. We live in a time when people are fast losing faith in humanity. This is largely because of their experiences in the hands of other humans, especially people they have trusted at some point in life. My people would say; the reason a poor man builds his house close to the rich man' is so that the light from the rich man's compound can shine onto his. That is not the case today, because the rich man's fence is so high it blocks out the light. 

The increasing insecurity, heightened corruption, hatred, widening gap between social class etc can be traced to; man's inhumanity to man. It's appalling to even imagine that a man would consider himself better or higher than another simply on the basis of tribe, race or nation. These are not strange occurrences in our present world, we live with and experience it everyday. If we need to change the cataclysmic direction we are headed, we need to calibrate our hearts. 

We will need to learn to stretch out our hands and hearts, to ask and to give. Do not hate those who does not help and do not refuse to help if you can do so. 

I wish you a wonderful July. Have a great day and month. It's past  1am already, yet I can't get sleep. I am resuming morning duty today and I need to get some rest before heading to work in about five hours. 

The good Lord continue to watch over all of us. Remember, help those who need your help if you can.