Context.
I just returned from a much needed time away from Nigeria. I think everyone needs time out of Nigeria even if it’s for 48 hours. Whenever I leave, I come back upset at the status quo that we have learned to accept here. As I walked off the airplane, a heatwave hit me, and the air conditioners weren’t working at the airport. I noticed that none of the immigration officials wore a mask, and as much as I wanted to get upset, I imagined what it must be like to permanently wear a mask for hours throughout the day, in such a hot enclosed space. Context.
After clearing my baggage, I engaged a porter to push a trolley to the pick up area. As we approached the parking garage, the trolley went over a pothole and my bags fell off. My protocol guy immediately got upset, and screamed at the trolley guy, and my 6 year old son said, “It’s not his fault, it’s the Nigerian government.” I quickly said to my son, “It’s not the Nigerian government. It was a simple mistake by the porter. He should’ve avoided the pothole.” The reason I said this is because sometimes I get tired of hearing people blame the Nigerian government for everything. I didn’t realize that my son was referring to the pothole that was responsible for the tumbling. He was right, it was the Nigerian government’s fault. If the pothole wasn’t there, the trolley wouldn’t have fallen. But again, we’re used to the status quo, so in our minds it’s the porter’s fault. Again. Context.
This same idea applies to how we engage others, and life in general. When we deal with situations based on our personal assumptions, we fail to see the true picture of things. I’m here sending out weekly newsletters, while simultaneously trying to sort out the lack of electricity for 2 days, a non functional generator, trying to sort out my son’s hair cut, running errands, + 1 billion other things, and I’m benchmarking this consistency against Uncle Seth who wakes up, meditates, grabs a cup of coffee, has breakfast made by a chef, sits in calmness (instead of thinking about his delayed rent), no generator noises, types his newsletters, and then shows up to a space that his entire team has pre-set up, and does his thing for the day. Bruh, I would be churning out daily newsletters if I had this luxury too. Context.
While I was away, guess how long it took me to upload my YouTube videos? 2 minutes. Maybe 3 minutes max. Guess how long it takes here? 1 hour on a good day, 3-5 hours on a not-good day. The houses are built in a way that natural light comes though the windows - that means I didn’t need to set up any additional light. There was zero noise, and I didn’t have to worry about recording and stopping. I could literally think up an idea, and develop it within minutes. But we sit here in our day-to-day lives comparing what we create to what these guys are doing internationally? If I wasn’t proud of myself a few weeks ago, I am the most proud of myself right now. In fact I think everyone needs to travel not just to get away from Nigeria, but to just remind yourself of how BADASS you are that you’re able to make magic with nothing. Because in reality, you have to create your own raw materials, before you can create anything else. By all means aspire to better standards, but don’t raise your blood pressure.
You are BADASS! PURE MAGIC - Don’t let nobody tell you nothing from their privileged seat.
Have a super blessed week!
xx
Adaora ‘Lumina’ Mbelu
Quote for the week:
“Conceit is incompatible with understanding. Context is the key – from that comes the understanding of everything.” - Kenneth Noland