All the writers; all their topics: 31 days of precious 2013 moments!

You know how this idea for the #31days31writers project started? To start with I know YNaija’s done something like that in 2012, I think I wrote for that sef. I did! It was an article on babes beefing each other for no reason, and you won’t believe the gender that bashed me the most on that piece? Lol!

For this one though, I saw someone tweet in November (I swear I don’t remember their handle and I’m on a Twitter fast so I can’t go look) but he was talking about it and I thought, this might be cool for the end of the year. I didn’t act on it though till the 26th of November, and then I gave all my writers till the 28th to hand in their pieces. With benefit of hindsight, it must have a freaked a number of them out!

Anyway, so I must have asked 40 people, and out of those I got 30. And I am more than grateful that they took the time to squeeze their 2013 into 600 words, and send in the lovely pictures they did. From castration for sex offenders, to faith in the Lord, rebuilt confidence, loyalty from friends, second chances, to resolutions for the new year, homosexuality and homophobia, 2013 was different for every one of my writers, and I am so proud of them!!

Did you miss any of the articles? Well, you’re welcome, I’ve listed all of them below!

1. DAY 1: The first in the ‘a post a day’ series – Chude Jideonwo
2. “I learned that I matter” – Francine! #31days31writers
3. “I have learnt pain is a part of the process” – Emeka #31days31writers
4. “I use writing as a tool to make a difference” – Chijioke #31days31writers
5. “No more Mr Nice Guy” – Mr Mobility! #31days 31 writers
6. “I’m thankful for stability” – Saratu #31days 31writers
7. “I would shut up and let her do her mothering” – Vickie Remoe #31days31writers
8. “The internet lives” – Pa Ikhide starts the second week of my #31days31writers project!
9. “I am gradually learning to love the silence” – Dosh Mabonga! #31days31writers
10. “I have learnt that dreams can actually come true” – Bisi Alimi #31days31writers
11. “I learnt to let go and forgive” – Onaedo!! #31days31writers
12. “I have learnt that light always comes at dawn” – Alkayy!! #31days31writers
13. “Who says black men shouldn’t cry?” – My girl Francesca Uriri! #31days31writers
14. “Our human species have truly trashed the planet” – Jeremy!! #31Days31Writers
15. “2013: Of numbers, expectations and unspoken promises” – Dami #31Days31Writers
16. “I won the lottery!!” – Tolu #31days31writers
17. “I’ve learnt to let go and let God” – the delectable Nike Coker! #31Days31Writers
18. “People change and so do you” – Ewoma gives us home truths! #31days31writers
19. “Castration as an act of mercy” – My girl Zima goes hard! #31days31writers
20. “I learnt a lot about public engagement as a public servant” – Ohimai!! #31Days31Writers
21. “I live and breathe food” – Nky Iweka #31days31writers
22. “I have so much to be grateful for!” – Mac-Jordan #31Days31Writers
23. “I’m glad that I followed my intuition and took risks” – Chris!! #31Days31Writers
24. “This year taught me to represent” – Eziaha (The Fab Sister) is up today! #31days31writers
25. “Loyalty makes a friend family” – Nonso’s up for our Christmas special! #31days31writers
26. “I have come to love and accept myself” – my bestie is up! #31days31writers
27. “I don’t even remember my resolutions for 2013″ – Andy Madaki on #31days31writers
28. “I have learnt that homosexuality exists in 450 species” – Okechukwu is a shining star on #31days31writers today!
29. “I understood faith as a lifestyle this year” – Lizzie
30. “Your friend is your need answered” – a surprise appearance on the #31days31writers project!
31. “Thank you for being part of my 2013″ – Guess who? Me!!!

Thank you guys for honoring me and my blog. Best wishes for the new year!

Love, light, and God’s many blessings!

Mwah!

“This year taught me to represent” – Eziaha (The Fab Sister) is up today! #31days31writers

Eziaha is an old friend from secondary school, and she is super amazing! She’s funny, brilliant, a wonderful daughter of Zion who makes being a Christian most fashionable (the only person who refers to God as her ‘Sugar Daddy’), and runs an amazing blog here.

When I asked her first to send in a submission, I wasn’t sure she would make it because she was on honeymoon! But I have since learned that my dear friend doesn’t sleep (smh), and when she sent this in last night, I was more than thrilled. 

Christmas Eve special had to be a special person, and I dare you not to get caught up in the palpable excitement this Fab Sister brings to each blogpost! For the 24th day in my #31days31writers project, I give you E’!

E’ is on the Fairy GodSister’s blog!!! Whoop!!! Thanks baby… Now let’s roll, classic E’ style…

Being the effervescent, and drama-filled woman that I am, 2013 was defo my kinda year…

By the way, the name’s Eziaha, Nigerian, Sociologist by training, and weeks away from ‘graduating’ from NYSC and furthering a career in Social Entrepreneurship with an IGO… I am also a very proud born-again Christian with a serious lovey-dovey relationship with my Sugar Daddy.

Started the year a fresh graduate, starry-eyed, big dreams especially for this NYSC. With all the negative stories about the scheme, I chose to BELIEVE that it would bring me nothing but good in large doses. My people, it did. It has been one FABULOUS year. I got the EXACT kinda job in my PPA (place of primary assignment) I wanted, with good pay, fantastic colleagues, bosses who just love me (and my smile) and oh-so-wonderful students. A lot of times, I forget I am serving. From camp, I started meeting the most amazing people, made some incredible connections, got an FG appointment in the course of this year, and my faith was renewed in the Nigerian youth cos we (driven young persons in my CDS group) got some great things accomplished. Don’t get it twisted people, the NYSC year can be all that and more if you can entrust it to our Sugar daddy too. It has given me the necessary launch pad I need for my career for which I’m oh-so-thankful.

This year also taught me to REPRESENT. Represent my Sugar Daddy well everywhere I go because aside from the fact that people are always watching, He is actually banking on us to be Light. Keep showing Him off. Keep attracting men to Him as a result of our lifestyle. From the little to the big things, from my workplace to my blog (www.eziaha.com), on good days and not-so-good, I learnt to live like an Ambassador of His Kingdom.

Oh but there are NO perfect ambassadors. That I learnt too. No perfect humans… Not me, Not you and certainly NOT our Pastors (I have the world’s BEST by the way). There is beauty and trash in EVERYone of us. Trashy deeds/mistakes don’t erase the beauty/good. So, I learned to consciously look for the beauty in people and judge them less harshly when the trash shows up once in a while. That’s the kinda love Jesus died for…

This year, I lost a friend. No she didn’t die but we fell out. We reconciled yeah but things changed. And it hurt me cos… Well. It did hurt. But it taught me a HUGE lesson. I had to really define the relationships and boundaries in my life. There were friends I had neglected. I quickly adjusted (Thank God I could). There were some mentee-mentor relationships I strengthened. Healthy relationships are everything. Priceless.  Especially when handled well. Hindsight Vision is usually 20/20 and so with the benefit of 2013 hindsight, I have resolved to do 2014 right especially in the area of relationships.

And of course, speaking of relationships, there were many people I wished I met. But I found out that the secret of great men are in their stories so where I couldn’t physically sit at their feet, I harnessed the power of books and the internet especially social media to glean greatness from their stories. Ah, I learnt plenty by just being online. Yes there was the gossip (shalla to LIB) but there were also big time inspirations too. I truly can afford my mentors… 🙂

And oh, I got married too. To the One I call Aku m…My Treasure. My perfect slice of heaven. My ‘David’; a man after my own heart. Ah, a good marriage is heaven on earth, lie no good. *smile*

Congratulations babe!!!!

Cheers to an abso-friggin-lutely fabulous year 2013 and an even more BLESSED 2014…