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Patience

This year I have learnt to patiently wait for what belongs to me to come to me. I finished school late last year and I was expecting to go for my mandatory national service in March, but due to some unknown reasons (elections maybe) the service time was shifted to May.

After a gruelling 5 month wait registration for the May batch opened (it opened in April). With plenty joy and optimism I ran to go and register, only to be hit back with an error message saying my name was not in the NYSC database. What the hell?!!!  Why me? Ok, it was not just me in the predicament, it happened that due to the typical Nigerian administrative sloppiness, our department in school didn't submit our names to the university council for approval for NYSC on time. This meant that we'd have to wait for the next batch. And when was the next batch? Nobody knew.

It is one thing to wait for something when you know when it's coming and it's different ball game when you are waiting for something that is far away without a arrival date. May, June, July, August, September, it was in September I registered for a new batch, three months after my initial disappointment. It was like going into a new relationship after a horrible, heart-wrenching break up.

October, the posting was released and I was posted to a state close to Lagos. I see a lot of opportunities for me and my friends whenever I think about it. Then I checked the date I was going to serve, November. Come on now, I'll still have to wait for a month again? Then I thought to myself, "If I can wait for this NYSC for one year, 30 days is too small for me to wait. I'll just close my eyes and count to 30"

What's have I gained during this waiting period? I spent time with my family. I learnt patience, I learnt not to be caught up in the human race. I particularly found it hard because I spent 5 years in school and there was the 1 year at home and it wasn't that I was sipping on the elixir for eternal youth. This was hard to swallow but getting involved in things like Children's Ministry, and #NooW made the time worthwhile.

"Good things come to those who wait"

"Patience is a virtue", not a virtue but a virgin too!

I believe someone might have fervently prayed and I just had to be drafted in November to be the answer to prayers. I have no complaints. I'm on my way coming.

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