Appreciation Post – Steps to my Ladder (Mid-week Special)

I’ll start with what inspired this post. my mum and I went out for dinner at this Chinese place and it was so much fun, we laughed the whole time and I enjoyed listening to her stories. It seemed like a normal dinner but we knew how we’ve been wanting to do something like that.

Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn.
Benjamin Franklin

The story starts after we were done eating, the bill was brought to us alongside two fortune cookies. Mine read “Appreciate your Tutors”. It’s been three weeks and I’ve been really thinking about doing this. I always talk about how inefficient and recursive the system is when it comes to how Education is treated in the country (Nigeria). I’ve really been thinking about ways to fix it and left out appreciating the people that actually made it to work every day to give me direction.

I see my self as a house under construction, every person I meet puts a block and I plaster with the cement mix, but you need ladders to climb up and plaster at higher levels and I think I’ve had the best ladders. Every teacher I had from Kindergarten to college impacted in my life greatly and I will point out a few.

I wasn’t the easiest student especially when I was younger, I had arguments with my math teachers from Primary school to Secondary school a lot because they teach me something then I go home and try different ways to do the same thing then submit it. I was penalized in different ways but I learned so much from that experience and my further math teacher always told me that one day, I’ll understand. I guess it was more of a life lesson.

Let’s start with Secondary school (High school). From my Chemistry teacher that understood we didn’t have chemistry but gave the best advice to my Biology teacher, well that was Biology. Physics 🙂 (I love you Sir); He used the cane, never failed to call me out when I was wrong and always praised me when I was right then over to my Igbo (Native language) teacher, you made me a better person and cared for me like a son and my form teacher always checked up on me. Let’s not forget my Economics teacher and every other staff to the cleaners (she chased me with a broom) in the school and the ice cream man across the fence.

My principal late Mrs. L.D Eze , I remember your voice from upstairs shouting, Oscar tuck in your shirt! Oscar this people look up to you. The day you drove me that competition and said, “Oscar, I’ve always wanted to say a prayer for you” and you blessed me that day. You’re one of my biggest inspirations.

Don’t just prepare to face the University, prepare to face the Universe.
Dr. Onyenwe

College was great, you get to meet …uhm let me just start. Everyone was great, I managed to forge bonds towards the end of my college years with a certain lecturer, he had just attained his PhD and had this stars in his eyes, like he wanted to make changes. He was secretly called Python man. Next was my project supervisor, we didn’t click at first but he turned out to be one of the best things that happened to me in the University. Other lecturers were great and all had something to offer (I’m really trying not to say apart from one or two). But I love you all, every word from each class you taught was like a seed.

Finally I will like to dedicate this post to my one and only Mrs. Mkpulumma, you made math so interesting, you were my lesson teacher but it was more than that, you are my second mother. I remember staying till 10PM at your place looking for Math problems to solve and you begging me to go home. You always called and I always have you in my heart and mind. I will call you today.

A GOOD TEACHER IS LIKE A CANDLE, IT CONSUMES ITSELF TO LIGHT THE WAY FOR OTHERS

Early life in Nigeria was fun and I had the best Teacher/Lecturers and I’m thanking them not just for educational impact but for serving as a step to my ever growing ladder. Thanks guys.

This is a Mid-week special to make up for the lost time. See you on Saturday 🙂