Time has changed you.

You are now quieter, even though you’ve always been quiet. What’s different now is that there’s something you want to say, but you tie your tongue, yet your eyes give it away.

You are now less trusting, even though you’ve always held doubts. What is different now is that you don’t even trust yourself, but you still carry a gait of confidence, even though it is now fueled more by anger than by love. 

You are now less open, even though you’ve never been an open book. What’s different now is that you let nobody in anymore; even when your heart yearns for companionship, you anchor it to occasional pleasures that distract more than they satisfy.

But I still see you. You are there. Behind the veil of silence, anger, and pleasure. You are there. The veils no longer serve you. They choke you. Take them off. Breathe.

– Osasu Oviawe

The most uncertain choices I have made have been the most rewarding.

The most certain choices I have made have been the most draining.

Yet I remain wary of uncertainty and committed to certainty.

Little wonder the tap opens only occasionally and the drain is always open.

– Osasu Oviawe

Ego is directly proportional to ignorance.

– Osasu Oviawe

No matter how far you have travelled in the wrong direction, turning around is the only sure right direction there is.

– Osasu Oviawe

If you reconnect with people who hurt you, then it is not healing you seek; it is the reopening of wounds.

Many people are addicted to the reopening of wounds.

“How to cut off communication” is one skill that hurtful people were put there to teach you.

Learn it.

– Osasu Oviawe

I have a friend whose life goal was for me to have a house in Benin.

He didn’t care about me having property anywhere else in the country or the world. He only cared about me having one at home.

And this year, he won. He didn’t win just with words; he won by actively sourcing the property, organizing the sale, perfecting the paperwork, supervising the renovation, and delivering the keys.

He basically removed all friction from the transaction just to pull it through.

There is an unexplainable joy that comes from seeing friendship in action.

Relationships are a reason for being. Everything else serves at its altar.

– Osasu Oviawe

Your vocabulary is indicative of your life experiences and is typically shaped after the experience.

However, to have a full experience of any aspect of life, you need the vocabulary before the experience. Otherwise, you are unable to name and connect to the moment.

There are a few amazing hacks for building vocabulary before the experience, and they all involve connecting with people.

One that I find amazing is reading. You do not need to be anything other than yourself to connect with another, and yet you disproportionately gain vocabulary before the experience. And so, when the experience comes, you are able to live it more fully.

Whatever you do, create space for reading. It will open your eyes to the world around you without having to leave the place you are at.

– Osasu Oviawe

Life does not offer a clear “yes” or “no” because it is filled with nuances, but to navigate life and find peace in it, you must distill your “yes” or “no” from all the “it depends.”

– Osasu Oviawe

A knife is only as useful as its ability to cut through what you need chopped.

The more effective it is at that, the more likely it is that a mindless stroke could also cut you.

You will not discard a knife or blunt its edges because it cut you. You will be more mindful during its use.

That is how to approach strengths and weaknesses. The parts of you that are most effective can also be your pitfall if you are not mindful.

Your weaknesses are not a reason to shrink away from the light. They are there to remind you to be mindful.

And if you are, they will hurt you less.

– Osasu Oviawe

On important occasions, I ask for my mum’s prayers.

Then I ask for my girl’s prayers.

And finally, I pray for myself.

God always comes through.

Somebody’s prayers work, and I’m unwilling to stop any to find out whose.

– Osasu Oviawe