Fifteen years ago is the year I finished my high school, at this time of my life, I was still looking very young and was very naïve to the realities which was in the world and I was about finding out as I journeyed to start my higher education, before this time, all could think about was to finish my secondary school education and get enrolled to a higher institution where I would be able to live my life the way I wanted to live my life. I did envision that I would always eat what I wanted at school, stay out late and do all adultly things I wanted since I was all by myself at school with no one to stop me.
This dream was cut short as soon as I resumed school. I couldn’t get an off-campus accommodation, so I stayed a couple of days at my dad’s friend’s and after which, I was accommodated in a hall that housed more than 30 students. We have the legal occupants, then the legal squatters and the illegal squatters. There, I meant some friends who taught me valuable lessons in my life to date.
In my first semester, being the man my mother trained me to be, I will always share my food with everyone, after which, these students with whom I have shared my food will go behind me to eat without inviting me. This I knew about, but I was always having this mindset that it is okay to give others and expect nothing in return, and when you feel cheated, it is still okay, just as it was done to you, another person will do it to the person who feels he is taking advantage of your kindness. This attitude towards life has enabled me to live with anyone in peace. At this time, I had only one true friend, who is the only one that I am still very close with to date.
What I did the next semester was to take my things to a friend’s place in another hall, which was where I went to cook and eat with my friend every day, since I couldn’t really eat in front of everyone and still refuse to give them what I was eating, as it was never how I was raised.
After my higher education, I was posted to Plateau state, Nigeria for my one-year compulsory youth services where I still met a guy who was also selfish, greedy and was not trained right, and because of how I was raised and the experienced I had in the university, I was able to live with this guy at peace for the whole period of a year before everyone finds his way. It was at this point that I realised that I am usually a tolerable person, and I understood that everyone has his or her faults in this life; your obligation is to learn to live with them or find your way when you cannot bear.
I might have changed physically, lost some hair, or look a bit older now, but I strongly believe that I still have the same mindset as I did fifteen years ago. I have been through stuff; I have had significant growth in my life in every ramification of my life. But I will always conclude that a man is who he is; a man’s character is built from childhood and remains so for the rest of his life. Even during my secondary school days, I was known to be of the same character and raising and to date, I haven’t really changed much. And that is “Who I am” or think I am.
Thank you for reading. My name is @rishagamo, and this is my response to the Hive Learners weekly Featured Content Week 183 Episode 02: “WHO ARE YOU”.
One thing about it is the fact that we must grow; growing is the one thing that shows that our lives aren't stagnant. And I'm glad you've learned something during your youth service.
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