CHAPTER TWENTY FIVE

Started the chapter single.

If I’m being honest, the year turned out better than I imagined. It started with me having a birthday hang out for the first time in my adult life. Up until my 25^th birthday, I’d never thrown a birthday party or anything. I told myself “life is too short, spend this money”. My sister gave me the ginger so I decided to have one at home. The Presidential Elections was postponed to my birthday (Oh the disrespect !!! ). I couldn’t let BuBu kill my vibe, so I moved the hangout to the day after. It was basically food, drinks, music and great conversation.

From there, everything became confusing. I was hell bent on leaving Nigeria. I got my international passport, started filling applications but all I got were rejection letters from schools. I know you’re supposed to keep trying till you get what you want but it gets tiring, you know.

While this was going on, I got done with NYSC. Yes. Post-NYSC phase is the absolute ghetto. You find out that you are essentially back to square one, doubting your life decisions, and wondering what to do next. It didn’t help that I went for my high school reunion and everyone seemed to have their lives figured out. With some encouragement from my sister (same sister), I decided to expand my business and start my Master’s. I really thought I would be balling during Master’s and running my business.

I laugh because a Master’s degree program is so engaging, and running an online store is tasking. Kindly check out my business page: https://instagram.com/shop.aarin

In July, I finally resumed and I must tell you this was a very challenging month for me. Firstly, I felt like I should be counting money instead of reading books (lol. Translate to Yoruba). Then I kept thinking I had not chosen the right department for my career development. I also wanted to do away with the pressure of being a University of Ibadan scholar. The worst part, though, was having lecturers, old classmates, junior colleagues, and some other random people ask me a multitude of questions I mostly had no answers to or those that generally left me depressed.

“You are back?” “How can you come back to UI?” “You should have traveled out.” “How can you choose that department??” “Are you sure you want to be in that department” “Is masters the next thing for you?”

By August though, I had unlocked a new level of unbothered. Nothing got to me. I told myself I was already here and I’d make the best of it. Things became easier and I got with the flow. School was so engaging but I focused on preparing for my sister’s wedding (another sister. lol. I have four sisters), which was to take place in September. I literally abandoned schoolwork to go for dress fittings.

The wedding was amazing and my sister made a beautiful bride.  Of course it came with the fights, misunderstandings and miscommunication but what’s a wedding without the drama? The best part of the wedding was that the couple was so in love with each other they couldn’t hide it from anyone.

I had to make up for all my abandoned schoolwork in October and it wasn’t funny at all. My days were filled with sighs of “oluwa wetin dey happen?“. Preparing for first semester exams was such a struggle. It was nothing like undergrad days. I had so many assignments, presentations and revision classes. That didn’t stop me from turning up for my baby sister’s convocation though.

Remember how I started my 25^th single? Well, it was because I was ghosted early 2018 and it took me a while to move on. After that, I got too comfortable with my own company. However, I met a guy late 2019 and I really thought it was time to try again. Things were moving so fast with him. We had so many things in common it was unreal. You get the gist; it was so easy to catch feelings. Plus you can’t really be immune to a Yoruba boy’s aggressive toasting. I decided to try out this relationship thing again but it ended in tears when he ghosted me early December. If you’ve ever wondered why I take ghosting so personally, that’s why. At this point, I’ll reiterate the demerit of attaching songs or albums to people. If you don’t work out, your thoracic region will heat up anytime the songs come on.  I mean I have had to delete Fireboy DML’s Fire Down, the entire Coldplay’s Head Full of Dreams and Adele’s 25.

By mid-December, I went to Lagos to cool off. It started off as boring but it turned detty eventually. Big shout outs to Wasiu and WeTalkSound for getting me concert tickets. Listen to WeTalkSound’s new project here: https://fanlink.to/LOFN3  If you’ve been following, you would have noticed how my priorities are always misplaced. I enjoyed my Detty December a little too much, forgetting that I had fixed my IELTS for January 11^th. I had to crash prepare in 10 days and I was super scared about the results. I had a band 8 though and I consider this my biggest flex of Chapter 25.

Although I hoped to be typing this out of Nigeria, with glowing skin, and a bigger butt, I have many more things I’m thankful for. 25 was good to me.

Ended the chapter single.

I leave you with these words………..  CONSISTENCY IS KEY.