A few weeks ago my last daughter began to learn how to ride her bicycle. She insisted she wanted daddy to teach her so I had no option but to oblige. I create that kind of time. And as the lessons progressed, I shared my experience with her and gave her instructions on how to most importantly keep her balance, maintain her focus, stabilize her hands and keep her head up. My daughter fell down a few times in the course of the learning and this occurred every time she violated any of my rules. Each time she loosened her grip on the handles she would lose control, each time she bent down her head to look at the bicycle instead of her destination she would lose control, each time she slowed down or stopped pedaling she would lose control, each time she looked back at me instead of facing forward she would lose control, each time she got distracted by the fear of a fall or running into something she would lose control. But each time she fell she would get up, dust herself, rub and caress the point of pain or impact then get back on the bike again. She didn’t give up. I loved that spirit, I learnt so much from her. Dear friend, life is so much like riding a bicycle, we run on two major ends like the two wheels of a bicycle, the good the bad, the negative the positive, the success the failure, the forward the backward, the ups the downs, the laughter the tears, the progression and regression. Can I say something profound to you this morning, what we call stagnation in life is an illusion, you’re either going forward or backward you can’t remain on the same spot, you know why, life itself is in motion, its ever moving so if you’re on the same spot, you’re being left behind, life won’t wait for you, you’ll eventually end up at the back; at the tail end. Many of us today have as it were, remained on the same spot in matters of skills, competence, knowledge, exposure, capacity, ability and career. We are marking time, not moving with time; we are doing absolutely nothing to move forward, we are on an unending recess in life – long holiday; a long break; truth is we’re gradually being left behind. What have you changed this year? what have you learnt this year? what have you improved on this year? Is there a sharp difference in your career, in your ways, in your life, between last year and this year? Dear friend, what I’m trying to get you to do is to keep moving forward in life and career. Seize your day, seize your life! Don’t cage yourself and box yourself and limit your whole life to a very strenuous and boring pursuit of money alone. It’s a trap. Live life, keep moving forward. Set yourself free, don’t let anyone hold the reins of your life, be a free horse and run wildly into your field of dreams and adventures in life. It’s so fun to be free doing what you love and enjoy. Dear friend, you need to learn to ride the bicycle of your life well. Like I said to my daughter, you would have to hold the handles of your bicycle firmly by yourself, I wouldn’t keep holding it for you, If you’ll be good at riding I’ve got to let you go and make you take the responsibility of handling the bike by yourself. Many of us need that mental and psychological release from friends, family, relatives, god fathers and even some sort of paid employment to really move forward in life and career. We need to absolutely take charge of our rides. I also said to her, determine where you want to go and where you want to stop before you start moving. You must be clear on your journey and destination. Many of us today are not so sure about our lives, our journeys and our career paths hence, we get so easily distracted by fads and funds. We take every advice, entertain every fear and head in any direction. We don’t know where we’re going in life and in career. Dear friend, set your destination goal today. I also said to her, stop looking back at me because every time she does, she falls. Many of us today keep looking at our past; our history, our upbringing and we won’t let go of hurts, disappointments and people who were mean to us. We’re filled with anger, hate, vengeance and the will to prove something, yet these emotions keep frustrating and distracting our focus on the future. Let the past go, focus on your future. You can’t change the past anyway and you’re probably working hard to impress or oppress people who don’t even care you exist, your success or failure means nothing to them; they’re too busy with their own lives and challenges to think much of you. In fact when eventually you succeed and become important, they won’t return to celebrate with you indeed, their real motive will be how they can take advantage of your success and use you to solve their personal problems and meet their personal needs, so why bother with people and events of your past? I also said to her, to keep from falling you must keep moving, you must keep pedaling till you get to that point where you’ve raised enough momentum and speed for the bike to keep moving without your pedaling anymore, when the bike attains a state of auto cruise. Many of us in life when riding against a hill or an elevation in life we pedal for a while and stop, pedal for a while and stop, each time we stop we start rolling backwards because of the slope. When you are attaining new heights in life and career, it’s dangerous to stop half way, when you stop halfway you may have to start all over. Riding to a top is usually an uphill task; it requires determination, hard work, persistence and courage. If you dare give up, you could come tumbling down. Dear friend, you can’t just give up now on that project, that program, that exam, that new business, that need to go back to school, that new skill, you must keep pushing till you get to the top if you don’t want to return to the base. Life is like that, I assure you a season is coming when you’ll be cruising without sweat if you don’t give up now. That’s just the way it is... life is like that. My daughter taught me so many lessons as I was teaching her how to ride her bike. Thinking about it now, I actually taught all my children to ride their bicycles. It’s a wonderful experience for me as a father. Dear friend, how many things have you shared and done with your children lately? Do you have that kind of time? Do you really know your children, their temperaments, fears, weaknesses and strengths or all you’re bothered with is their report cards? Affection is in the details. I tell you bonding and having a great time with your children is a wonderful opportunity you’ll never be able to recover if you let it pass you by, as one day they’ll all be grown and gone. Enjoy your day.
Posted on: Mon, 11 Nov 2013 18:55:12 +0000
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