The Dreamer

Hello All! Its been a while since we chatted!Hope all is well with you? Me, I'm holding up, looking up to God and hoping that i can be of help to someone...Sometimes though, when something happens that makes me sad, I find out that the only thing that lifts me out of the depression is helping someone else, does it happen to you too?
It reminds me of the story of Joseph, remember Joseph from the bible? Yes, the dreamer! I sometimes wonder if being called the dreamer was apt, how about the helper? did you notice how even though Joseph was treated terribly by people (especially those closest to him) he still went out of his way to help people? He didn't seem to mind that they abused his trust or was he just that naive? He is someone, who was sold to slavery by his own flesh and blood, goes to become his master's favorite servant, was betrayed again by his master when the master's wife accused him of rape. You know sometimes you think people you trust and love should know you enough to vouch for you, to say, "no, that's not something Vidagirl would do!" you know? Potiphar believed his wife even though he'd been with Joseph enough to know what he could or could not do, then this same wrongfully accused, spitefully treated young man goes into prison and before long he's helping people again! I mean, I'm sure it wasn't only the baker and the cup bearer he helped with interpretation of their dreams, i'm fairly positive that everyone who had a dream ran to Joseph for help and he would gladly help with the interpretation and counsel them on how they should go to realize their dreams! He was just a really good guy! Then here is the part i feel earned him the name, the Dreamer. When he was done with the cup bearer's dream he then said to the cup bearer "remember me!" What a dreamer! The fact that he still had faith in humanity makes me dizzy! Why would the cup bearer remember him after he leaves prison? no reason whatsoever, because seriously what use is an Israeli slave in prison to the Egyptian cup bearer in the palace? Joseph was useless to him, he was only useful in interpreting his dream, but after that, he was 'not applicable'
But then God came into the mix and the useless dream interpreter who was once a dreamer himself became the most important man on earth! Only God could have created such a turnaround. And hes still in the business of doing so! A preacher i love to listen to would say if you want to dream, dream like a fool! dream ridiculous dreams, after all you're not paying for them so why not dream big? Do you have a dream and instead of you pursuing your dreams it seems you're now the go-to guy for everyone else's dreams, you're so busy with other people's dreams that you seem to have forgotten yours, well i'm here to tell you that you're on the right path! keep looking up to God, He KNOWS how to connect the dots and bring your dreams to life! The bigger your dream, the more people you will help in realizing theirs (true talk!) God's got it all in control, don't be afraid or don't feel bad the next time people laugh at your face and call you a 'Dreamer!' Look at Joseph, the dreamer! You're in very good company!
Keep the dream alive! Ciao!

Before I Do 2

Hi All!So I had alot of people beg to know what happened after Julia's pre-wedding kiss, whether she went on with the wedding or not, I decided to tell you the rest of the story...in case you were still wondering. Enjoy!

I heard the camera click and I blinked reflexively as Tinu slipped past the video man by the door into the room, I felt as if I was suffocating, there was the hairstylist, the make up artist my mother contracted, two camera men, one lighting man, one video man and my mother who kept readjusting everything and muttering, "...everything must be perfect,just so.." I sighed heavily and turned my stare to Tinu without moving my head, she saw my look and wearing a dazzling smile, she tackled my mum first, "ah mummy, at this rate we will have to wrestle for the maid of honor position and you know I fight dirty!" My mum finally stopped fussing and turned to her with a benign smile, "I cant fight o! I'm no spring chicken!" she commented as she allowed herself to be steered towards the door, "Ah! nobody is these days o! but don't worry, I will make sure she's perfect for the event, ma worry(don't worry)" My mother beamed one last time at me, then shut the door, I exhaled, I didn't even know I'd stopped breathing, then she instructed the camera/video people to mount up on the hallway and when they tried to protest she hiked up her skirt and told them she was going to change her sanitary pad in front of them, they fled! She readjusted her skirt with a smile as she turned and stared at the two ladies and they got the message and exited with a quiet whoosh! I sighed again in relief and almost cried but contained myself because I was sure my mum will kill me if I ruined my artfully made up face. Then she drew a chair close to me and said in a quiet voice, "you look weird, whats up?" I couldnt wait to share, "I kissed Caleb and Tony saw us but he was also smooching Isokhe!" I inhaled and exhaled several times, finally someone else knew! Tinu threw her head back and had a good laugh, "babe! the list was a joke! I didn't think you'd do it!" She laughed some more then sobered up, "have you spoken to Tony since then?" I shook my head, "do you think I should confront him about my wedding planner?" "he will confront you about his best man!no, I think you should marry his arse and spend the rest of your life making him pay!" I rolled my eyes, Tinu the drama queen, I thought already feeling lighter, "how do I do that? make him pay? hes not the only guilty one here you know" I replied, "then just sweep it under the carpet and forget it, you do me I do you God no go vex, abi?" I smiled, my first for the day, "that's why you're my maid of honor, you know exactly what to say" I hugged her as we both heard a knock on the door, my cousin Jasmine walked in dressed in pink ruffles and carrying a basket of red and white rose petals, "hello Jazz" I said perking up, she walked shyly to me and removed a folded hotel stationery from her basket, "Uncle Caleb said to give this to you" she said in her breathy twelve years old voice, I smiled adjusted the bow on her head and sent her away. I sat staring at Tinu holding the stationery with two fingers as if it is poisonous, "Why would he write?" I asked her, afraid to open it, "Open it!" she urged, unlike her she didn't try to take it from me and read. We stared at each other a few seconds more, then I unfolded the thick conqueror paper, there was just one line. It read, "Jules, I cant go through with it, I love you" Silently, I handed the paper to Tinu who read with a frown, "what does he mean?" she asked the paper, still checking it for more. I shook my head as the first tear drop slid down my powdered cheek and hit my folded arms, "why me T?" I asked as tears coursed down my cheek ruining my make up, "why now?" I got up and started pacing as my best friend stared at me mutely, "You know how I feel about Caleb, why didn't he say this two years ago? or even two months ago? why wait till my wedding morning to declare his undying love?hmm?" Tinu finally got up and hugged me, she knew too well what this was doing to me, I held her back and just wept, years of pent up frustration, anger, sadness despair just poured out, "I love him too!" I said amidst sobs and hiccups, "shhhhhh" Tinu whispered until I stopped crying, I turned and saw my face and started laughing, Tinu turned and stared at my reflection on the hotel mirror and soon, we were both laughing so hard that I started crying all over again. It was the second knock that finally brought us to our senses, one of the camera men poked his head in tentatively, "they're ready for you!" he said as if pronouncing a death sentence, I sat back down and tried to repair my ruined face as Tinu raced to the bathroom and returned with a face towel soaked in cold water, "this will reduce the swelling of your eyes" she said as we both stared at each other, "I'm going to marry Tony, even though I'm in love with Caleb" I stated it, just to get it off my chest, Tinu nodded, "that's what grown ups do, take responsibility for their actions" she said quietly, I nodded and re-applied my make up the best I could, then I got up and covered my blotchy face with the veil, "Wait!" Tinu screamed as she dug into her clutch and brought out a small vial of Visine, "big girls don't cry baby!" she said as she removed the viel and squirt a drop on each eye, I blinked as the cold fluid touched my red eyes soothing it. We covered my face again with the veil and after another quick hug, I headed for the door, I inhaled deeply again and then I pulled the door open and matched to my future head held high, after all, Big girls don't cry... To Be Continued..

Epiphany!

As I sat behind my younger sister in the church as she exchanged wedding vows, I felt peace, knowing that this day finally came for her! All the prayers, the preparations, the books(inspirational and motivational!) we read together, finally, when it was time, it was God that did it. Yes, praying and reading helps to get you ready for the next level, but there's something my pastor says, "for every level there's a devil" and that's true! See without the devils the power of God cannot manifest in our lives!
To walk in the supernatural blessings of God, your life cant be free of challenges, take the life of David for instance, the fact that God chose him to be   king of Israel didn't mean it just fell into his laps! He faced so many oppositions that if he was like some of us, we will regret the change, we will long for days when we were still stuck in the lower level, the new level will have devils, but be rest assured that God is also there with you! He will not let any harm come to you! What have you started this year that seems to be like a step backwards instead of moving forward? The fact that things are not working out in your new level doesn't mean its wrong, it means you need to hold on tighter to God and trust Him to walk you through it. Don't be afraid, God is real in every situation not just in some and He will help you this season. Do I hear an amen?ciao!

Before I Do...

I sat perfectly still as I waited for the veil to be properly adjusted covering my already made up face, my mind was in a whirl. It wasn’t just about everything being perfect and right during the ceremony and the reception, it was the sudden doubts, doubts that like long, wintry fingers, have taken hold of my heart and were slowly squeezing out the warmth of the love I had for my fiancé Tony. To think it all started as a joke at my bridal shower, Tinu ever the dare devil and organizer had stood up, after shushing everyone, she had ceremoniously reached into her clutch and brought out the slim sheet of paper, “okay Jules” she said turning to me, her mischievous eyes dancing in her smooth, oval face, “before you walk down the aisle, we must be sure that you have beyond any reasonable doubt, lived and partied hard, like a true babe!” I cocked my head suspiciously, I knew Tinu too well to take her serious, “and you have a checklist to prove I have?” I asked skeptically, “I have something better than a checklist!” she declared as my other eight friends laughed along, Tinu was always the heart of the party, the first in our group to do anything daring! “okay” I replied playing along, “read it to me!” I said amidst applause and cheers from the other girls, we were all slightly tipsy, all except for Bose, our designated driver and the only one in our group that really took her faith in Christ seriously enough not to ever drink, or smoke when we experimented and never had sex, why does she put up with us? She piously replied once that we were her cross to bear, so she tagged along to keep us in check, or take us home when we were too wasted to care. “Can we just eat cake and go home? Tomorrow is the wedding remember?” she said now as Tinu unfolded the paper, pressing her index finger to her lips to silence Bose, “These” she proclaimed dramatically raising the sheet of paper up like a testament, “are actions a true babe would have taken before she retires to say the words I DO” she looked around coyly, she had us all and she knew it, “they are ten in number and I read” by now most of us were fidgeting, “sex on the beach!” she declared as we all exhaled laughing, it was just a joke after all, even Bose managed a close lipped smile, “been there done that, too much hype!” Clara yelled, “Too much sand, Gosh!” Louisa quipped as she high-fived Clara, my heart swelled looking at them all, my friends, we all have been together through trying times, and here we were, still forging ahead, “tequila shots!” “check!” we all shouted laughing, Tinu knew how to liven up a gathering, she paused now and looked at each one of us, “kiss a girl!” she shouted, at first we looked at each other puzzled, then Clara got up walked to me and planted a wet one on my lips, “check!” she screamed as others hooted. I was too stunned to react, Tinu high-fived her and continued, “make out with a stranger” we all started to laugh, “Check, Check!” they all yelled, I smiled, making out with a stranger was what got us here. I had gotten drunk because I failed my bar exams and as I danced on the dance floor, Tony had walked up to me and started dancing with me, I had other ideas on my mind and we ended up in his car groping and making out, but he stopped me when I reached for his zipper, “I usually don’t do this” he said lamely, I frowned at him, “that’s supposed to be my line!” I said slurring my words, he firmly pushed me away, “you’re too drunk to make any decision, let’s call it a night” he ended up taking me home and the rest is history. I shook a finger at them all smiling, I wasn’t proud of that day, still, you can’t fault the result of my drunkenness, “okay moving on!” Tinu said rolling her eyes, “throw a white party” We all nodded, my last year’s birthday party was an all white party. “okay, that’s five down, it gets really tricky from here on” she said as she cleared her throat dramatically, “own a black book” we all snorted, “Ipads!” someone shouted, “iphones!” someone else yelled, “okay okay, so it’s a little outdated” we all settled back, “had a ménage a trios” she said looking around, some of my friends frowned, “what’s that?” Clara asked, her tiny face scrunched up, Tinu glanced at me and we both looked away, “that’s when you have more than one person on the bed, a threesome” Bose shook her head disapprovingly; “that is not a joke anymore, that’s a sin!” But our look didn’t escape Louisa, “you guys have done it!” she exclaimed looking from me to Tinu, “okay, check! It was our first year in college and the guy was hot and we were in an adventurous mood!” Tinu replied as I covered my face with my palms ashamed, it was all Tinu’s idea and back then I did everything she did to impress her. “Wow!” Clara exclaimed shaking her head, “now I have to find someone to do a threesome with me!” we all laughed and the tension cleared, Tinu continued, “affair with a married man” to this there were cries of “several!” as I modestly replied, “speak for yourselves bitches!” “Okay guys, number nine on the list, is own a pet!” she proclaimed, “are you serious?” I asked, “Check! I have matador!” I said referring to my nine month old bullmastiff. “And finally, the dreaded number ten, make love to your ex one last time!” there was lots of exclamations and guffaws. They all knew my ex happened to be Tony’s best man, we both decided not to tell him we dated back in London; I shook my head now, “well tough luck, I’m not a babe then, cos that’s not gonna happen!” Tinu hissed shaking her head, “so you will let something this trivial mar you?” “Yes!” I screamed as Bose got up and took the sheet from Tinu, she tore it up, “enough! Let’s enjoy ourselves and call it a night!” Everyone drank up and soon we were all heading for the exit. We were all booked in the same hotel since they were my bridesmaids, so we crammed ourselves into Tony’s SUV that I borrowed for the night and Bose drove us back to the quiet hotel in Lekki. We bade each other goodnight and headed for our rooms. We were paired up and Tinu, who was also my maid of honor, shared a room with me. As we got into bed she raised herself on an elbow and asked again, “what’s the big deal?” I waved her off as I tried to muster sleep, “Tinu please, the bridal shower is over, let’s just get some sleep okay?” she snorted, hissed and pounded her pillow before she settled in, and just when I was dozing off, I heard a quiet knock on the door. I frowned and turned to look at Tinu, she seemed to be fast asleep already, I grumbled as I put on my robe and stumbled to the door, I eased it open trying not to wake Tinu up, it was Caleb standing there! Caleb and I met one rainy day in London, I had just joined my mum and my step dad there and still had grandma’s admonitions and Christian upbringing running like a mantra through my mind, we dated for four months before I finally introduced him to my parents, they liked him immediately, “hi” he whispered now, leaning on the door, his tall lanky frame both lean and soft at the same time, I smelt his cologne and drew back into the room, “what do you want?” I asked a little too harshly, I didn’t want him to know what being this close was doing to me, “I just wanted to make sure you were okay” he answered quietly, I looked up at him, at a loss of what to say, looking back into the room, I stepped out and eased the door close, “Caleb you know you shouldn’t be checking on me” I admonished, he sighed heavily, nodding in agreement, “I know, I’m sorry, I just wanted one last peek at what I’m never getting again” he sounded so sad! It was my turn to sigh, “we’ve been through this before Kay” I shook my head now as images of us together obstructed my vision, “we can’t be seen together alone, please!” I stressed, he nodded again and turned to leave, “have a blissful marriage Julia” he leaned down and gathered me into his arms, it felt so good and I relaxed for just a second as his lips brushed mine, then I heard the elevator ping and open directly opposite us on the hallway, and Tony and my wedding planner Isokhe stumbled out, kissing and hands tearing at each other’s clothes. We all froze like deers caught in headlights. Then I turned and stumbled back into my room, heart pounding and hands shaking, what just happened? I asked myself as I crawled back into bed and threw the coverlet over my head. What do I do? Confront Tony? Confess that I dated his best friend? What do I do, before I say ‘I Do’?.........To Be Continued.........

So folks, what should Julia do? Marry Tony without a confrontation? or confront him and probably call off the wedding? send your replies as comments,thanks!