Heroism Through Service.

Heroism Through Service:

Life is fleeting; you are here today and gone tomorrow. And yet life goes on. With time you become a vague memory even to those who claimed they could not do without you. The glory and the limelight of life are painfully transient.

Nothing and no one is permanent; not even you. So, take it easy and do not be haughty, naughty or droughty. Think and work more for a good legacy and not just for material things or personal gain or pleasure and leisure. 

You see, your real fingerprint on life, your true legacy, is not your wealth, position or fame (those too are painfully transient!) but the nature of the impact your life has on others. How is your life impacting your family, your relations, your friends and your community? Is it a positive impact - one that brings increase and greater understanding and harmony - or is it a negative impact - one that brings decrease and creates more problems and disharmony? Are you a positive contributor or a negative distraction?

Think more, therefore, of how to increase your contribution to life and not just on how to amass wealth and increase your personal comfort levels and glory. Life finds meaning and purpose in contribution (giving) and not in greedy accumulation (taking). It is by giving that we actually increase. The river that has generous outflows will always receive refreshing inflows.

I was once told the story of someone who lived big and amassed a huge personal fortune, but had no one at his funeral (except the undertaker!) because he led a very selfish and negative life. His fingerprint on life was so bad that his children rejected the inheritance he left them. His case was that bad. He was a villain.

Another man died with almost nothing in his account, but the whole community turned up for his funeral and testified to his selfless and positive life. He invested his time and resources into serving others and building the community. There was no family in that community that his life did not impact on positively. He was celebrated by all. He was missed by all. He was a true hero.

You see, when we think less of self and more of others; when we seek less for self and more for others; when we do less for self and more for others; when we look out more for others and less for self; we unleash a powerful positive force that leaves an indelible mark on the sands of time, a legacy that holds us up above the mundane into the realms of the extraordinary. We become celebrated. We become true heroes.

This is how Sylvia Mary Matthews Burwell, an American government and nonprofit executive, puts it:

"Day after day, ordinary people become heroes through extraordinary and selfless actions to help their neighbors."

There is nothing greater than selfless service in bringing out the goodness and greatness in humanity and pushing communities towards fulfilling their potential and attaining a higher standard of living. Communities that encourage and promote selfless service are growing, secure and prosperous communities. Selfless service builds the commonwealth and beautifies the realm. That is where we all ought to be.

So, I ask you my friend, where are you standing at this moment? On the slippery and transient grounds of selfishness - which results in all forms of corruption - or on the solid and fertile grounds of service - which promotes justice and egalitarianism? Are you a hero in the making or a budding villain? What are you doing right at this moment; giving or taking?

True champions are men and women of selfless commitment to training. True leaders are men and women of selfless commitment to duty. True patriots are men and women of selfless commitment to country. True heroes are men and women of selfless commitment to service. Everything truly great has selflessness as the underlaying and underpinning factor. Heroism is service raised to the power of selflessness and multiplied by consistency.

Let me leave you with three (3) quotations that buttress the fact and need for heroism through selfless service.

1. America fictional writer and one of the top grossing female writers in the world, Jodi Picoult, has these words to say about true heroes and heroism:

""Heroes didn't leap tall buildings or stop bullets with an outstretched hand; they didn't wear boots and capes. They bled, and they bruised, and their superpowers were as simple as listening, or loving. Heroes were ordinary people who knew that even if their own lives were impossibly knotted, they could untangle someone else's. And maybe that one act could lead someone to rescue you right back." - Jodi Picoult, 

2. Gerard Way, American singer, songwriter, musician and comic book writer, defines heroes simply as:

"Heroes are ordinary people who made themselves extraordinary " - Gerard Way.

3. Former American professional tennis player who won three Grand Slam titles, and first blackman in the United States Davies Cup team, and the only blackman ever to win singles title at Wimbledon, Arthur Ashe, puts it in this powerful way:

"True heroism is remarkably sober, very undramatic. It is not the urge to surpass all others at whatever cost, but the urge to serve others at whatever cost" - Arthur Ashe.

I encourage you, therefore, to walk the path of honour. Give time to selfless service. Build our beloved country through selfless service and commitment to doing the right thing at all times and in all circumstances. Be a true Nigerian hero. The country awaits you.

I remain yours truly, Agoso Bamaiyi, your friend for a greater Nigeria and the best things in life.

Appreciation and Gratitude

Appreciation and Gratitude.

People, make wuna help me o! Why are we like this? Why is it that we do not generally appreciate and celebrate the good things and good people in our lives as much as we should until we lose them??

Take health, for instance. We overwork our bodies, fail to rest adequately, eat junk foods just for convenience, smoke and drink, womanize carelessly, and take other unnecessary risks with our health without giving a hoot the eventual consequences, assumming we will always have a robust health, until the chickens return home to roost. Then we run from pillar to post and put up a commendable show of commitment to healthy living. In most cases its a measure too late.

Then consider a faithful and loyal friend. He or she is there 24/7; dedicated and committed, dependable and reliable. Yet we pay very little attention to such people and invest time, energy and resources in pursuing the friendship of people who are obviously disloyal and see us only as a dispensible option or alternative. Then, one day, the loyal friend decides to move on or is called to glory. We beat ourselves up, announcing to anyone who cares to listen, how we would love to have a second chance to truly appreciate them as they deserve!

Sounds familiar, doesn't it?

Why can't we just reciprocate the beauty life bestows on us by always doing the right thing(s) at the right time? Why can't we appreciate and celebrate the loyal people in our lives, until we lose them? Why can't we truly value others? Why can't we be there for those that truly need us? Why do we often fail to appreciate people until we lose them?

What most of us do not know is that appreciation is one of the most powerful forces of life, hosting some of the most positively dramatic results that life can post on you. You see, what you appreciate, increases you and what you do not appreciate decreases you. What you value will elevate you and what you devalue will downgrade you. It is as simple and straightforward as that. Yet it is so powerfully profound that it changes your life for good. 

Appreciate and value your health - by eating properly, resting well, sleeping enough, avoiding too much worry and anxiety, exercising daily, avoiding alcohol and smoking, avoiding promiscuity, avoiding risky behaviour and lifestyles - and your health, in turn, will be there for you, enabling you to navigate the challenges of life, to live a long, happy and prosperous life. Health, as they say, is wealth. You will get nowhere or do anything great in life, without sound health.

It is the same thing with people. Appreciate and value people generally - by showing respect and courtesy, faithfulness and loyalty, humility and generosity, empathy and concern, friendliness and trust - and people will generally be there for you, helping you through the lowest and darkest moments of life, into light and great heights, until you stand tall in the fulness of your potential.

In the quest to attain success and achieve greatness in life, value people above money and material things. Money vanishes and material things fade, but people will always be here, because they carry an eternal worth. Use money and material things, but never ever use people. Appreciate and value people, for they are the foundation upon which true and lasting success stands. People, because they are made in the image of God, hold the key to the relevance and success you are looking for in life.

Listen to the following words about gratitude and appreciation:

1. Roman Statesman, orator, lawyer and philosopher, Cicero, has these enlightening words to say about gratitude:

"Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all others" - Cicero.

2. Roman Catholic Benedictine Monk, author and lecturer, David Steindl-Rast, adds the following guiding words:

"It is not joy that makes us grateful; it is gratitude that makes us joyful" - David Steindl-Rast.

3. French writer, historian and philosopher, Voltaire, writes about the endowing power of appreciation in these comforting words:

"Appreciation is a wonderful thing: it makes what is excellent in others belong to us as well" - Voltaire.

Learn to show gratitude and appreciation and watch your life turn around for good. Count your blessings and show appreciation and watch as more blessings come your way. Appreciate your life and health and be awed by the flow of strength into your life. Appreciate people and be lifted above failure and all hindering circumstances. 

This is so because appreciation and gratitude opens the door to the realms of serendipity and miracles. The impossible becomes possible where genuine appreciation and gratitude hold sway, because both are expressions of faith and, it is a universal truth that, without faith it is impossible to please God. God is pleased when we show appreciation and gratitude.

I appreciate and celebrate God's Grace in me and, because I do, I have the energy and correct perspective to appreciate and celebrate you more. You all are a blessing to me. Keep growing into wealth in health and in strength.

It is me, Agoso Bamaiyi, your friend for a greater Nigeria and the best things in life.

#Agosotó 

#DrArnobb 

#LifeIsBeautiful 

#livehealthy 

#AppreciatePeople

#BeGratefulForAllThings

Graces of Beauty

When I met you I found my heartbeat

The rhythm of my life where melody seat

In the palace of gold warmed by passion heat

In rows of validation arranged straight and neat

Pulling down dross and all poisoned meat

You are the full spectrum of color

The budded scepter of my honor

The hallo that defines my demeanor

The gilded gown that decorates my labor

You give me height before the neighbor

You stand tall in the graces of beauty

Dressed in garments of character so pretty

Veiled with softness of strength and in nothing petty

Shrouded with the perfume of aloha and everything mighty

Endowed with a majestic poise and in no way hasty

You fill my mouth with the sweetness of honey

Your thought fills my mind like a sack full of money

You set my feet on a self-discovery journey

Through lavish rooms accessed only by your master key

By the power of exclusivity secured in the pearly valley

My heart beats in sync with your wishes

Working odd hours to secure perfect finishes

Harvesting hidden treasures from strange bushes

Curbing the disempowering effects of negative rushes

Till the reverberating ding of fear finally hushes

© 2015, By Agoso Arnobius Huladeino Bamaiyi.

Worded Agora: A Proclamation

Shine with the stars

And talented brilliant Academia

Nectar made of everything Nigerian

And Africa cues into this agenda

Making sweet milk with words that calm

Originality trained like a commando

Done tough in unbreakable bond

Aloha in the worded Agora

Vigorous engagements in high rev

Instructed in industry like a Nazi

Dancing to the Alpha band

Lean on Grace as you stand tall

And leave no room for Acrophobia

Going higher all the distance long

With accurate speed mastered by few

And lovely ascendency like an acappela

Made in Heaven to beautify this realm

Pulling up surprises right to the top

A life tuned to Divine Agenda

© 2014, by Agoso Arnobius Huladeino Bamaiyi

For a younger brother, El Poetico.

Happy birthday Sanamo David Lagwampa.

A Beautiful Tomorrow

Though the future looks dark

Through the aperture of this turbulent mark

And hope flies away like a lark

From the violent doggy bark

Soiling up our peaceful park

And ignorance swamps reasoned hark

I see a beautiful tomorrow

Where war we no longer borrow

Or walk streets marked with sorrow

Through the accursed backward narrow

And the imposed uninvited harrow

From men with agendas shallow

In poisoned anemic marrow

Let the good people arise

Take revered cowardice by surprise

Through united and courageous enterprise

In strengthened harmony that beggars reprise

On acceptable principles and not mere surmise

Our destiny from decay to prise

Ignorance will bow to reason

Corruption will be out of season

Righteousness will arise in person

Hatred will be thrown into prison

Sentenced for inhuman treason

By the people it sought to jettison

© By Agoso Arnobius Huladeino Bamaiyi

Biographical lessons of success: Gen. Collin Luther Powell (Rtd)

General Collin Luther Powell (Rtd) is considered one of the most successful African-Americans of all time. Born in 1937, he became the first black and the youngest man, at 52, ever to preside as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS); a post he held from 1989 until his retirement from the U.S. army in 1992. He joined politics and went ahead to become the first Blackman to serve as the U.S. Secretary of State during the first term of George W. Bush. Collin Luther Powell is regarded as both a skilled military commander and an astute politician. He outlined his recipe for success in the following words:

“Success is the result of perfection, hard work, learning from failure, loyalty, and persistence” – Collin Powell.

He stresses that these are the very qualities that helped to propel him to the pinnacle of his career, both as a military man and as a politician. These same qualities, if you cultivate them in your life, will help you also to rise to the top of your career, whatever it may be. Let’s look at them one-by-one:

1. Perfection. 
To be perfect means to meet all requirements or lacking no essential element or component. Another word for perfection which is more in common use is the word “excellence”. You see the quality of your life and work – at the level of output - is in direct correlation to your commitment to excellence. Tom Landry said as much:

“The quality of q life is in direct proportion to its commitment to excellence” – Tom Landry.

You will not be outstandingly successful if you are not fully committed to pursuing and ensuring excellence in everything you do. Life is full of the ordinary and the common and, therefore, the ordinary and common do not catch our attention and command our respect. Only uncommon and extra-ordinary things catch our attention and command our respect. That is why only people who reach out for and attain excellence in their lives and professions attain outstanding success and command universal respect.

I encourage you to reach out for and secure the highest and the best in your life and in all your pursuits, including all the small details and the seemingly unimportant. Great things are born out of small things. Attain smartly and dedicatedly to the small things of your life and work with excellence in all things and see how your life will turn out excellently. Excellence, in turn, will catch the attention of those who are responsible for your promotion, and they will act in your favor. That is how your life will keep moving forward and upward.

2. Hard work.
I have always said, and I say it again, nothing worthwhile happens in life except by work. The great inventor and entrepreneur, Thomas Alva Edison, bears witness to this truth. He said:

“I never did anything worth doing by accident, nor did any of my inventions come by accident; they came by work” – Thomas Edison.

To do anything great in life you must first plan and then work committedly and conscientiously to actualize your plans. There is just no other legitimate way around work. Any unplanned and un-worked success is either a fraud or a fluke, and both cannot stand the test of time. Only legitimate and committed work can secure genuine success that has God’s blessings on it and man’s approval. Such success will stand the scrutiny and test of time. Speaking about this King Solomon says, in Proverbs 28:20;

“A faithful man shall abound with blessings: but he that maketh haste to be rich shall not be innocent.”

He adds further in Proverbs 22:29;

“Seest thou a man diligent in his business? He shall stand before kings; he shall not stand before mean men.”

The key to meeting the men and women who can make the difference you seek is your diligence in your in all your pursuits. Not only that but also diligence - commitment to work – will eventually make you great!

3. Learning from failure.
He who cannot learn from his mistakes and failures - and take necessary action to rectify them - is bound to repeat such mistakes over and over again. Nobody takes such fellows seriously and they never go far in life.

As success is never ending, so also failure is never final. Just because you failed at a particular project or attempt does not mean that you are a failure. No! No!! No!!! Far from it! You can always do something to turn the tide in your favour and eventually succeed. You are a failure only when you accept it by remaining in it, doing nothing to turn things around. Australian businessman and author, Bill Newman, said as much:

“The greatest failure in life is to stop trying… No one can cheat you out of ultimate success but yourself” – Bill Newman.

You are not what people or circumstance say you are until you append your signature to it. Do not accept and thus perpetuate your failure. You can always fight back. Learn from your failures. Take all the necessary actions to remedy the situation. Get up one more time. Dust yourself up and try one more time as a wiser and more matured person. Learn all the positive lessons you can learn from all the negative events in your life. This kind of attitude will take you very far in life, and as you begin to come into the objects of your vision and dreams, you will soon see that even failure can be a great teacher.

4. Loyalty.
The world tends to underestimate the value and power of loyalty. Everyone appears to be in a hurry and many have reached the wrong conclusion that they must cut down those ahead of them to get ahead in life. But such a behavior is a trap; for he who sows rebellion and disloyalty digs a hole for himself, and he will eventually fall amidst numerous troubles and shame. He who sows loyalty will reap recognition and promotion plus peace and prosperity. Loyalty provides the underpinnings for a stable and influential life.

“You’ve got to give loyalty down, if you want loyalty up” – Donald T. Regan.

He who is loyal to those ahead of him today, will have faithful and loyal followers tomorrow. Loyalty wins the heart of your bosses, making them to trust you. That trust translates into tangible benefits such as direct mentorship, recognitions, recommendations, and promotions. A loyal follower today, makes a great leader tomorrow. Loyalty is not foolishness. It is a great virtue of the mind that shows your level of civility.

“Nothing is more noble, nothing more venerable than fidelity. Faithfulness and truth are the most sacred excellences and endowments of the human mind” – Marcus Tullius Cicero.

5. Persistence.
To make meaningful progress in life and successfully achieve or fulfill your dreams and visions, you must be willing and able to hold on to and carry on with your pursuits against all odds. You see, nothing good comes easy. To arrive at the objects of your pursuits successfully, you must persist unrelentingly, regardless the difficulties and problems you encounter along the way. Dr. Butler advices as much:

“When things get rough, do not move. People and pressures shift, but the soil remains the same no matter where you go.”

William Arthur Ward gives much the same advice:

“Success is sometimes a series of failure held together by strong hands of determination and persistence” – William A. Ward.

If what you are seeking is right and good, and if its successful accomplishment will bring increase to you and to others; then do not give it up no matter the odds against it. Persistence is one of the major keys to success in life. It works, and is applicable, in all areas of life. No matter what you do, if you are persistent, you will eventually succeed. Henry Ford said:

“Many successful people today were failures yesterday, who never gave up” – Henry Ford.

Hold on to your dreams and pursuits tenaciously. Do not give up. As you hold on and persist, things will begin to take shape. People will begin to come to your aid. Circumstances will begin to bow. The winds will begin to favour you. Great things will begin to happen. Mike Murdock said:

“Great things always happen to those who persist. Winners are people who are willing to try one more time” – Mike Murdock.

Keep trying and fighting for as long - and as many times - as it takes. You will eventually run the victory lap and sing the victory song. Like General Collin Luther Powell, your life will be lined with many significant first and you will end up great. 
Keep moving forward and upward.
See you at the top.
I love you.

Contact me on:
2348037254805
Email: arnobius67@gmail.com

Geared for Greatness

I wrote this poem as an encouragement for and proclamations into the future of a talented, committed and hard working up-and-coming broadcaster and blogger, Ochekliye Ramatu Ada, who I have the pleasure to mentor from a distance. The future is as great as you are willing to make it. In these lines, you will find words that you can use. Love you all.

On-air personality

Coming with originality

Holding down the audience

Exuding confidence and brilliance

Knocking out gross ignorance

Looking to promote excellence

In the pursuit of Motherland essence

Yielding to nothing but greater good

Establishing probity in the neighborhood

Raising high the flag of Africa

All through Europe and America

Mixing royalty with Shades of Brown

And pure culture all grown

To harvest a unique people

Until we all become profitable

All geared for greatness

Doing broadcast with sweetness

And all things that make for uniqueness

©2014, by Agoso Arnobius Huladeino Bamaiyi