Second love teaches you how to love again after you’ve been broken. It teaches you that love still exists, that you’re capable of loving again and loving harder. That you can still have faith in love no matter how much pain your first love caused you. Second love is there to pick up the pieces.
Second love gives you hope that your fairy tale is still out there. That heartbreak is not the end of the world and that there are better things ahead. It shows you what happens when you move on, when you let go, when you try again and when you never lose hope. Second love shows you the light after the dark.
Second love is braver. It means you know how to forgive, how to risk getting hurt again because it’s worth it. It means that you’re prepared for the worst but you’re hoping for the best. Second love makes you stronger.
Second love makes you believe in timing. Why things didn’t work out the first time around, why you fell in love with the wrong person, why you had to get your heartbroken and why someone left you when they promised to love you. It’s here to tell you that there is always a valid reason behind your pain and that loving someone doesn’t always mean they’re right for you. Second love answers all these questions.
Second love makes sense. It’s not based on childhood fantasies or lust or infatuation. It’s not blind or reckless or toxic. It’s not based on unrealistic expectations or sheer obsession. Second love comes after you’ve learned to listen to your gut, to watch for the red flags, to pick someone because they will add value to your life and when you’ve learned to make decisions out of maturity not out of loneliness.
Second love shows you that you can be someone’s first choice and shows you what it really means to be loved.

I’ve always been the person that people come to for advice or just to have someone listen to them, but there’s something about that first time someone confides in you. It’s life changing. It turns everything around from the way you see that person to the tone their voice resonates inside your head.

Listen to others for reasons beyond the pleasure or the selfish gain of it; do it because everyone in this world has a story to tell, an infinite combination of a finite amount of words that somehow will need to be told in the same order by anyone else. Listen to the beauty of people’s lives: the way their eyes gleam when they tell you the happiest moment of their lives and the way the tears fall when they do the saddest.

Listen to people when they tell you about themselves because we are all unique in our own way with a composition of traits and values that is special to each one of us. Do it to earn a different perspective from their words, a new vantage point from which to analyze things. Listen because you were lucky enough to be let in no matter the circumstances; whether those words were screamed in the midst of drinks at a bar or whispered in the silence of the night, they were said for a reason.

It does not matter to whom you listen, just do it. Allow yourself to let your walls down as others do to you and grasp every detail that embodies every second of that person’s life. Let it consume you, lose yourself in their stories like you do with your favorite movies. You may not be able to change the way their life went, but the fact that you were interested enough to hear what they had to said may be enough to change the way their life will go.

Listen to others because nobody wants to feel alone. Whether it’s giving your sister advice on her relationship and what dress would go better with her skin tone or helping an acquaintance deal with feelings of depression and the hardships of life, everyone wants to feel as if there is someone in this world who will be willing to listen to them whenever they need it. Humans seek comfort within others because we can relate no matter the scale or importance of it.

Sparing someone five minutes of your time could make the difference between life and death, no matter how extreme that sounds. Listening to someone and giving your input on the things that are bothering them could make their day go better than they had previously expected and that’s a luxury we shouldn’t deny anyone of. Giving anyone that comfort and knowing that you made a difference makes everything better for both parties involved.

Finally, listen to others because it will serve as a reminder that there is more to this life than what you make of it. Everywhere around you, no matter where you go, there are people who have their own concerns, desires, aspirations, fears, struggles, and ideals, and unless you make an effort to tune yourself into their mind, you will forever be confined in a box that is comprised solely of what you think that is our version of the world.

Ask someone about how their day is going. What plans they have. What they wish to do with their time. Ask your friends to tell you something that happened to them recently. Tell them something of your own. Do not be afraid to share your own stories, as it will make them feel satisfied and trustworthy as well. Whenever you get the chance, just listen to others.

More often than not, you encounter days where you just want someone in your life. This can be triggered by watching romantic comedies, reading an article on the internet or seeing your best friend happily settled with someone. Yes, they come, and they’re perfectly natural, but are you sure that’s what you really want?

1. You’re just in love with the concept of love.

Cliché but this is most likely the situation if you think a relationship will save your life’s monotony. People always have a romanticized notion of what having a boyfriend or girlfriend would make them feel like. You toy with the idea of having someone constantly with you, the dates and the candlelit dinners, but the exhilaration of having one only lasts in its early stages. If you expect too much from it you might jump into the first potential relationship you find and end up disappointed.

2. Do you even know yourself well enough already?

It’s important to know yourself before becoming part of a relationship. If you don’t stand for anything, you’ll find yourself unconsciously giving too much and questioning if it was even enough. Set standards on the people you want to be in your life and how you want to be treated. Know what you’re worth and eventually, you’ll make him or her believe it too.

3. You just got out of one recently.

When you’ve just broken up with your ex, finding a rebound would seem like the most convenient solution. It’s an easy distraction from the past, all of a sudden your attention is claimed by someone else. However, this shortcut to recovery is also short-lived. If you’re not genuinely ready, it will show. Give it time, enjoy being single and save someone else from the heart ache.

4. You can’t even make yourself happy.

Some people assume that having a boyfriend or girlfriend is the ticket to happiness. They think that it will make things lighter and easier because there’s someone there to make them feel content. Though relationships may have this effect, you have to note that if your happiness is dependent on someone else and this person doesn’t meet those expectations, you’ll end up more miserable than you started. It’s your job to make yourself feel happy and fulfilled, with or without a partner. A relationship simply adds value to you but it shouldn’t be the one that completes you.

5. Will it fit in your priorities?

If you’re a person who has a vision and a plan, this is a good question to ask yourself. How will a romantic relationship fit in with your priorities? If you know that right now, you’re still building your career and there’s a lot at stake, is it the right time to have one? If you’re fully aware that it’s not one of your main concerns, there’s a high probability that you’ll take your partner for granted. It would be more beneficial and practical for you to allocate your time to what’s important to you as of the moment and avoid disappointing someone else.

It’s easy to be blinded by the media, past experiences but before you get consumed by your desire to have one or worse, be brought down by its current unattainability, be wise enough to think twice about it, what you want right now might not be what you need.

I’ll start running when the weather is nicer. I’ll start spending time with God  when I’m not overwhelmed by school or work. I’ll start eating healthy tomorrow, but I need cookies tonight… and tomorrow… and the next day. I’ll talk to that I’ll invite people over for dinner when I am finally able to catch a breath. I’ll start volunteering when I have more free time.

Sound familiar? Oh, how uncomfortable I am by the number of time I have used these very excuses. But you see, the weather gets nicer, and I’m still not running. Summer comes, and busy schedules/summer trips seem more important than spending time with my Creator. Tomorrow comes, and my sugar craving is even more intense than the day before. I’m writing this because I think you will continue to make excuses if I don't.You may have a habit of saying that you will start living when less busy, less tired, more motivated but once those moments come, you choose to replace them with something else–and the cycle repeats.

I’m starting to realize that if we don’t start now, we probably never will. We waste our time with meaningless fillers as we wait for the opportune moment to pursue what we want.

What is it that you want to accomplish? Maybe you want to get in shape, spend more time with God, get to know your neighbors, pursue a different job, start a blog… Whatever it is–and believe me, I’m speaking to myself more than anyone else–why don’t you start today instead of waiting for the perfect moment? If you are really honest with yourself, the perfect moment will never come.

Life is busy, distracting,complicated with limitless commitments and to-do lists that threaten to steal our time and attention.

You probably won’t be able to accomplish it all at once, but you’ve got to start somewhere. Besides, it’s much less intimidating to start small. Go for a short jog,wake up ten minutes earlier to just talk with God about your concerns, joys, fears,make a smoothie instead of reaching for another cookie..
Start with something small, and start today–or you probably never will.

Love is a complex issue even for the ones who have been knee-deep in it for too long. On top of that, human behavior in itself is an intricate web of realities and facts to understand. Coupling these things together, it can be quite difficult to get the hints that the emotions one is showing are indeed of love. Everyone expresses the colors of love differently, depending on both their age and gender; basically because their psychological and emotional responses to handle this thing called love vary. Women do it differently than men and vice versa. Though the former might tend to make it either more complex or simpler than it actually is.

Love is a very beautiful yet a very weird emotion. When a woman is in love, no matter how mature, sensible or in control of her life she is, one will be able to observe a few differences or changes in her personality which would indicate that she is madly and deeply in love.
Here, we have a list of 10 indications which can tell a man that a woman is deeply in love with him.

1 Unsual shy behaviour

It is quite a common feeling to have those butterflies fluttering around in your stomach when you are around the one you love. Women, being the more sensitive ones, tend to handle such a sensation differently. When a woman is around a man that she is deeply in love with, people around her start to notice a few changes in her. Those changes in her mainly highlight the enhanced feminine qualities of the woman. People would observe that the woman starts to get shy over small things, such as communicating directly with the one she loves, hesitating to make direct eye contact, rigid body postures and so forth.

Such shy body language is an instant and an obvious sign she has deep feelings of love for that special someone. She cares what you think of her and her feelings towards you get the best of her, hence leading to all the shyness. When the man is around her, even her voice would turn a little squeaky and low. The reason for shyness is usually due to the increased heart rate and the butterflies in her tummy. In some cases, it is beyond the woman’s control, no matter how confident she is. This is a really good indication of telling that she is in love with that man.

2. Gives man presents without any reason

The exchange of presents is considered as a gesture of love and care If a woman is in love with a man, she would buy presents for him without any reason. Usually, we buy presents for our loved ones on their birthdays or anniversaries, but in this case the woman would buy gifts without any proper reason. It is a really good indication of her love for that man. She likes to invest all that time and effort in first coming up with something valuable enough to gift you, going to a gift shop, buying you that present then sitting back and relishing by seeing that smile quirk up your face. Your little moments of joy become her soul concern and when she tries her best to be the one to bring up about those moments, know that she loves you dearly.

3. Acting slightly childish in front of the man she loves

As mentioned earlier, love is a beautiful yet a very weird emotion. It brings out the strangest parts of our personalities, ones even we get surprised to see blooming out of us. A woman may start to behave childish around the man she loves because she would believe that she can be cute around him. Childish behavior mostly indicates cuteness. She will try to woe him by her innocent actions and words, but know that her intentions are highly pure and acting innocent just shows a glimpse of her deeper feelings for you. Many people believe it can make a woman attractive and it is all but natural for a woman to be jumpy, excited, cuddly and a little bit squeaky around the man that she loves.

One cannot say that this childish behavior is shown in order to gain attention, but in fact it is completely natural and it comes from the woman without her control, especially when something as strong and gripping like the hand of love is holding her down, getting the best of her senses. Sometimes, acting all childish might even end up making her look silly which would make her special someone beam a little with joy and surprise. Her childish acts might also make her loved one more interested and curious as to the kind of person she is. They would want to get to know her more, which will only make her childish behavior bear its fruits.

Now she would never bother to make herself look like that if she did not really harbor feelings of love for you because after all, only loves makes us deviate from our normal and routine behavior, making us do the exceptional for the sake of the one we love.

4. Asks the man a lot about his life

When you love someone, it is general for you to want to get to know that person more; get to know their likes and dislikes, what ticks them off, what turns them on and off and so forth. When a woman is in love with a man, she would want to know more about him and about his interests, likes, dislikes and all the things that he wants to do in his life.

That is not to say that each time a woman asks you about your personality, she has deeply rooted feelings of love for you. But when a woman truly loves you, she tries to know you in a way no one else does. This is where she tries to be sexy and by that we don’t mean sexy as in good looks and figure.

Those are just mediocre things that fade away with time. You know what is really sexy? A real conversation and not just small talk either, but the ones where you both really communicate and unravel like shadows to each other. So when in love, a woman will generally get to know the deepest parts of you, things that you love and why.

Notice how she notices the shimmer in your eyes when you talk about things that you love and things that make you happy. You will see her love for you right there and then.

5. Starts the conversation

Women mostly do not like being the one to start a conversation nothing personal though, but they just view this as a man thing’ to be the one who initiates the conversation first. Some men do not realize that when a woman initiates a conversation many times with him whether it is on cellphone or in real life, it means that she is interested and probably in love with him. Of course, this indication does not prove that the woman is in love with the man on its own but in fact different combinations of indications prove love.

Therefore, this one can be a really strong indication if there are other signs as well. So every man should know that it takes a lot of courage for a woman to start a conversation and if a woman does then they should acknowledge it and appreciate it. She will converse with you like she does not converse with most people. Notice the excitement and joy in her voice when she talks to you, the way she eases herself into the conversation after starting it. She would not bother doing that really, to just ease into a conversation with just anyone; unless she really loves you and wants to have a good talk with you.

6. Shows interest in all that the man does

Another indication is that the woman would show interest in all the activities that the man does, irrespective of how many these activities are. If a man plays video games, plays guitar, goes horse riding, goes racing, sits at home playing FIFA with his friends or goes for any other activities which women do not normally do; if he observes that the woman is showing interest in all those activities and probably wants to join him as well then it means that she might be in love with him.

It is simply due to the fact that we make an exception for those we love, for those that matter most to us. So even though a woman might have the least bit of interest in how free kicks are done in football or how to gain plus points in a video game and so forth, and yet she is still there with you asking about all of that, making you show her how to do the things you like then what more could it mean if not for her love and devotion to you?

Seeing you happy and excited talking about your interests makes her happy and that is why she bothers enough to spend all that time getting to know what those interests are and why they have caught your attention. She also knows it will make you more interested in getting to know her in return if she does so. It does not matter how boring that activity is, a woman would show interest if she really loves him and she would want to know more about these activities along with all the other things that the man does in his daily life.

7. Tries to impress the man physically

She would try to enhance her good features so that the man would notice them and like her. It is all but natural for a woman to want to make the man like her if she is in love with him. She would not necessarily dress up too much to make him notice her, but just enough.

It is obvious that once you love someone, you also start to genuinely care about their opinions of you. Looking good and presentable to them becomes a major concern for a woman who is in love with you. When they deeply and sincerely love someone, women want their beauty to be rightly acknowledged and appreciated by that special someone otherwise they will not really bother.

Can we blame them? Love makes us do crazy things after all, doesn’t it? Who knows, she might end up making you laugh or even smile a little bit. To see you in that state is also something she wants to witness all going back to the fact that she loves you and cares a great deal about how she makes you feel.

8. Looks happier when she is around that man

It is because she enjoys the time and enjoys his company. The happiness on her face is yet another one of the best indications for a man to know whether the woman is deeply in love with him or not.Even when she is sad or having a bad day but becomes happy and cheery around you, she only shows that change due to the love blossoming in her for you. Happiness is a choice, as they say. So when a woman choose to be happy around you, it is not just for nothing.

9. Gets shy while maintaining eye contact

They say only two kinds of people are unable to make eye contact with you: those trying to hide a lie and those trying to hide a love. For women, the latter case seems to be the more common one. If a woman is in love with a man then while maintaining an eye contact with that man, the man would notice that she would get shy or try to look away.

She will have blushed cheeks...lol.
This is due to the sudden increase in heart rate and rush of blood on her face which would make her look away. This can be considered as one of the cutest indications, not to mention the pretty obvious ones that she is in love with you and is trying to hide it only to fail at it. If you are perceptive enough, you should be able to notice these physical changes in her and come to the conclusion that this woman has deep feelings of love and affection for you.

10. Pays a lot of attention to the needs and wants of the man

If a woman is deeply in love with a man, then she would pay a lot of attention to all his needs and she would make sure that he gets what he wants. She would try her best to please him in every possible manner. One can sort of relate it to the care that a mother would give to her child, because she wants to keep the child happy and pleased. Same goes for a woman who is deeply in love.

Every woman has different experiences when she is in love and every man probably experiences different things with women who have been in love with them. It is in women’s nature, to be this nurturing and caring. She knows she has nothing to gain. So despite knowing that, if she still chooses to know your wants and needs and fulfils whichever ones she can then do not take it for granted and acknowledge her love for

Women have a very selfless and tender nature. They will leave absolutely no chance whatsoever to show their deep love and affection, care and sympathy for you and your well-being. So when you see a woman doing any or all of these above mentioned acts of kindness and love for your sake, then do not take any of it for granted.

Those eyes met,
The words go
Mere sight of you,
Makes me feel my posture
I laugh, we cry
You laugh, I cry
The pain beneath the smile is obvious.
The need to do more than feel sweeps in.
I charged and moved
We knocked each other off.
Our feet in the air
Radiant love flows.

I used to rule the world.
Great oceans and their seas would fall when I spoke a word. I was strong, powerful insurmountable and infallible.

The envy of Nations I was rightfully named. My peers wanted to walk in my  shoes. My heydays, are long gone like the once upon a time of quaint folklore.

Today, in a lonely abyss I sleep alone. No friends no foes.  I sleep on the same streets I once owned. What happened to me? How did my worth so plummet? I never envisaged this abrupt shift from grace to grass.

The diviners, the sorcerers paltered with me with forked prophecies. They told me I would be king forever. They said my reign would never end but servants, whose names I looted, earn more accord than I do today. The Cedis and Rand, thrive over me! I wallow in self pity, a dethroned king, I am now. This is how it all began....

On the 1st of January, 1973 replacing the Pound at a rate of N2.00. to £1.00, I began my lofty reign. In that same year my kinsman, named Kobo, was introduced.

He was half the man I would say I was but we both reigned in majestic splendor. We thrived side by side under the purposeful guidance of visionaries. Great council of advisers, insightful, they saw into the dark and helped us avoid pitfalls.

Harrowingly, their gifts died with them. They failed us because they had no worthy successors. The new generation didn’t have their insight and that was the beginning of our doom.

As power and leadership changed, we fell deeply into dingy tunnels. Blind young advisers led us straight to the slaughter. Our royal blood was spilled,  we were neglected, hung in the sun to dry.

Their aim shifted from nurturing us to ravaging us. Slowly but steadily, we lost our spot in the skies. Perhaps I thought, it's but a stage. Maybe they have great plans, it's only a phase! I imagined I would come out better. I likened myself to the great eagle, I must be up in the mountain just like the great eagle. I am powerless now because my new masters want me to grow new feathers and come out of the mountains, soaring higher than ever. How wrong was I? Mine wasn’t a tale like that of the great eagle.  I was not just abandoned. I was raped and milked dry by incessant corruption. My doomed reality became Inflation and my future recession.

The generation of takers came and sacrificed an empire for their selfish desires. To gratify their lust, they took it all. They sacrificed my future  and that of my kinsman on the alter of their avarice. Their insatiable lust for affluence far beyond their reach.

Eons have passed but the status quo is immutable. In fact, it has exacerbated.

In no time my dear kinsman ran into extinction, completely lost his relevance and was no longer accepted as a legal tender in a place where he once thrived, a pity the children would never get to see him.

I rued  and mourned his demise but while I was at it, came my end too. My lowest denomination became a leper.  No longer accepted as a legal tender, no longer touched.

How the vissionless advisers  ruined us! We were lions but now hide in tunnels like meerkats, inexplicably insignificant.

Our peers who once envied us and looked up to us have since left us far far behind, a brutal fate. And now the smallest denomination  of me who had 5 times my power when I ruled is now slowly heading into the same dark tunnel of irrelevance just like his predecessors. He must be in some books now, or under a bed, under a chair, in some place seen but not considered useful and at this rate he would soon be consigned to oblivion. How sad that again the children would never speak of him.


Could this be a process of a new birth for me and my kinsman? Could it be a passing thing?

I like to keep my faith alive perhaps it is all a nightmare. Perhaps we are, like the great eagle shedding our feathers for new ones. Or maybe, we are like the snake, shedding it’s skin to be reborn.

Though my peers derisively laugh at my optimism, I know it is not the end of my reign. A new crop of visionaries would be sent to unfreeze my castles and all will come to life again. Till then however, I would keep believing, that like the legend of the mythical Phoenix, my kingdom will again take its place as the pride of its continent. My affluence will again spread to the ends of the earths and legends will come to bow before me like they did.

Will I still command the same respect I once commanded? Will I and my kinsman  come back from exile and be accepted again? These questions plague me but in the end, this darkness will pass.

I must cling to hope for surely the sun will rise again and from ashes, I shall one day rise but would it be you that delivers me? I am the Naira and this is my lamentation.