MY PEOPLE MY LAND

As a little girl I loved the smell of the earth, wet, dry, however it came. Somehow it reminded me that I was home, on my land, a place that I’ve always loved. I’m all grown up now and the love I have for my land has grown with me. I do not see land as just sand, stones, grass and trees, when I’m done telling this story you’ll understand why.
My country Nigeria is one of the most misunderstood countries in the world, my people however are rated one of the happiest groups of people on earth, but no one has heard our story, no one knows our trials, struggles and problems as a people.
As Nigerians, joy is our watch word, we believe being sad cannot change your situation, on the other hand our motto is “Hard work brings liberation”. Undoubtedly, bad eggs live among us, they desperately want to get rich quick and will use any means to make sure they do. Their constant appearance on world news headlines has turned the face of the world from us. Now we have to prove our worth before we are reckoned with. “Has it weighed us down” you might ask, the answer is No! It has made us stronger. Nigeria is home to over 150million people, hardworking, loving and joyful people, normal people who feel the pressures of life but do not break under it, people who want to prove that they are better than the world says they are, people who work to make sure that their children live good lives, free of all the external judgments and untrue conclusions.
I have great admiration for my people because they always seem to rise against adversities and push forward no matter what happens in our government and no matter what people say or do to us. For me, my land is everything a land should be because of its colorful, happy, and hardworking people.




COPYRIGHT 2009 JENNIFER OSUIDE. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.