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Folk Narratives: Bees & Elephants
Most human-wildlife interactions are violent; one party gets to hurt the other. Hence, we need to negotiate living spaces with our non-human neighbors. The facts are glaring—population growth encouraged human encroachment on wildlife territory. When wildlife intrudes into farmlands for food, they get killed or maimed. We don’t want this. A folk narrative from Kenya…
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Wildlife/Environmental Conservation
What alternative career paths have you considered or are interested in? I love wildlife. I guess I have been curious about life since childhood. I could watch National Geographic, Animal Planet, and other wildlife shows from daybreak till sunset. That’s how much love I had for the wild. I think this also influenced my attitude…
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Principles
What principles define how you live? Principles are fundamental truths that serve as the foundation for a system of belief or behavior or for a chain of reasoning. In this prompt, I’ll highlight the basic principles I live with. First, I believe that hard work is crucial to success. That hard work works. There’s no…
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Favorite Artists
Who are your favorite artists? I admire a lot of artists. I like Jackie Chan, Denzel Washington, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Wyclef Jean and Mary J Blige. The first three are movie stars and the last two are musicians. I have followed the movie stars for a longtime. In fact they contributed immensely to my childhood entertainment.…
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Publishing
What have you been putting off doing? Why? One thing I have been lazy about is publishing. It’s been on my mind and to-do list for a long time. However, it requires some financial commitment, which may have been my major discouragement. I have manuscripts of drama, poetry, and short stories. I also have many…
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Charity
If you had a million dollars to give away, who would you give it to? I will share the money between charities like Children and Young Women’s Health Foundations, e.g., Save The Children, Wildlife and Environmental Protection Non-Government Organizations, e.g., Sheldrick Trust, and Human Rights Organizations, e.g., Domestic Workers Unite Inc. The idea is to…
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Reflection: Gardening
What is your favorite hobby or pastime? Large fruit trees blossoming around the countryside form a flower shelter, which also provides a spectacular view. The rains had gone for a break, and stream and river levels receded. I noticed during the summer, the petals of flowers were on the verge of blossoming. How we waited…
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What is The Elephant?
I will start by retelling this short and famous parable about the Elephant and the Blindmen, adapted from the book The Elephant in the Dark. This parable speaks volumes about misconceptions and how one-sided, unverified, and faulty ideology could spread erroneous claims and beliefs. A group of blind men learned that a strange animal, called…
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Play and Work
In what ways does hard work make you feel fulfilled? Let’s start this prompt with a short poem I wrote some time ago. I call it Play or Labor. Play green locust, hopTake a swerve, make a loopWatch days turn into dismal years Labor brown ant, toilMorn and noon, dig the soil,Gather seeds before bitter…
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Persistence
What’s the trait you value most about yourself? I believe that the most valuable trait in me is my ability to persist. The English dictionary defines persistence as continuing a course of action without regard to discouragement, opposition, or previous failure. It’s related to endurance and perseverance. I have learned to persistently sow good seeds…
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Travel-Blogging
List three jobs you’d consider pursuing if money didn’t matter. I would love to be a writer and, indeed, working towards that. My writing started back in high school. Then, I liked playing with words and wrote poems of love. I’m also interested in becoming a travel blogger. It is a dream to travel around…
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Moonlight
It’s time that candlelights are blown outOne after the other; in this little town,All wait for the moon to shine againWhen black figures stroll aboutBeyond the fences, the forest stoodThe green grass against the moonlightNow faint but immaculately whiteVarious odors greeted all, people, mudThere were dark patches on the stream The moon had spread over…
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Traveling
How do you celebrate holidays? While in Nigeria, I celebrate holidays by traveling to my dad’s countryside home. I enjoy the tranquility of the countryside—the quiet mornings and evenings and the numerous familiar faces I knew from childhood. I always have this endearing trend of staying away from the noise and pollution of towns. It…
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Proactive Leadership
Do you see yourself as a leader? I’d like to think of myself as a leader because I’m proactive, creative, and willing to work with everyone. So I will answer with a list of my leadership experience in no order. I’ve volunteered in-person and remotely for several NGOs in Africa, the Middle East, and America.…
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Attitude
What personality trait in people raises a red flag with you? Attitude changes everything For me the difference between good and bad is attitude. Consider the story of Abraham Lincoln below and the following reflection. Abraham’s Humble Story When Abraham Lincoln became the president of America, his father was a shoemaker. Naturally, egoistic people were…
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Music
How do you relax? Music is the art of making pleasing combinations of sound. It’s an organized sound that can be soul-lifting and entertaining. There are several genres of music. In my blog, I have written my thoughts about numerous songs I like. These songs range from international hits like Shakira’s ‘Waka Waka’ to local…
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California
Share a story about the furthest you’ve ever traveled from home. California is just what I imagined. The clean streets, diverse people, and rolling hills embody nature, all set in an inspiring school environment lined with cheerful trees. Where there are trees, you can often see birds that add their melodic sounds to the view.…
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Acts of Kindness
What brings a tear of joy to your eye? Kindness in a world of tribulation and pain gives me hope. Recently, I’ve seen people exhibit random acts of service to others: holding doors for others, volunteering, giving your seat to the elderly, saying hi first, smiling warmly, and giving good wishes. And it warms my…
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Poetry
Why do you blog? This short blog post answers the prompt on why I blog… Poetry Poetry is a composition in verse or language, exhibiting conscious attention to patterns. The bolded are crucial to understanding the true nature of poems. Poetry has been in existence for centuries. As an art that survived centuries, I was…
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I Feel Good
How are you feeling right now? Do you remember the commercial: Wow, I Feel Good, followed by a jingle? That’s exactly how I feel. This feeling comes from being grateful for all I have; good friends, loving siblings, peace of mind, joy, a bright future, and hope. The journey has been rough, but my dreams…
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Sunset
What’s your favorite time of day? What does the sunset mean to you? For me, it’s time for rest. It’s also a time for reflection, a time to put the pieces together. However, overthinking kills the fun. Letting the day’s stress slide is crucial. So count your blessings. Even the sun rests, a quick reminder…
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Okechukwu
Where did your name come from? In Nigeria, names are an important way to identify people. They carry histories and meanings, which are rooted in the culture of the people. Some names reflect a family’s situation or past experiences. The name Oke is a shortened form of Okechukwu, meaning ‘Share,’ ‘Part,’ or ‘Gift from God.’…
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Learning
What motivates you? Staying positive all day brings me a lot of good thoughts, joy, hope, and the opportunity to learn and grow There’s so much to learn and I love discovering new things and knowledge. Thus, I’m motivated by the opportunity to learn new things every day. Each time I meet someone for the…
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Berkeley
What do you love about where you live? Berkeley in California is a wonderful place to live. It’s a hilly town with abundance of greens and orderly streets. In this city is the pioneer and famous University of California campus. There are wild turkeys, deer, squirrels and bobcats. The weather is cool because of the…
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Hope
What positive emotion do you feel most often? Hope is a wonderful emotion and one of the greatest to ever be. I would talk about it in a poetic form: Hope is like a dreamer’s lyre and songsIt’s an elixir that softens the weary soulDarkness and light, uncertainty and hopeWhile some search through the thick…
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What Brings You Peace?
What brings you peace? Well, that’s a big question. For me, peace is one of the greatest virtues anyone would have. So in this prompt, I’ll use the words comfort, relaxation, happiness, and peace interchangeably. I’ll try to list the activities that bring me all these virtues. Writing, Reading, and Reflection: I get peace from…
