Okechukwu’s Musings: Poetry, People and Places

Tag: dailyprompt

  • Big Fan – Big Lessons

    If you could meet a historical figure, who would it be and why? Arnold’s success story taught that hope and resiliency are key to success. I would love to meet these actors and musicians: Denzel Washington, Dwayne Johnson, Wyclef Jean, Jackie Chen, Jeremiah Gyang, Mary J Blige, and Arnold Schwarzenegger! But for this post, I’ll…

  • Instinct

    Do you trust your instincts? Make sure that when you look in the mirror each morning, you are proud to own up to the decisions you make for yourself. Yes. I trust my intuition. Not consistently, but I would most times have never been misled by trusting in myself. I don’t know how I do…

  • August

    What’s your favorite month of the year? Why? August is my favorite month of the year. It is a beautiful month and my birth month. It is also a month of holidays, so I celebrate each birthday at home.

  • Fire trail

    What is your favorite place to go in your city? I love hiking through the forest at the University of California, Berkeley. It’s a little distance from campus. A stream ran across the trail, and I could smell the wet clay. There are numerous bird calls and when sunset arrives, it’s something else! The sunset…

  • Approachable

    What’s the first impression you want to give people? Best friendships start with a smile. I want my first impression always to be making myself approachable. So I aim to be cheerful, happy, and calm. I made smiling a habit. I usually smile at people even before saying hello. Smiling is a language of its…

  • Green Places

    If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be? I know that this post requires a direct answer. Still, I generally will live wherever there are forests and other natural landscapes like streams, waterfalls, and hills, undisturbed by the activities of humankind. Somewhere in the East or Southern Africa, Southeast Asia, or…

  • In Three Years

    What will your life be like in three years? I would probably further my education or work in North America, Europe, or Africa. Either way, I’m optimistic that it would be good. I can’t say exactly.

  • Don’t Stress It

    What’s something you believe everyone should know. One thing I learned in life is not to stress so much about things. Taking life easy and one day at a time. Defining what your fun is and not letting people’s opinions or drama distract you. Whatever that is meant to be will be; consequently, if it…

  • No Price

    How much would you pay to go to the moon? For what purpose would I like to be on the moon? If there’s no reason but for fun, I would decline a voyage to the moon or any other planet. I don’t think I have any reason to be on the moon.

  • 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…

  • Blogging

    What are you most proud of in your life? This prompt is a tough one. There are many things I can be proud of. Well, I’ll talk about my blog which has not only changed my life but has impacted the world. Initially, oiroegbu.com started as a poetry blog but was adjusted to accommodate my…

  • 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…

  • 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.…

  • 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…

  • 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…

  • Sleeping and Waking Early

    What was the hardest personal goal you’ve set for yourself? The most challenging personal goal I set for myself is to sleep and wake early. I’m determined to be by myself from 9.30 PM unless I have a visitor or aren’t home by then. Since I started this, my body has learned to automatically wake…

  • 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…

  • 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…

  • 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…

  • 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…

  • Proverbs

    What aspects of your cultural heritage are you most proud of or interested in? Proverbs are sources of wisdom. They are the oil with which the Igbo eat their words. In this post, I wrote in Igbo, translated into English, and then gave its meaning. Sometime ago, I did a blog post on proverbs used…

  • Be Yourself

    What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever received? I do not know what I may appear to the world, but to myself, I seem to have been only like a boy playing on the seashore and diverting myself now and then finding a smoother pebble or a prettier shell than ordinary, whilst the great…

  • 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…

  • Spicy Noodles

    Write about your most epic baking or cooking fail. So one day in the dorm, I visited a friend who also had two other visitors. He offered his last pair of noodle packs and I was nominated to cook! While everyone waited for the noodles to get ready we talked about school and I requested…

  • Self-Care

    Share a lesson you wish you had learned earlier in life. There are many lessons I wish I learned earlier in life. One is putting myself first before anything else. By this, I’m not insinuating being selfish but learning to make decisions that won’t hurt me in the long run. I would be friendly and…

  • 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.…

  • Studying

    What are you doing this evening? This evening, I will be reading at one of the libraries at UC Berkeley. I’m working on several research essays and, at the same time, preparing for seminars and upcoming conferences. I will meet with some of my mentees afterward to catch up with them.

  • 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…

  • 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…

  • 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.…

  • 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…

  • 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…

  • 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…

  • Reading

    What daily habit do you do that improves your quality of life? One of my daily habits is reading. As a research scholar, I found it essential to exercise my mind each day by reading at least a page of any book or magazine, which proves helpful with time. The human mind, as we all…

  • Penguins of Madagascar, the Series

    What TV shows did you watch as a kid? I liked many TV shows, but I enjoyed The Penguins of Madagascar, the series the most. It was my family show as everyone gathered at night to see the sequel. King Julien was a laughable character, and so was his minions. The Penguins were intelligent, funny,…

  • 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…

  • Green City

    How would you design the city of the future? If I were to be an administrator, my city would be the greenest in the world. I would put pockets of forests in hubs, and every house would be encouraged to have a garden and at least two fruit trees. There would be a more expansive…

  • 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.’…

  • 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…

  • Poem: Writing

    What do you enjoy most about writing? Writing is a useful ancient craftThat aroused my passion and museBy teaching me more about myselfIt had reminded me of my cleverness

  • 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…

  • 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…

  • 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…