We look to our leaders, and we must hope that they are able to bear the responsibility that comes with our tendency to follow. In the modern day, power exists in many forms. No longer restricted to Kings, Queens, Emperors, and Empresses, power now is held in the soft and delicate hands of ordinary people,
Category: Adult
The Education Trajectory from a British Perspective
An etymological perspective would be helpful in appraising the basic essence of education and will provide the necessary cornerstone on which one can construct a tenable case for what its role should be. The Latin derivative from which we get the English word education denotes the act of bringing up, breeding or rearing. This exists
Yes!! I knew it – Abraham Lincoln was wrong!
“Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character, give him power.” I strongly disagree. Nearly all men can stand adversity and power is not a test of a man’s character. A middle-aged man working as a janitor in a bank was approached and asked to make some alterations in a document and afterwards,
Books are like that
The dawn of humanity saw early man wander the realms of earth in search of food, water, shelter and a mate. As he kept walking in his quest he met new people. He told them about his journey, shared his experience in the wild, and they exchanged techniques to survive. They discussed what worked and
The Role of Education is to Broaden Our Minds
A popular Tibetan Proverb goes… ‘A child without education is like a bird without wings’. Many people view this as cliché, but we all know how true this is. Perhaps, the question that begs answers is: “Can it really be possible for us to fly”? This question was posed many years ago by Daedalus in
Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character, give him power
In his seminal quote titled ‘The Paradox of our Time’ Bob Moorehead captured man’s personal struggle with self and the frailty of our human existence when he wrote ‘we have conquered outer space, not inner space‘. Surprisingly, the low point of our failure to conquer our inner space is not found at our worst moments
Snake Wine and Sheep Guts, A Normal Night Out?
The French philosopher Albert Camus is credited with the quote; “Nobody realises that some people expend tremendous energy merely to be normal”. But what does it mean to be normal? Well that depends on a variety of factors like: where you are, who are with and what you are doing. For example, if I told
‘Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character give him power
Indeed, the truth in the statement above cannot be denied. I totally agree with it. Before presenting my points, however, I would want to explain three key words in the topic: ‘adversity’, ‘character’ and ‘power’, for better understanding. The Oxford Advanced Learners’ dictionary defines ‘adversity’ as a state of misfortune or calamity. It also defines
Towards Whole: A New Kind of Education
“What are books but folly, and what is an education but an arrant hypocrisy, and what is art but a curse, when they touch not the heart and impel it not to action” – Louis Sullivan The day was Saturday, August 2, 1997, the Nigerian nation wore a gloomy mood. People talked in hushed tones, crowds were
Normality and the need to conform
The dictionary definition of normality is the opposite of deviant, eccentric and unusual behaviour but “normalcy” differs from person to person, but I think the general meaning is “to be like everyone else.” Anything or anyone that doesn’t fit their views are thought of as “abnormal”. Psychology uses the term “norm” to refer to a
You’re Not The Man I Married, And Other Alleged Betrayals
Some years ago, a batch of trigger-happy policemen patrolled the streets of Lagos. Upon being given guns, the power of life and death in the pull of a trigger, they turned from protector to aggressor. Raising their guns for everyone to see, they would extract huge sums from a driver before allowing the vehicle to
A Presidency: Character and Power
Abraham “Abe” Lincoln once said that “Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character, give him power.” And while I would caution against the potential implications of testing people’s character by giving them power, being that it could result in far-from-desirable consequences, the sixteenth US president does speak
Lincoln never said that
“Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character, give him power.” – Abraham Lincoln. Do you agree? First things first. Abraham Lincoln, the 16th President of the United States, never stated that adversity was an inadequate measure of a man’s character. It was his post-mortem biographer, Horatio Alger
Normality is a trap and popularity is the bate
What is normal? The definition of normal changes with every culture. It can even change from street to street. One street may leave their outside lights on all night while the other turns theirs off, both streets believe what they are doing to be normal. Normal is a term used to define the usual, the
The Boon & Bane of Normality
All of life is comfort, either sought after, hoarded, or sacrificed in the presence of challenges. As children, we saw the world through unadulterated eyes, and therefore, responded to it in a way only befitting to ourselves. Our minds sparked instinctual reactions which shaped our individualities, the details which separate us from others, the differences
Real learning: what broadened minds mean for the world
“The reason so many people grow up to look for a job is that the economy has needed people who would grow up to look for a job. Jobs were invented before workers were invented.” -Seth Godin I was 23, done with schooling, when I started to take interest in writing again. Because I chose
Educational education by prepared preparers
What is one of the universal truths that govern society as of now? What is one of the things that we truly need? Of course, the answer should be in the clear for everyone: We need to have education. That’s why since childhood, we go to school. We need to give our brains knowledge. We
What happens when powerful people get complete freedom?
I agree: there is no bigger test of integrity, moral courage, principles, ethics or values than giving a man – or woman – power and seeing what they do with it. The controversial sport of bullfighting is an excellent place to start when it comes to discussing power, so let’s meet the first ever professional
Questioning Normality
Meet Henry. Henry is a middle-aged man. He is married and has two wonderful daughters. He owns a house in the suburbs and has a steady job. Since he works in education, he enjoys long holidays each year: time he spends camping with his family. Some people might say he’s got it all. He leads
To Be Normal Or Not?
“Alright boy, wear a smile and be a good kid.” That was what my mom said to me as she dropped me off at school one day. It may seem like a simple instruction, but the ambiguity embedded in her statement only ended up creating confusion in my young head. I thought about what she