I cannot begin to imagine how many gigabytes of data, how much airtime, Facebook posts, tweets, instagram pictures, Display Messages, Display Pictures, Google Searches, Snap chats, prayers, testimonies, prayer points, not to mention jokes, scenarios and conspiracy theories about whether or not it was a planned affair- have been created and are still ongoing from the life event that happened on Olajumoke Orisaguna.
A life event, yes, as that one event has erupted, with many ripple effects not just on Olajumoke herself, but also on her family, friends, persons who connected with her, brands, Nigerians and the world at large as we woke up to the news and the shocking awareness that -“Bread Seller Today, Model Tomorrow, “- taking the world by storm.
27 year old Olajumoke, a married mother of 2children, left her home in Osogbo to Lagos in a bid to fend for herself and her family.
She took up selling bread and while in the course of her job one day, stumbled upon a TY Bello Photoshoot of musician Tinie Tempah. Social media went agog after TY Bello posted the picture as people kept requesting to know who the model was.
The rest is history as from ‘Bread seller, Olajumoke is now a Bread Winner’ .So much talk, thought, typing, has gone on and continues to go on about the once in a lifetime opportunity.
A life event is described as an entry or exit occasion that causes significant change in the life of the concerned individual. For me, in Olajumoke’s case, it was a mix of both. It was a case of ‘Out with the Old, In with the new’.
Her miracles don’t also seem to stop. They appear like those kinds of miracles you ask from God that he embarrasses you with. The lessons from her story are such that they will serve to inspire and motivate, be the point of reference and of teaching for many years to come.
While I join teeming Nigerians to congratulate her for this ‘once in a lifetime miracle’, I will also like to share a few invaluable lessons I have learnt from the whole story.
1. Stay in your place of assignment-Olajumoke was at her job minding her business and not someone else’s.
2. We are much more than we ever imagined. Recall that saying by Ralph Waldo Emerson that says: ‘What lies behind us and what lies before us are small matters compared to what lies within us. And when we bring what is within us out into the world, miracles happen’.
Would she ever have thought she was capable of anything else than her previously taught skill of hairdressing and trading. She had dreams of being in Nollywood. How far off is modeling from acting. Her dreams were quite aligned with these building blocks.
3. Be diligent at your work. Whatever your hands find to do, do it well. You never know who is watching. Out with the old mentality of ‘currying’ favor while at work to gain attention. Even while selling her wares, she dressed well such that her color theme was part of the eye catcher that made it look artsy.
4. Be a vessel of blessing. Let God use you to bless others- do away with the Popular Nigerian mentality of ‘if it’s not for me, why should it happen to someone else for good?’. TY Bello did great by letting it happen for Olajumoke.
5. Learn to Celebrate success. It costs you close to nothing to appreciate success in another person. It frees you from hate, envy and sadness. Celebrating others is vital to your own achievements.
6. See the good in others- Olajumoke may appear as a ‘nobody’ because of her background, but I haven’t seen anyone that God can’t bless. TY Bello’s pivotal role in going the extra mile for the potential good she saw in Jumoke is commendable.
Life is about time and chance- opportunities will come. Be strategic, recognize them and Seize the moment, or like in Olajumoke’s case, the moment seized her.
8. Nothing is too small to start with. Olajumoke’s take home from profit was rather little. But God will ask, what is that you have in your hands? And then he will bless it.
9. A man who empowers his woman empowers himself. Jumoke’s husband allowed her to take the opportunity and he has been seen to support her since then. Some men out of fear and intimidation would have stopped her dream altogether.
10. ‘Nothing is as powerful as an idea whose time has come’-Victor Hugo. The idea is Olajumoke. This is
Olajumoke’s time. Carpe diem Olajumoke!
Here is wishing her the very best in her future end.
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Opinion written by Gbonjubola Abiri
