Some Places Are Not Meant For Us By Solomon Unimke
“SOME PLACES ARE NOT MEANT FOR US” In life, some persons are not supposed to be where they are, because such a place is not meant for them. But they just find themselves there. And they haven’t recognized the need to move, change or step up whatever they are doing to get to where they belong. In life, it’s not everywhere you find yourself you really belong. Whether you agree or not, you just have to know that now. Environment, people, culture and religion influence people to either give their best or worst. Let me share a little experience I had growing up with a friend This friend was a bass singer in a church choir; he was what you’d call an “inexperienced” chorister. One day he was opportuned to attend a singing competition where he was noticed by a choir director who owned a chorale group. The Director took…
THE EYE OF PERSPECTIVES BY OFEM UBI
From the eyes of a singer The world is music Carefully arranged in choruses and stanzas Made possible with strings and keys, beats and drums And without them, life is baseless And as each chord progresses As the sound graduates to the moments of unknown ecstasy Their lyrics are the message from their hearts to the world They make life bearable even through the recessions And their voices are nothing but the taste of freedom They see humans as instruments for melodies And every day they derive satisfaction off their high notes They see every event as hit tracks They make the souls of the dead wish for breath
The Whore House by Ofem Ubi
THE WHOREHOUSE She dances in the shadows As darkness is a word her syllabus are all way too familiar with She’s unstable like the climate And her forecast is nothing but thunder storms and little degrees of sunshine She hides behind the tower of her smile like Babel Her words are night time whispers hoping to be heard in daylight She tries trimming the cocktail time that tells the tales of her misfortune And so humans often misconstrue the pathways that led to her deadened destination She’s a piece of short sleeved happiness And she stares at the ceiling ceaselessly hoping to count her blessings but all she sees is curses painted in pictures flipping through the gallery of her mind As she begins to ask those rhetorical questions Is HE alive? Does HE see me shed my innocence like second skin and all he does is sit back upstairs…
WHAT IS WRONG WITH BEING BLACK? OFEM UBI
She handed me the book And its title became my muse As I stare at the cover page hoping to find answers to the question that marks an x on my chest What is wrong with being black? Why is my skin the color of crime? And why am I used as a case study for judgment Am I an outlaw? Or was I made for another planet Why do I feel like I was created to serve those with white flesh? And are the four walls of college an evil forest I dare not venture into? Or am I too premature to deal with its aftermath What is wrong with being black? Why do they terminate the exploits of my forefathers like miscarriages? Why have they possessed my thoughts with the spirit of the inferiority complex? For they have broken the bridge where humanity meets like a confluence point…
YOU SHOULD MEET BLANKPAPERZ YOUNG WRITER OF THE MONTH (JANUARY)
It’s not about being the best, it’s about having the desire. Through words, whether it’s working on Canaan City FM or writing and performing poems, Ofem uses words to change his immediate society. Ofem Ubi was born on the 25th of May. He is just another average Nigerian citizen with love for music and scripting (of any and all kind). He obtained his Secondary School Certificate from Hope Wadell Training Institution and is currently in pursuit of a degree in Mass Communication, Cross River University of Technology. Ofem seeks to explore the world of Arts and the intricacies that come with it and sees himself as nothing but a bleeding pen held by the hands of nature to converse with the world and with each line, each rhythm, each melody, each piece of Art Mother Nature uses him to create,he hopes the world listens. Check out Ofem’s blog here
BEHIND THE COLLAR BY OFEM UBI
Behind the collar lies blood, dust, marrows and veins Lies mistakes swept beneath the carpet of our Lord’s mercy and grace Behind the collar lies sacrifice, selflessness and the urge to make the world a palace for HIS presence Behind the collar lies tears of regret and past actions that could be reversed if only time had hands Behind the collar lies bended knees, prayer points stacked on a to-do list like books on a library shelf Lies false accusations, painted lies that seem like honest truth, blackmails and attacks physical and spiritual Behind the collar lies the hot seat seeking for perfection which cannot be given Lies Google eyes searching for flaws to capitalize on Behind the collar lies days of contemplations about quitting, lies the hunger for care and affection Lies patience, immediate remorse’s like King David Behind the collar lies contempt, swallowed insults regardless the weight Behind…
LETTER TO DEATH BY OFEM UBI
You come guarded like an arms man Paying deaf ears to the reasons made by your victims You take who you delight in And it’s sad you’re never satisfied even when you get your fill You’re a glutton for corpses, both great and small You invade homes without prior invitation And though you see the unwanted signs on door posts you yet make your way in Sometimes through backdoors and windows of sickness, accidents and other loopholes too numerous to mention You listen to no bargains and pleas For your lustful eyes are fixed on your preys like a trophy You remove the lamp stands of those we wish you never did And it’s funny how you rejoice in our pain For if life came in pairs we certainly would drop our yet used lifelines for you but We watch as you take our loved ones up away in the…
DONATIONS FOR BOOK GIVEAWAY
“A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies, said Jojen. The man who never reads lives only one.” The Blankpaperz Monthly Book Giveaway is a simple contest carried out monthly so as to gift book prizes to as many young people as possible. This contest was started in December 2016, with the first winner being Idongesit Peter. The goal is to encourage and increase reading habits amongst young people. GUIDELINES TO DONATING You can help young people read more by donating books to be given out during the giveaway contests. More books means more people reading, and more people reading means more knowledge. Books such as: – Biographies, autobiographies, novels, motivationals, history books, notepads, journals, Bibles, etc. are accepted. For now we do not accept Academic text-books, except they are interdisciplinary. Physical donations are accepted and if you are not in the city of Calabar, the cost of your…
Lessons From 2016 by Blessing Bassey
“I didn’t deserve it but he (GOD) gave me a second chance” I lived a life of hypocrisy, bitterness, sadness & loneliness. Not like it was my choice but I indirectly subscribed to it. I guess I thought I was enjoying life to the fullest at the expense of what he had in mind for me. I cheated humanity without a second thought. I believe he was looking down at me smiling and probably saying, ‘What is this young lady doing’. The devil came as a friend and I embraced him with open arms and heart. I hit the mighty iceberg and I sunk without shame or cries for help. But when I was almost choking to death, he walked in and BOOM!!! I SURVIVED!!! He said to me, girlfriend that’s enough! Things happen but babe your own don too much *lol. He fixed me up so well that I…
My School Life By Abasiono
***DAY ONE*** I remember when I began school, I was barely three years old yet eager to be in school like my senior brothers. Mama had taken time to bath me, applying my favorite baby pearl lotion, my hair had already been braided and I finally got to wear my new school uniform. The color was dull and not particularly my favorite, but still I wore it proudly with a silly grin. After appraising my new look in my uniform, mama smiled in approval and said “my baby is all grown up, now starting her first day in school.” In which my dad had replied with a slight pinch to my chubby cheeks. My brothers stood in the background cooing noisily, already in their school uniform. I had three brothers; the two eldest were already in their junior secondary, while the one I followed was still in primary school, the…
I used my school fees for my cousin – Julius’ lessons from 2016
Deh, Julius Prince 2016 was indeed an eventful year for me. Maybe it was because that was the year I fully settled down as a student in the university, strange right? For those people who knew when I gained admission, it may appear rather strange that it took me this long to settle down. Yes I fully became conscious of my environment in 2016, that was when I decided to explore, make friends and interact with people, particularly in the hostels. Alright enough of the stories, let’s get back to the lessons learned. This story I’m about to tell you greatly affected my trust in people, especially the ones I call family. You may think I’m weird now but trust me, family is actually the ones who could stab you real hard and thereafter clean up your own blood on your clothes without feeling an ounce of regret. When…
ON THE STREETS OF CALABAR – NTEN MPAMA
Nten is a teenage girl who loves putting her thoughts to paper. Writing is to her what food is to the body. She is a ferocious reader and an avid lover of poetry. She also loves to bake and eat what she bakes. Her faith is probably the most important part of her life. She lives in Calabar with her family. Grace knew in her heart of hearts that the dress she was wearing was inappropriate for the streets of Calabar. But what could she do? Ken had cancelled on her at the last minute; he had some errands to run. “What could possibly go wrong?” She thought. “I’ll just walk a short distance to the road then pick a cab to Marian. How hard could that be?” So she said goodbye to her elder sister who gave her a look that said, “Girl, are you sure you wanna wear…
Nten’s Lessons From 2016
I had already decided that I wasn’t going to write this. Because really, what lessons did I learn in 2016? But right now, as I write this, I’m thinking really hard. What did I learn through 2016? ° I learnt the importance of friendship. I know sometimes with the way friendship is hyped it seems a little overrated. But, trust me, it’s not. Last year was really depressing but I was able to pull through largely because of the help of a certain group of people who made my wellbeing their concern. ° I learnt that prayer is a very important tool for survival. In 2016,my faith became all too important. I needed it to be so and I still do. Only someone who prays can understand the peace you feel inside after pouring your heart out to God. It’s simply indescribable! ° At the beginning of 2016, there were…