This year has been very challenging, tough and filled with lot of memories, I have been to places I have never dream of in my entire life. I've always wished for an adventurous lifestyle the kind I wouldn't find in any book, having to experience the unimaginable first hand has been a deep desire of mine. In one way or the other I knew I was going to have the opportunity to explore a little bit in my lifetime if I could just find the courage of getting out of my comfort zone. Believe me I have tried so many times to visit places but then I always find a way to come up with weirdest excuses that would prevent me from going. Silently prayed for something logical that would chase me out of my comfort zone, it came but it didn't just chase me out of my comfort zone, it made me find peace in being uncomfortable, isn't that weird?
Speaking of unforgettable memories and experiences that would be my NYSC journey. March 17 it was when I was deployed to Oyo State In Nigeria for my NYSC service, An event I have been anticipating for more than a year. It is one of the most significant event in a student life when you get to serve your father's land or should I say mother's land since our national anthem has been edited. In as much as I wanted it to unfold I knew it would eventually affect me in ways I never thought was possible. One of the Few effects I can foresee was the fact that I will have to leave everything I was doing behind which includes my online activities, my hive career sitting at the top of the list.
My 3 weeks in camp was a bittersweet experience, there were memorable moments and times I wished I should never have stepped into the camp but a part of me felt like at least after this whole horrible camp experience, the moment I get out of camp things will change for the better, I guess I never imagined what NYSC had in store for me. After the whole 3 weeks camp was over, I got deployed to a strange community for my PPA. I have written about it in different articles on my blog but since it remains one of the most unforgettable experience for me, talking about it briefly wouldn't hurt.
I found myself in a strange neighbourhood that is like no other I have known. I have been living here for the past six months undergoing my NYSC service which has been a bitter sweet experience. The first day I arrived here from camp, seeing how peaceful everywhere is, I was glad to finally have a break from the noise in the city little did I know that I will be facing a challenge that I never anticipated. The weird thing about staying in this community is, you don't feel like you are still in Nigeria because their way of life makes me feel like I'm on a different planet.
The first issue I experienced here was lack of electricity, i have lived in less developed part of my country but none is like this community. This might sound funny but there are times I had to pray for power supply. We are only privileged to get power supply at least 2 -3 times in a month and it only last about 30 minutes - 2 hours in a day. For someone like me whose entire life is dependent on the use of my gadgets for business/work purposes, lack of electricity is a big issue for me but then it is not as if I have a choice. Eventually I had to buy a mini solar panel but it is still not enough.
The second phase of my experience in this community is the unusual lack of resources I put up with, majority of things you see in the city does not exist here. Anything that looks like it is imported or produced in the city is sold at a very high price. To buy provisions in this community, you would have to travel to the nearest community called "Ago Aree" which is about 2 hours drive from my community and the transportation is not cheap at all. What about network issues, I should not even get started on that. I have had to restructure my taste and desire in order to reduce the rate at which my situation in this community affects my mental health.
How did it change my life? Well my NYSC journey will be concluded in few months, which is something I'm desperately anticipating. To an extent I believe I have succeeded, having to survive in the community for as long as I have is not a small feat at all. It is no doubt that my stay here has been difficult but there has been some specs too for example: I have learnt about a lot of things they do in this community especially in the aspect of agriculture, specifically cassava flour making process which I wrote about some months ago.
And also my experience in this community has increased my ability to be comfortable with being uncomfortable which is quite unusual. I have had to tolerate a lot of difficulties but then I always find ways to move pass it instead of dwelling in self pity.
This write-up was inspired by weekly featured content titled "Unforgettable" in hive learners community.
Cover image - 𝖣𝖾𝗌𝗂𝗀𝗇𝖾𝖽 𝗎𝗌𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖼𝖺𝗇𝗏𝖺
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