It was my second year at the University of Ibadan. ASUU had just called off a long strike and everyone was rushing to catch up. My roommates had better phones, better shoes, better everything. I had a small torchlight phone that could barely browse WhatsApp.
One afternoon, during a group meeting at the faculty library, I saw an iPhone laying on the table beside Ada’s notebook. Ada was the quiet girl in our class. Always neat, always early but she had stepped out to answer a call.
The phone just lay there and my heart began to beat loudly. I don’t know why, maybe it was jealousy or it was frustration or maybe it was the stupid voice that whispers "Nobody will know".
I looked around, everyone was arguing about an assignment and nobody was watching. Before my conscience could catch up, my hand moved and I slid the phone into my tote bag. It happened so fast that even I was shocked at myself.
When Ada returned, she frowned “Where is my phone?”. Everyone began to search, under books, under chairs and inside bags.
When they got to me, I forced a laugh and I said “Do you think I will steal your phone?”
I opened my bag slightly, careful with my movement but God did not support foolishness. As I lifted my notebook, the phone slipped out and fell to the floor.
The room went silent, Ada stared at me like I had slapped her, “I… I don’t know how that got there” I stammered weakly.
Nobody spoke because nobody needed to, they were all shocked. From the library to the Head of Department’s office was the longest walk of my life.
My parents were called but my father did not shout but he said something painfully “So this is what we are suffering for?” he asked quietly when he arrived from Ibadan North, I wished he would just slap me.
Ada’s parents wanted the school to suspend me, some lecturers supported it but Ada surprised everyone
“She should apologize publicly” she said
“And return the phone, I don’t want her suspended”. I looked at her confused thinking why would she defend me.
At the small disciplinary meeting, I stood before my classmates and said
“I stole Ada’s phone,” my voice shaking
“I was jealous, I am sorry”, I cried.
Some people shook their heads, my reputation died that day.
For weeks, nobody sat beside me in class. Conversations stopped when I entered,
I stopped going out, I deleted my social media accounts and I focused only on lectures.
One evening as I was leaving the library, I heard someone call my name and It was Ada.
“Can we talk?” she asked and I nodded slowly.
We sat on a concrete bench outside the faculty building, then she asked gently
“Why did you do it?"
I expected anger insteadher voice carried curiosity.
“I don’t know, I think… I was tired of feeling small”
She was quiet for a moment, then she said
“You know my father bought that phone on credit?” she said softly. “We are not rich as you thought, I just don’t show my struggles” That hit me hard.
“I’m sorry,” I whispered again
She studied me carefully and asked “Are you really sorry?”
“Yes”
“Then prove it”
“How?” I asked
She leaned back. “Join me.”
“Join you in what?”
“I run a small tech training for secondary school girls on Saturdays. Basic computer skills like coding and I have been looking for volunteers”
I blinked. “After what I did?”
She smiled and said “Maybe you need it more than anyone else”
That was how I found myself in a small classroom in Bodija every Saturday morning, teaching young girls how to type and create email accounts.
At first, I went because I felt guilty but something changed. One of the girls Zainab, who was brilliant but shy. The first day she attended, she barely spoke but by the third week, she had built a simple webpage using basic HTML.
“See my site!” she shouted excitedly dragging me to the computer, her joy did something inside me. So I began to learn coding properly so I could teach better. Ada mentored me patiently, we spent hours building small projects together.
One afternoon, as we packed up after class, I asked “Why didn’t you let them suspend me?”, she smiled faintly and said “Because one mistake should not define a whole life”.
By final year, Ada and I had become close friends. Together, we expanded the Saturday program, applied for small grants, partnered with a local NGO and what started with ten girls grew to fifty.
During my final presentation in school, I spoke about ethical technology and access to opportunity. The same classmates who once avoided me now clapped.
After graduation, Ada and I co-founded a nonprofit that trains girls in underserved communities in tech skills. Today, we have trained over five hundred students across Oyo State.
Sometimes, when I stand before a hall full of young girls and tell them about integrity, I remember the sound of that phone hitting the library floor, that was the worst day of my university life. But it also introduced me to Ada, to purpose and to work that matters.
I am not proud of what I did but I am grateful for what it produced because sometimes, the best mistake is the one that exposes your weakness and then gives you the chance to become stronger than it.
Note: All pictures were generated on Meta AI