There
was no love lost between my late father and I in the beginning. His
tough love led me to believe he was a bully and an overbearing old-skool
parent. However that changed some 30yrs ago
For the past twelve
years before he passed on in my house in 2014, I brought my parents
from Oguta in their retirement to live with me in my Abuja residence. To
look after them, love, care and protect them in their old age. Some
times I feel I was making restitution for all my rascality and the high
blood pressure I might have caused them in my teenage years. Oh Yeah! I
was a hand full.
The time we spent in my house were great years
of great bonding between father and son. With hindsight I prefer to
interpret that singular decision to bring them to live with me, as the
most profound thing I ever did in my life. Through the constant casual
discussions we had, engaging him at different levels of intellectual and
interactive intercourse, I became very curious about life. He
reawakened in me a deeper meaning to life, the realisation of my purpose
on earth, the reinforcement of the strong values he engraved in my DNA.
And above all, I learnt the value of contentment and humility from my
Guru.
Not a lot of us are blessed with parents who make strong
impact on our lives and shape our mindset. For this I am grateful to
God. I feel blessed. I was raised on an overdose of strong morals,
value, integrity, spirituality. It was pounded into my skull that a good
name is worth more than all the billions in the bank. As a former
Principal in his younger days, my father was a natural born teacher.
Always wanting to share knowledge, so full of wits and wisdom. It was
his love of wisdom that made me fall in love with him.
My father
thought me Charles Chukwuemeke Oputa to lead a good moral life, to be
mindful and aware of my thoughts and action and to keep developing
wisdom and understanding in any situation I find myself.
We
talked about the apparent injustices and inequalities that abound in
Nigeria and around the world, and he kept downloading to me all the code
of practice or way of life that leads to true happiness. One of his
teachings was that wealth does not guarantee happiness and that wealth
is impermanent. That in every country people suffer whether rich or
poor. But those who seek to understand the true meaning of life can find
true happiness.
As we both came into the light; understanding
our individual gifts from God, he talked about me with Pride. About my
tenacity, consistency, focus, belief in self, and in my ability to be
who so ever I want to be in a conservative environment.
What’s the point in all of this?
It
is really not where we’re coming from that counts but where we are
heading to. There is more to life than gold and silver. If you don’t
have the kinda friendship I shared with my father and you have children,
let this be your opportunity to draw them closer and nurture them with
the right value and character. It is not the material things you leave
for your children that counts, but the things you teach them. I thank
God that my pop passed on to me billions in value and spirituality. Can
you feel me?
credit ;nairaland
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