It’s my 49th Birthday!

I am 49 today and to be honest, for the very first time since I started celebrating my birthday, I feel every year of my new age in my bones and heart. However, I am grateful because I’m one of the lucky ones who get to celebrate another birthday. Every birthday is a reminder of precious life and our mortality, cos let’s face it, every birthday brings us a step closer to our graves.

However, there is something about my 49tth birthday that has been bugging me. I felt like it was consumed by thoughts of the 50th birthday milestone. I keep reminding myself that 49th is important in and of itself. You can’t just skip a year to jump into the 50th. If I were the 49th birthday, I’d be slightly annoyed because after all I deserve recognition too. Every Birthday Life Matters. Maybe this is what middle child feels like, ignored for the first or last born.

Anyway, I have made a conscious decision to be fully present in my 49th year on planet earth and not live it as a stepping stone to my 50th. Today, and indeed the very minute we are in, is all we’ve got, the next minute, tomorrow or next year is not promised. Instead of the mindset that I am going to use my 49th to prep the grounds for that mighty 50s, I’m going to live my 49tth for the sake of my 49th. Cherish it for what it is, the last of my very eventful, memorable 40s, filled with precious life memories of good health, success, love, and sadness.

Top on my list of to dos in my new age is to take better care of my physical and mental health. Be consistent. Do not make the gym a distant memory of something I used to be great at. BTW, I deserve a cookie medal for fitting into my very form-fitting birthday jumpsuit!

Step out of my queendom and go out to interact more with mere mortals, maybe even go on a few dates, yuk and ew! I do need to step out of my comfort zone.

Most importantly, honour the memories of the loved ones I’ve lost in the past year by living fully, and not just existing for work and my tempting sofa.

Do more of the things I loved doing which have taken a backseat in recent years. Write and blog more, go back to making videos discussing issues close to my heart. Never stop dancing to my favourite tunes and bring out the camera while at it, also definitely take more selfies!

Happy birthday to me, this Lioness is ready to roar when needed and purr out of pure contentment too. At this age, I would say roaring is OK, purring is also OK. Afterall, contentment is pure bliss.

 

 

Happpy 48th Birthday to me!

Wishing myself a very happy 48th Birthday on planet earth. This has not been the happiest of my birthdays as the past few months have been about healing from loss and fighting hard to not let the haters, who can’t stand BlackGirlMagic, silence my voice at work.

However, I am grateful for life, good health and prosperity. I am proud that in the face of adversities, my crown has not slipped, this queen is still standing strong and proud.

The past year has tested and reminded me of things that have kept me strong, happy and contented over the years. They are also things I will be taking into the next stage of my life. A few of these reminders are-

1- I am my own tribe and there is nothing wrong with this because j am enough.

2- Never sweat the small stuff, life is too short

3- When things gets tough, take a deep breath, adjust my crown and face life head high.

4- Never expect anything from anyone because the things I value most, compassion, empathy, loyalty and honesty, are the things humans find most difficult to give.

5- Continue to be myself wherever I go. My whole self is a gift to anyone lucky enough to be in my presence.

6- Never let the world change my smile or take away my joy. My life is mine to live, not for others to ruin.

7- Remember the loved ones I have lost with happiness because they live on in my heart .Therefore I must make my heart a happy place for them to be.

8- Family are those who love, respect and show me compassion. Never let blood determine who I call family or who stay in my life.

9- Hold my loved ones closer to my heart because the greatest gift of all is unconditional love.

10- Live. Love. Laugh today because tomorrow is never promised.

Thanks to everyone who has enriched my life one way or the other, may we all celebrate many more years of love, happiness and good health.

My 47th Birthday Celebration

It was my 47th year on planet earth few weeks ago and i celebrated it in my signature style; with selfies and a birthday dance!

I can’t pretend to have the age-long answer to the meaning of life. However, what I do know is that life is to be lived not spent pontificating on its meaning. Yes, we have got one life to live, however, the most important thing is to live each day with gratitude.and on our own terms.

The last two months were one of the most intense and scariest of my life . I had to go to Nigeria unexpectedly for a family medical emergency. I am grateful that I am here today , able to celebrate my birthday with a big smile on my face. If i was asked to make a birthday wish, it would be to keep all my loved ones safe and heathy. Heath is wealth. And well, to win the big lottery while we are at it!

I’ve experienced life’s twin fountains of pleasures and pains, love and loss, happiness and sadness, good health and bad health but I knew they were all part of the deal called Life.

Life is a race I was enrolled in without my consent; I might as well aim to win it.

I am very grateful for where I am today and for the people that have been part of my journey through different stages in my life. Those that passed through it and those that are still part of it.

Life is a beautiful story as long as we keep writing our pages and chapters in our own words , on our own terms and live it unapologetically.

I say thank you to everyone who sent me birthday wishes, I appreciate you all. May we always have abundant love and happiness in our heart to share and celebrate with others.

For those who sent me prayers and thanked their God(s) on my behalf, please always bear in mind that I am an Atheist, therefore your prayers don’t mean much to me beyond being patronising. Your intent might be good ( to you) but the impact isn’t. Thanks all the same but don’t do it again.

Some are surprised that some of us women are happy to splash our age on social media, I’d just say, growing old is an honour and privilege. We will not always be alive to celebrate being a year older. Also, when we die, people will print obituaries and splash our age all over social media, with or without our consent. Why not celebrate, embrace and own our age while we still can?

Here is to growing older gracefully, disgracefully or in whatever manner we choose to celebrate life!

I raise a glass today and toast everything that makes me the extraordinarily fierce, passionate, mentally and emotionally intelligent, discerning, sexy, strong, independent, beautiful black woman I am today.

To many more years of living life with a passion!

 

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It’s My 46th Birthday!

It’s my 46th year on planet earth today! I still remember the day I was born, okay, maybe I exaggerated a bit. The years I do remember makes me feel like I’ve lived three livetimes already because I have truly lived.

I’ve experienced life’s twin fountains of pleasures and pains, love and loss, happiness and sadness, good health and bad health but I knew they were all part of the deal called Life.

I am very grateful for where I am today and for the people that have been part of my journey through different stages in my life. Those that passed through it and those that are still part of it. You all contributed whether positively or negatively to my experience in life so far and those experiences, good or bad, have contributed to my emotional and mental growth.

Life is a beautiful story as long as we keep writing our pages and chapters in our own words, on our own terms and live it unapologetically.

I raise a glass today and toast everything that makes me the extraordinarily fierce, passionate, mentally and emotionally intelligent, discerning, sexy, strong, independent, beautiful black woman I am today. To many more years of living life with a passion.

My birthday is not complete without my annual birthday dance. This year I celebrated with the beats from motherland and danced to the music of the legendary King of juju music, King Sunny Ade. What better tune to shake my original land cruiser to than the beats of KSA.
Emi o ba won wa, emi o ni ba won lo…

Happy Birthday to me.

 

 

It’s My Birthday; Time to Shake What My Mama Gave Me!

It’s my birthday and it’s not complete without my annual birthday dance. Every year I do a birthday dance on my birthday, and I enjoy comparing the dance videos to see how far I have come, interesting memories.

It has been a particularly difficult and emotionally tasking year with the sudden loss of my mum. I had to process different emotions in my personal life and confront prevalent social ills in my professional life, especially made difficult as the only black person in an all-white work environment where the words ‘Inclusivity and diversity’ are alien language.

However, despite it all, as I turn 43 today, I feel like a hot pie and the only girl in the world.

This is my first birthday as an orphan and I especially miss my beautiful mum because she would have woken me up with a birthday song and try to sneak in some unsolicited prayers! I miss her so much today. I dedicate this birthday dance to my departed beloved parents. You were my vehicles to this world, and I appreciate it.

Thanks to everyone who touched my life in one way or another and left positive impacts. To these who left only negative memories, may our parts never cross again. Positive vibes only.

Thanks, lovely people for all the birthday greetings and lovely wishes, much appreciated.

Happy Birthday to me…it’s time to shake what my mama gave me!

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Happy Birthday To This Wonder Woman

 

I am very grateful to be hale and hearty on this occasion of my 42nd Birthday. The past has been glorious with some pains along the way. I am learning to embrace my present with gratitude and optimism, and I can say I am all geared up to make the future the best of them all.

I appreciate that life is full of surprises, some good, some not so good, and we cannot plan for all exigencies. I embrace life surprises with an open mind and a sense of adventure. I am just grateful to be alive to feel and experience all that life throws my way (and it has been throwing some lemons my way for some time now, there is only so much lemonade one can make with life’s lemons before screaming enough with the cliche).

This year, my birthday resolution is to leave in the past everything that does not grow me. Life is too precious to waste on those who do not deserve to be in my life. I am choosing to surround myself with people who look more like my future than my past.

It is time for me to learn the art of letting go, both in my professional and personal life. There is no point wishing to relive the past when there are still so many adventures to be had, memories to be made, places to explore, and many more ways to live and survive beyond the conventional or familiar.

I must learn to say out loud without shame that I am tired, fed up and done with a system and people that take so much from me and give so little back. It is OK to move away from it all without guilt or a sense of failure.

It is time for me to embrace the unfamiliar and let go of the familiar, its comforts and promises which no longer fulfil or nourish me.

Happy Birthday to me as I step up once again to be the Wonder Woman that I know I am.

Below are some pictures I took on my special day, and a video of my annual Birthday dance. Enjoy! 

Life isn’t always black and white, but on those occasions that it is, everything becomes much clearer and simply beautiful.

Just chilling;after all it’s my 42nd year on planet earth today. Happy with my past, contented with my present and embracing my future with gratitude. Don’t forget baby, leave everything that does not grow you in the past.

Below is a video of my annual birthday dance, which has become a sort of ritual now. Every birthday, I dance to a song of my choice and share with friends. This year, I chose to dance to another old school favourite of mine- ‘Baby boy’ by Beyonce featuring Sean Paul. Enjoy the video.