POVERTY: NOTHING TO LEARN HERE.

October 2013 I moved from Surulere to Ikorodu with my family. Which was a great relieve given that had been squatting with a supposedly Good Samaritan who made the 5months my family spent in her house a living hell.

December that same year, I remember how tough things were for us, given that we had spent virtually everything we had securing this new place. I can remember my mum and sibling's eyes staring intensely at me. There wasn't even a grain of rice in the house. The frustrating thing was that they all expected me to do something. Before than I had this job in a bookshop and ever since then I have assumed this father figure role of being the provider in my little way--too much pressure for a seventeen-year-old boy. And that pressure translated into problems for me. However, I stopped working after we moved, so it was just difficult for me being in a position where they all depended on me. After giving it much thought, I picked up my PlayStation 2, my most priced and only possession, went to my neighbor's house and sold it to their kids. It was an emergency sale so I did not get the actual value for my PlayStation--not even close. I bought cassava flakes (garri) and we eat that for a week, morning and night. I ate that until I hated the taste of the garri. And if I have to pick amongst my many terrifying experiences I think that would be amongst the top 5. It was a dark time in ourselves. But I also remember we had a few laughs. Sitting on the bare floor in our empty sitting room, with no furniture. But that did not reduce the gravity of the situation we were in.

The following year I had to get a job. I worked in a yogurt factory for 3months. It was one of the worst working experience for me. I worked tediously for close to 10hours each day without breaks. You would get on the bad side of my then employer if you decided to go for a lunch break. I earned $30 each month for my labor. It wasn't enough for anything. Basically, we were living from hand to mouth. I was to write my entrance examination into the university that year and I did not even have time to study. Fortunately, I did well regardless and I gained admission into the University of Benin. I did not know how I was going to pay for my fees because we had virtually nothing at that point.

Then things changed. Four months later my dad had a major break and our lives changed positively. For the first time in my life, I went through an entire year without experiencing lack. It was a surreal feeling. And if you ask what was the best year of my life. I felt so grateful to God for bringing my family out of a dark place, out of poverty.

What's the whole point of this story?

I read a post not too long about poverty. Most of the things in that article I can very well relate with. I currently live in an uncompleted building I own--inherited. No light, no water. I literally take 15 minutes to walk every day to a betting shop where I charge my phone. In the evenings I charge at my neighbor's house. So I do very much understand what it means to be poor. I won't say I'm poor because I live above the $1 mark and I have options really. I can decide to sell what my father left me and trust me I would be living my best life, for a year or two.

It is not really a pleasant life--the life I currently live. And yes I manage to find happiness regardless but that doesn't mean I would settle for this type of lifestyle. I want to change. I want to wake up each morning and charge my mobile device in my house; have my tap running, and watch television when I have the chance.

I do not appreciate poverty in any way. It's not humbling but crippling. Really there are little or no lessons to learn from a place of lack. Being in this state of lack is one of the few reasons my steem investment keeping dropping. Really I want to hodl a sizable amount like most of you and wait for that magical day when steem moons and probably cash out (unlikely). However, the condition I find myself isn't one that encourages growth. If I had discovered steem in 2014-- if steem existed in 2014, chances are I would have my own money invested in the platform. My earning alone would be enough to purchase the camera I have been wanting to buy. So really I cannot sell poverty to anyone. If you've got a good job and a decent income then, by all means, maintain your standard of living, because where I am currently is not someplace you want to be in trusting me.

I often see travelers from the west come to the worst places in Africa and try to romanticize poverty. You see them take photos of unkempt kids smiling and playing in the dirt. It seems so plausible--being poor and happy. The truth is these people do not know better so they don't expect better. If they could taste half of what some of you take for granted I am sure they will never want to go back to their humble lives because it is difficult. Most of it is spent doing needless things to survive. I saw a video clip some weeks ago of people in Haiti who actually eat mud. That's something I can never come to terms with because it is ridiculously insane but that's someone's reality every day. And if luckily you happen to catch them one afternoon, standing by the corner of the road, smiling and chatting, you might have the wrong impression that their lives and conditions are bearable but it is not. But they do not have that many options.

Most people when they come to this part of the world and see the conditions people live in, it kind of humbles them because it's almost impossible to comprehend. Most of you do not know what it means to live with electricity, water, good roads, good and affordable healthcare, and when you see people living without these said things, it seems normal to come to the conclusion that people can be happy with less. But these people are not happy, they've only just adapted to a situation they can not change.

The said betting shop I go every day to charge my phone is filled with jobless youths in their prime, roaming the street and looking for who to extort. It's not the life they want for themselves. Most of them dream of owning mansions and cars. The truth is no one wants to poor and it's not a necessity. I think @meno talked about this some days back. This margin between the poor and rich is artificial. The world has enough resources cater to every living soul on this planet, this much I believe. This said inequality benefits certain persons that's why it exists. Take for example northern Nigeria, which is bedeviled by poverty and illiteracy. This is the stronghold the political upper-class have that ensure they retain and maintain their positions. Improving the welfare of these people will only hinder their political agenda.

The thing is most poor people tend to manage their expectations and live within their means, which is often below standard. I do not have some of the basic necessities in life but that doesn't mean I should be miserable and depressed. There are many things I am grateful for. I own property even though I cannot develop it at this point. I don't think it is even fair to consider myself poor. That will be a slap on the faces of people who do not have hope or options. I might not let my current circumstances rob me of all my happiness but that doesn't mean I don't want more for myself and that doesn't translate into wanting a Bentley or living in a mansion, those things matter little to me, but a decent life won't be too much to ask for. The world has too much for many to be living and dying in poverty. There is nothing dignifying about poverty, do not make that mistake.

©nonsowrites

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