Hi hivers! I trust we are all doing fine? I am really pumped about writing this article as it is my first ever entry for any sort of contest on this wonderful platform.
Moving on to the topic at hand, I’d like every hiver to know that I am of the opinion that a neighborhood or Para as it is called in 'Bengali' is more of a concept rather than a place.From where i come from, it is called 'Adugbo' i.e. in Yourba language (spoken in Western Nigeria) and I strongly believe it goes with us wherever we go, even if it is the International Space Station up there in Space! lol. As we move either with the article, permit me to use the words; Neighborhood and Para interchangeably since they obviously mean the same thing ;).
With this in mind, I can say I have found myself in quite a number of neighborhoods over the years and I believe the moments I spent in all of these places and the experiences I gathered have helped to mold me into the gentleman I am today! At least I like to think I am one, lol!
In this article, I will be taking us on a little journey through Que’s Life and Neighborhoods. However, be sure to check out the last segment of the article!
Please Note: The pictures in this article are all from Google Maps and some of them date back to 2018. The locations circled in blue on these maps are the places I approximately stayed in ;) since I can't access the locations at this very moment!
CHILDHOOD–‘’TEENHOOD’’ PARA
When I was about 6 years old, my parents decided that it was time we stopped paying rent and we all had to move into our little family home they had built in what was then a ‘developing area’. I can clearly remember that we had just about 3 or 4 houses close by that we could called neighbors at that time. The funny part is; even the so called neighbors were at least about 100 meters away from us! :)
My dad and these few neighbors of ours helped to develop the community into the standard Estate it is nowadays. I can remember they facilitated the supply of electricity into the community and that my Dad also served as the first Secretary of the Landlord’s Association. He actually helped to draft the Constitution which is still in use till date, with certain modifications now though! The hood is pretty much changed now and well populated with houses as can be seen from the shots below.
It was fun growing up here in its own way. My Siblings and I did not have the luxury of having other kids to play with so we grew up playing with each other and this probably instilled the ‘introvert-ish’ attitude still found in grown up me! It also taught me how to be a caring and responsible brother to my younger ones, since I had to look after them whenever my parents were out to seek for the daily bread especially on holidays. As time passed, we got to have a next door neighbor and boy oh my! I can’t explain the joy we had as kids to know we had other kids around that we could relate with.
I got to master the habit of reading, handling house chores, cooking and even running errands in this neighborhood. Lest I forget, I had my first crush on a girl in this neighborhood and I can remember the days I would daydream about her!. Lol
UNIVERSITY NEIGHBOURHOODS
After the necessary 6 years to be spent in Secondary School, I moved to a neighboring state for my higher education where I spent 4 solid years studying Chemistry. My school did not have enough facilities to accommodate all students in the school campus. Hence, a number of us had to live off-campus and shuttle ourselves into school daily whenever we had classes.
I had to switch neighborhood for each level I passed through i.e. I lived in 4 different areas! And trust me, I can write an Epistle on this very chapter of my life, lol. So I’ll try to summarize each level as short as possible;
100 Level Neighborhood:
Being a newbie, my mom insisted I stayed with a family friend of ours who lived close to the campus. It was a nice and relatively quiet neighborhood. There isn’t much to this neighborhood though because it was also a developing area with few gated houses. I spent most of my time focusing on getting a good starting CGPA in school :) What a serious student I was back then, lol!.
200 Level Neighborhood:
At this stage of my life, I was let out of the cocoon and I got a one bedroom self-contain apartment which I shared with a friend of mine who is actually now one of my best friends! This neighborhood was densely populated with students and we had a lot of crazy moments together. The environment afforded me my first real interaction and exposure to people from different places. I got to see the good and the ugly sides of people. My friend and I got exposed to the parties also and lots of girls that were readily available! I eventually adjusted and got to learn new social skills while I tried to balance school work with the many distractions. Lol!
300 Level Neighborhood:
My friend and I decided to have a change of environment and moved to an area further away from the densely populated area. This neighborhood was relatively quieter since most of the residents had families. The students in the area were relatively few and almost everyone knew each other. I cultivated the spirit of sharing here and I made a number of awesome friends, of which 3 are currently my best friends. The kind of people I got to mingle with in this neighborhood awakened my Financial reasoning!
400 level Neighborhood:
I parted ways with my roommate and moved to a Government Reserved Area with one of my best friends I made in 300 Level. This neighborhood was a classy one and I got to meet a number of well-to-do guys. And yes, there were the ladies too! I had my first serious relationship with a lady here! I must admit that I took schooling less serious and rode on the waves of hanging out and socializing big time! I made some friends but not any serious one though. I also got to understand the human nature and how people can change when they acquire wealth. It definitely gets to the head and I got learn how to be relatively independent with little support from my parents and my good friends.
POST-GRADUATE NEIGHBOURHOODS
After graduation, then came the compulsory National Youth Service and I had to move to the northern part of my country to experience a new way of life and culture quite different from those of where I come from.
My first year saw me living in a remote area where I had to work as a Subject Teacher. It was fun trying to adapt and being totally independent since I was earning a monthly stipend at my Primary Place of Assignment. I met a bunch of awesome people who also had to enroll for the compulsory Programme and a number of open minded locals too.
They were enthusiastic to teach me their language and the basics of their rich culture which I gladly and heartily learned. In this neighborhood, I got to develop my leadership skills here and I also got to see that we as humans are built to adapt to changes. At the beginning of the service year, I thought I wouldn’t last a month! But lo and behold, I spent a year and I enjoyed every part of the neighborhood!
Upon completion of the compulsory Youth Service, I decided to enroll for a Master’s degree here in a neighboring Northern State and I am currently in my second and final year of the program studying Pharmaceutical and Medicinal Chemistry! For the first time, I have to live inside a school premises and It has been quite an experience for me also. I have learnt to adapt to certain restrictions and I have also learnt to be able to tolerate people, accept them for who they are and further work on my leadership and social skills!
COVID-AL NEIGHBORHOOD & HIVE NEIGHBORHOOD
A final twist to my article is the current neighborhood I’m stuck in due to the Coronavirus pandemic. At the moment, there are restrictions on Interstate travel which has forced me to remain here in the Northern state where I school. But this time around, I am staying with a childhood friend of my Dad since school got closed. There has not been much interaction with people for me here, since I spend my days mostly indoors. I met a few guys in the hood already though, but I still want to put them in the acquaintance level ;) These days, I basically blog and I decided to pick up new Digital skills!
However, I got to find a new neighborhood that suites me just right during this lockdown era! And it is here on HIVE. The bdcommunity is one of my favorite stops and though I am relatively new in the community, it has been a lovely and exceptionally mind-boggling experience for me so far. I have gotten to broaden my scope of knowledge so far and I hope to continue to benefit maximally from this awesome platform.
I’ll put a stop to it here guys, I hope you enjoyed reading through, and I hope I was able to communicate my Para stories efficiently to you all. If you can relate to my story or you have comments and views to share, please drop them in the comment section as I look forward to seeing them!
I wish every participant in the contest the very best!!. Also, i want to make a SHOUTOUT to the team that organized the contest!!! The contest has truly pushed me and other contestants to get creative which is what is needed to make the bdcommunity and Hive as a whole thrive and flourish. Cheers y’all
AS COMPOSED BY QUE