Black Rose

Courtesy Photo

By Nicole Kurebwaseka and Rogers Wanambwa

Her

A diamond in the rough

Polished with different colors

The stars know of my beauty as I lay in between thorns

Unknown to the world that believes that happiness suits me so perfectly

Unknown to my mother as she smiles to her baby tainted by the society, I dared to live in without her knowledge

I am the best thing one has never heard,

Forbidden fruits have found a place to call home in my heart

The great lovers have passed me by with their perfect matches as I wait for the half-baked lover of my life with a racing heart

Isn’t it lovely?

My little joys are within the people I lie to

So that for a moment I forget that I’m torn

That I have no place to hide where I can start picking up the broken pieces

Away from the thorns that built me

How I wish to be known

But my history restricts me

How did I fall for you?

I am yearning to be loved

To turn back time

Send you away

But I keep following you into the dark

Among thorns

My beauty known to stars as I cry out every night

To be the light my mother saw in me.

Him

Perhaps I have not been generous with my praise for your beauty,

And maybe the long distance between us has your heart filled of thoughts (are those thorns?)

Now even the happiness of others pains you,

Because you know what you are missing out on.

My promises seem frivolous each passing day in your eyes with me nowhere to be seen.

It scares you that maybe you will wither away before I show up,

And the words of the ones around you do not make things any easier for us.

Like a hailstorm beating up your precious petals,

They knock down all your defenses, leaving you bare and desolate.

But my promises to you still stand,

This distance has never changed that.

I’m still yours and although it seems as though dark clouds are looming on our delicate relationship,

It is only but a light rain.

Our summer has just begun,
I’m on my way to you.

This is our happily ever after,

Ours is not one of those stories that end in tears.

It is a rare one,

One that when found is treasured.

Just like you,

My black rose.

Nicole is a wonderful writer whose work has its home here.

Assignment, Destination and Purpose

By Rogers Wanambwa & Justine Love Nuwamanya

Definition

Assignment

1. A position to which someone is assigned.
2. The act of assigning; the allocation of a job or a set of tasks.
3. A transfer of a right or benefit from one person to another.

Destination

1. The act of destining or appointing.
2. Purpose for which anything is destined; predetermined end, object, or use; ultimate design.
3. The place set for the end of a journey, or to which something is sent; place or point aimed at.

Purpose

1. The reason for which something is done, or the reason it is done in a particular way.
2. An object to be reached; a target; an aim; a goal.
3. A result that is desired; an intention.

Someone asked why I start many of my articles by defining the terms in my titles and I replied, well, why not? But then, I digress!

Every single person reaches a time and they question their existence on Earth. Why was I created? What is my purpose here? Where am I headed in life? Perhaps, the most important of all is, what is my assignment here on Earth?

….(Assignment)

Perhaps the most important of all the three, ones assignment is paramount in their life. As a matter of fact, youll notice that everyone that has discovered theirs is extremely content with their lives. For example, when we look at Moses in the Bible, he was practically a loose cannon until he received his assignment, that is, to rescue the Israelites from the hand of the Egyptian Pharaoh.

We also see that Jesus Christ throughout His life appears very put together and this is because He had an assignment to do. This, He time and again tells to His disciples and whoever cared to listen: For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me. John 6:38, KJV.

Whenever people find themselves without an assignment, their idle minds always conjure up all kinds of mischief and thats why it is rare for those busy with their assignments on any job or in their lives to commit crimes and the like. As they say, an idle mind is the devils workshop.

One may wonder then, what is the end to all this? That’s where our destination comes in.

….(Destination)

Where we are destined to end up may not be clear on the onslaught but it where we are all striving to get to in the end. Our visions and dreams are all tuned to meet this destiny(and consequently, our desti-nation).

What we do to get there becomes our assignment and indeed our goal to get there is our purpose(we will get to this in detail shortly).

As humans, we need to have a destination in our minds that keeps us waking up every day to get started on or continuous journey and it gives us hope to look forward to it. What we do certainly cannot be pointless and directionless.

This is where our purpose comes in.

…(Purpose)

Everything in life has a purpose and your ignorance of that does not cancel it.

Purpose is what you were created for or to accomplish. It is the reason for your existence. We can basically call it your why. If you want to know the purpose of creation, ask the creator not the creation itself. Purpose is usually found in the mind of the creator.

God is the source of your purpose! When God created you in His Image, He had plans for you as it is clearly stated out in Jeremiah 29:11,For I know the thoughts that I think towards you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.

Therefore, you need to find Him to know your future which includes your purpose.

Before you come into existence on earth, God determines your purpose then He fits into it the design. You are the design. Your design is determined by your purpose that is; your appearance, your skills, gifts and talents.

Basing on the truth that God embedded your destiny and purpose within you, I am made to believe that your passions and natural instincts can help you discover the reason for your existence. There is a relationship between what one loves to do and what one should do. Your passion is your energizer and it usually makes you stand out thereby indicating so much to do with our purpose in life.

Purpose is very unique according to each individual. Your race is different. Stop comparing your life to others. You therefore need to learn to appreciate whatever design God has given to you, even physically because it is aligned to help you achieve your purpose. Learn to look at yourself the way God views you and this can only be done by studying His word and growing a daily relationship with Him. God created you fearfully and wonderfully in His perfect Image to accomplish a given purpose/assignment. Find it and run with it!

Once purpose is discovered, you ought to pursue it till fulfillment because it does bring you fulfillment. You do not necessarily have to own a precious house to fulfill the purpose of God. All you need is His guidance, your commitment and determination to complete assignments that come with serving a cause bigger than you.

Purpose is bigger than you! It is usually about reaching out to other people. Therefore, stop allowing things to get into your way of pursuing your purpose. Stay focused! Do not let your ride or dies and fear of peoples opinions distract you from your pursuit of purpose. Regardless of the turmoil, choose to stay the course!

Purpose is permanent, your mistakes have no alteration on your purpose. If you think you have blown Gods plan for your life, my dear rest in this; you are not that powerful! Your purpose is constant.

As you reflect on your life, ask yourself; If I live once, am I going to live just my life or a life of purpose?

Henceforth, you ought to stop trying to formulate a plan for your life! God has already a plan for you. Go to Him and find it out for it is His good pleasure to give you the Kingdom! Go to God in repentance and ask Him to direct and control your life. Let Him tell you Why He created you.

Choose to live a life of purpose and not just the best life.

Purpose is found in God!
Success Is when purpose is fulfilled.

Once a creation loses sight of the creator, then the purpose is lost.
When you find your why, you find your way.

I believe purpose comes with assignment and leads us to our destiny and therefore we need to discover our purpose. Find your purpose then your assignment and destiny will be clear.

Justine can be found here in her lovely kingdom.

She’s Not You

By Rogers Wanambwa & Bolaji Gelax

Her: She was your first love

Him: And you are my last love!

Her: And the fact that you were with her for many years haunts me, no matter how hard I try!

Him: Well, to be honest, they were not enough because here I am with you.

Her: I can’t help but wonder if I make you as happy as she did?

Him: You make me more than happy, the ring on your finger is testament to how much.

Her: The way you hold my hand when we go on a stroll, was that the way you held hers?

Him: Maybe we never used to go on such strolls and it’s our thing! Ever think of that?

Her: Is her hand softer than mine?

Him: You are a hardworking woman, let’s not compare such trivial things!

Her: Is her hug warmer than mine?

Him: You are my rest.

Her: Is her smile brighter than mine?

Him: I look forward to seeing your radiant smile everyday.

Her: Is her laughter more melodious than mine?

Him: Your laughter brings harmony to our home.

Her: Do your friends think I’m special too?

Him: When I told them I’m going to marry you, they said that’s the best decision of my life.

Her: Will your parents like me as much as they liked her?

Him: Here’s the thing, being civil is not the same thing as loving someone! Mom helped me pick your ring.

Her: Will your siblings connect with me enough to want to be friends with me as well?

Him: My sisters keep asking for you to join them, it’s you that has been shy to!

Her: I like when you call me ‘baby’ but I hate that you called her that too.

Him: From today, you’re my Queen. Problem solved😊

Her: Just the other day, I saw a picture of you with her while going through your old facebook pictures.

You never told me she was that beautiful!!

Him: My Queen, your beauty a marvel to look at. When I walk with you, I always want to shout she’s mine in the streets. Do you even know how envious other girls are because of you? Even my best friends threaten to steal you if I don’t handle you very well everyday. You really don’t need to doubt yourself.

Her: Her dentition is so perfect I’ve not been able to laugh fully with you since then!

My gosh, the shape of her!

Him: Hahaha, but sweetheart, what were you doing going through all those pictures? Aren’t they from ages ago? Maybe I should remove them!

But seriously honey, you are perfect, more than perfect for me.

Her: How could you leave a girl with a body that would make Kim Kardashian go green with envy for a bony fish like me?

Now, I feel too skinny, too flat and too hipless.

I’ve never felt less beautiful.

Him: You are curvaceous enough. Do you even realize how your body makes me feel? I go crazy whenever I think about it!

Her: You are my first love

Him: And I love you only!

Her: And I love you with all my heart, I really do, but how do I compete with the woman you loved and made memories with for seven years?

Him: I am looking forward to make memories with you for the rest of my life. Does that count?

Her: I started that cooking class when I found out she’s a chef and I can’t even boil water without burning it!

Him: I was wondering why you all of a sudden decided to join it out of the blue! 😊

Her: I don’t get it, how can you claim to love me after being with such a perfect human?

Him: If she was really perfect, we wouldn’t have split. You know why we did but you still insist on being this insecure?

Her: I can’t help but wonder if you still think about her when you’re with me?

Him: Here’s the thing, she is just a friend and you know that. What you are saying has never even crossed my mind. I’m way too smitten by you to think about another while I’m with you!

Her: Do you still love her?

Him: What? Seriously? No, of course not!

Her: Do you miss her?

Him: Sweetheart, if you knew what you are to me, you would know that your company makes me forget any other person!

Her: Do you love me as much as you loved her?

Him: That would be an insult to our love! I love you more than I ever loved her. Again, my proposal to marry you should be testament enough!

Her: I’m afraid that when it comes to you, I’d always compare myself to her.

Him: Honey, you can decide to dwell on the past, or look forward to writing our future. The choice is yours but I have never showed you anything else.

Most importantly, she’s not you. And will never be.

Gelax is an amazing writer from Nigeria who can be found here.

Fooled by Randomness by Nassim Nicholas Taleb

By Rogers Wanambwa

Following the recent events that have happened in the just concluded NRM primaries, I found that alot of the information people get is always distorted in some form or other. I wondered why this happens in almost everything in life and so I looked into it further and that’s where this book was recommended to me by an acquaintance to really dive into why.

To explain the way information gets distorted and why, Nassim Taleb gives us quite a number of explanations like this one below:

“A journalist is trained in methods to express himself rather than to plumb the depth of things—the selection process favors the most communicative, not necessarily the most knowledgeable. My medical doctor friends claim that many medical journalists do not understand anything about medicine and biology, often making mistakes of a very basic nature. I cannot confirm such statements, being myself a mere amateur (though at times a voracious reader) in medical research, but I have noticed that they almost always misunderstand the probabilities used in medical research announcements. The most common one concerns the interpretation of evidence. They most commonly get mixed up between absence of evidence and evidence of absence. How? Say I test some chemotherapy, for instance Fluorouracil, for upper respiratory tract cancer, and find that it is better than a placebo, but only marginally so; that (in addition to other modalities) it improves survival from 21 per 100 to 24 per 100. Given my sample size, I may not be confident that the additional 3% survival points come from the medicine; it could be merely attributable to randomness. I would write a paper outlining my results and saying that there is no evidence of improved survival (as yet) from such medicine, and that further research would be needed. A medical journalist would pick it up and claim that a one Professor N. N. Taleb found evidence that Fluorouracil *does not help*, which is entirely opposite to my intentions. Some naive doctor in Smalltown, even more uncomfortable with probabilities than the most untrained journalist, would pick it up and build a mental block against the medication, even when some researcher finally finds fresh evidence that such medicine confers a clear survival advantage.”

It is a book for those that want to get to the bottom of things. Those that are not simply satisfied with the usual narrative.

This review first appeared here.