Life Long…
Hey! So are you still wondering what to do with yourtime this long holiday? Bored of the ASUU strike? Or are you one of the newly Junior secondary school graduates? Or a High school leaver whose parents havegot an issue against taking up an after-high-schooljob? Well here is some good news: you can actually emulate what fifteen years old Oluwaseun is doing at the moment.

Young oluwaseun has just finished her Junior school leaving certificate examination (JSSCE) and like most of her mates, she was burdened with the question of what to do with the long holiday. Will she experience the severe depression most people suffer due to idleness? Or better still, will she be gallivanting from one auntie’s place to another uncle’s to spend the holiday? She would have loved to take up a holiday job but that is definitely out of the question because she is a minor and that will be considered child-abuse. Well, her mother had a better plan for her. What do you guess the plan is?

Today, Oluwaseun is a happy teenager, gaining afirst-hand experience in a fashion-design school. Hmm, now what better thing could her dear mother have done for her? Oluwaseun’s mother is a visionary woman andwe certainly need more of her type in today’s society. Mind you, one does not have to be aFull time-Stay-at-home-mum to have such wisdom.

Every year, millions of young people find themselves at home for long holiday (After graduation, ASUU strike and the rest of them), amazingly, only a trickle of these young people have a faint idea of how to maximize their time. Some actually use their timeto experiment what it is like to be young, good forthem. Little do we know that we can actually use the opportunity created by these holidays to acquire lifelong skills.

Life skills are skills that enable youth to be resilient, active, and productive members of their community. These skills are -academic, personal,social, and vocational. You would agree we need to create a balance in these areas.Fashion and Tailoring school, Hair Dressingschool/Salon, Catering School, Mechanic workshop to mention but a few are fields of interest we young people can actually explore to acquire practical skills that will empower us for the future.

Imagine someone who during this ASUU strike spent his time tolearn how to Style hair and give creative hair-cut. Do you think such person will ever go hungry in school?Of course unless people stop having hair cut, which we know will never happen.

This is not just another motivational piece you read in this column, it is more than that. This is a call,to every young person and parents out there. Grab the moment… instead of allowing the economic depression in our country to overwhelm you, create your own market. Empower yourself with life long skills. Education +vocational skill= A secured future undaunted by economic instability.

Jennifer Ehidiamen
~Active Global Citizen, committed to working for a positive Change. "Keep Adopting a Positive attitude towards life. Fear God, Live, Laugh, Love, grow and enjoy life. The best is yet to come by God's grace."