We often hear about climate change in the news: rising temperatures, melting ice caps, raging wildfires, and floods washing away entire communities. But beyond the headlines and statistics, there’s the personal side of it all. The part that hits home. For some, it's the unusually hot days that now stretch into weeks or the crops that no longer grow the way they used to. For others, it’s the terrifying reality of waking up to flooded streets or choking on thick, smoky air. Climate change isn’t just a global crisis; it’s a lived experience, and for many of us, it’s already at our doorstep.
For me, it was something that happened in 2022, and it has been like that over the years, but the day I realized there was climate change in my world was the year 2022, and I am sure many people in my country witnessed this, especially people in Lagos. In today's blog, I will be sharing with you the climate change that affected my environment.
2022 was a nice year, normally after the rainy season, which is mostly April, May, June, July, and the end of August. Something strange started happening: the end of August, which was meant to mark the end of the rainy season, was like the beginning of the season. Rain started falling more frequently than it normally does in this month. September came, and the rain wasn't stopping. It was raining more than usual, and we started experiencing erosion and floods, and a lot of properties were destroyed.
That year, the flood entered our home twice, and this is something that has not happened before. It wasn’t just about the inconvenience, it was scary. Water found its way through places we never imagined because of how heavy the rain fall, and we had to move things around constantly, trying to keep what was left safe. But what really made it clear that something was off was how long it all lasted. Rain doesn't last this long, so what's going on? Is the time of Noah coming back? This is a question I always ask myself.
The rain didn’t stop. It continued well into October, then November, and, surprisingly, all the way through December. It was like the weather had lost its calendar; people started talking and some blamed it on the gods but I knew it was climate change. Normally, December in Lagos comes with the dry, dusty breeze of harmattan, but not in 2022. Instead, it rained on Christmas Day, yes, the 25th of December. That day, I couldn’t even go out to celebrate. Roads were wet, traffic was worse, and and all we could do was sit at home and watch movies on our phones because there was also no light.
Then another surprise was, the harmattan we were supposed to get in December. It showed up late, very late. It didn’t come until February and March of the following year, and even then, it came mildly and briefly. It was like the seasons were confused, switching roles and showing up whenever they felt like it.
It was at that point my suspicion was complete: climate change wasn’t some far-off thing happening to polar bears and icebergs. It was here. In my street, in my home, and in our weather. It was disrupting traditions, seasons, and lives.
Currently, the world is experiencing climate change and many people don't even have a basic idea of what climate change is. Sometimes, we are the cause. If you want to know if you are part of the cause or the solution, read more about climate change.
Thanks for reading. My name is Fashtioluwa.
