Rather surprising, I've had more agendas for the month of December than ever before. And what's more interesting about this time is that there are more than just new memories made, but also that I'm reliving some old ones.
As usual, there are many events and initiatives around this time of the year. Some of them happen to be for the season, and others just coincide conveniently. Unlike myself, I put some of them into consideration. You only live once, you know.
The usual plan at the end of this year is to spend time with family, being a little more lively and cheerful than most of the year, feasting and partying, and celebrating my mother on her birthday. That's not changing. In addition to that, instead, I'm having unexpected experiences with old friends and making new ones.
Traveling isn't my forte, but I am somehow warming up to that lifestyle, as it seems not as bad as I thought. I have traveled to many states of my country this year alone and had new exciting experiences, and that's helped me realise the beauty of leaving comfort zones every now and being in new environments.
Last weekend at probably the biggest gospel concert in Nigeria, The Experience, was simply exhilarating. I had a full range of emotions within 24 hours. And what made it even better was being around good friends and spending time laughing, eating, having conversations, and praising God together as we were led by our favourite gospel artists to charge us through. It was epic.
For the rest of December, there are more events I am going to show up at. For one, the Hive Social Xperience is coming up in a few days, and I am just thrilled about how it's going to turn out. A few days afterwards, we'll have a dinner night at the church I attend at home. The following week, there's a Christmas carol service in Lagos that I'm going to be at, enjoying the atmosphere.
Truth is, I am mostly a "be on my own and mind my business" type of person. When the party or whatever is about to start, maybe I'll consider showing up, unless I have an important role to play. But I've found that that idea of being reclusive and overly enjoying my solitude isn't exactly serving me balance.
I met with an old friend recently. We hadn't seen each other for years and barely communicated. In our time together that lasted ours, we reminisced about old times together with our families and mutual friends, and even places we've been and the memories we had there. It was then that I realised how much I had missed him. But I also wondered, "How did we grow up so fast and become so different?"
We were young and free. This season meant a lot more to us back then as kids. I have always thought Christmas became less exciting and elaborate through the years, but I hardly ever realised that I was the one growing up and seeing less of the joy in the little things in the season. It's about spending time being merry with friends and family, and that's thankfully what it is mostly about for me this time.