After my secondary school education, I made up my mind that I'd love to learn a handy skill, one that would not only bring me income but also be something I like and would derive pleasure from doing. And after the final exam in my high school, I told my parents about my desire to learn the skill of my choice, but sadly for me, my dad disagreed. I was pained, but I had no choice but to go by his opinion because I still stay under his roof and need his financial intervention to sail through different phases of life. I'm sure you'll be wondering what that skill is, if I later learned it after the discouragement, and what I'm into at the moment.
Well, the skill is one that is quite common and very important in any part of the world, and that's tailoring, or you can call it fashion design, even though my dad disagreed with me learning it back then because he felt it was a downgrade to his prestige in the society as an educationist. Even though I obeyed him and didn't learn the skill I loved while I was still under his roof, immediately after I gained admission into the university and stayed on campus, I immediately went in search of where I could learn, which I was able to learn successfully, although I must say that it wasn't easy at all.
Aside from the challenges I faced with my dad opposing my choice of skill, the second challenge I faced was the difficulty that comes from learning the skills. Alongside my tertiary education, it was quite difficult to put full attention into the skill acquisition while still understanding. Most times my boss where I learn as an apprentice is angry because I either take an excuse to go for lectures or tests or even examinations. All of these challenges made the skill acquisition that was supposed to last a year and a half extend to three years, but regardless, I didn't give up; I kept on going back till I was able to have a grasp of all that matters.
After I grasped the essential detail of sewing, it played a vital role in my life, gave me a sense of purpose, and also aided me financially, especially during my final year days in the university and during my service year as a corp member. During the financial days, sewing clothes for friends, colleagues, and the like helps me earn enough to make ends meet and pay for some essential bills like my financial project and the like. During my service year, the tailoring skill was also a lifesaver that helped me earn during camp and after camp. At camp, I helped fellow corp members adjust their uniforms, and after camp, I also made more friends amongst corpers and locals of where I served.
It's worth knowing that although my dad was against me learning the skills back then, after I mastered them, he did bring some fabric to me, asking me to sew some clothes for him, and I did. Although at the moment I'm not 100% into sewing, as I now work as a teacher, once in a while I still go back to it by sewing my own clothes. I still have a sewing machine, which makes it quite easy for me to go back to it anytime I want to sew. To be honest, I'm not currently improving or learning to aid what I already know, but since my wife is also a fashion designer, I'll most definitely grasp one or two whenever she's sewing.
All photos are mine.