Already, the year 2015 is up and running. All over the world, people are trying to get themselves together after the razzmatazz of Christmas and Near Year celebrations. Because of unnecessary extravagant spending associated with the festivities, many families find themselves deep in debt at the beginning of the year, just when the time for paying school fees, house rent etc was due.

In that now forgotten long poem, which we memorized in our secondary school days, Kipling listed several instances of forbearance which would, in the end, qualify anyone to be called “a Man, my son”. But Rudyard lived in a different age than our own – which is increasingly becoming the Age of Uncertainties.

I have often wondered if Nigerians understand the difference between ruling and leading. I said this because, the insults and innuendoes bandied about recently regarding level of education; semi-illiterates, Ph.D holders speak volumes. Nigeria needs a leader not a ruler. We are a democratic country aren’t we?

You cannot be a complete person until you learn to empathise, that is, put yourself in the position or situation of others. I have always loved and respected my parents-in-law since I met them; they are nice people and we are now one family. Moreover they allowed me marry their daughter without any hassles even though I was a complete stranger when I met them.

I love the thought of a New Year. I love the notion that the good, the bad and the ugly of the past year are behind me and I can start on a new slate. It’s a form of closure and I love it. I also like the feeling of having a blank page, a white canvass to play with. I love the energy of the first few days as I try to plan the year and luxuriate on the purity of my vast, virgin canvass. In many ways, it is like a new birth.