She was perfect and so was her life; the stars seemed to have aligned for her and she was the envy of many. Her face had been hand-carved by the creator who also moulded her body to perfection. Her thick dark hair fell to her shoulders and her dark skin shone like polished bronze in the sunlight.
Men trailed after her like they had found a pool of water in a desert. She wore the most expensive designer clothes and possessed the latest gadgets. Top of her class, she exuded such knowledge and confidence that she was envied by many and they wanted to be her.
He was a star. Everything he wanted, he got. Nothing was too big because he deserved it all. Handsome with manly chiselled features, every lady he came across fell at his feet. When he spoke, he did so with great authority and everyone always listened to whatever he had to say. Whenever he stepped into a room, heads turned. He was envied by many and they wanted to be him.
What they don’t know is that she is from a broken home. As a child, she saw her mother suffer at the hands of her father who drowned his sorrows by intoxicating himself and losing all inhibition. Night after night, she heard her mother’s cries and in the daytime, she saw her mother’s bruises. Her mother would hold her tight and tell her not to worry that as soon as she could gather enough money, they would run away together. The thought of this always made them chuckle because they could only imagine how furious and helpless the old man would be.
Sadly, that day never came because her mother died from a beating that was too severe. Her father was locked up for murder and she was thrust upon relatives that didn’t care to be saddled with the responsibility of looking after her. So she began to fend for herself at a very tender age. It was then she realised that the only way to complete her education was by scholarships so she resolved to give it all she had and then some.
What they don’t know about him is that he was abused as a child. All his parents wanted was to give him the best. So, they were both consumed by the rat race and they left him in the care of domestic staff. They did with him as they pleased because there was no one around to come to his rescue. They tortured him both physically and mentally.
They threatened to kill his parents, if he ever reported. This brought out a misguided instinct to protect his parents. So he suffered through until one day his parents found out and made great attempts to salvage the situation. They changed all the staff, spent more time with him and took him for monthly therapy sessions. He was determined to rebuild himself and did so by devoting all his extra time to helping and coaching children.
Don’t waste your time envying another person’s success. Learn from your past and make the most of your future.
Have a great week ahead.
Oluwaseyi Lawal
