LIFE IS A VERB - a tale of four friends

By Emmanuel Ofosu

It has always been my dream to go to the university, get a good job, get a family of my own, build hospitals and mansions and ride the best cars. Yes, getting everything capable of bringing joy, fulfillment and accomplishment in life has always been the dream of me and my noble friends. So in the pursuit of these, my friends Gerald, Leslie, Johannes and I after SHS decided to push further into the university in order to accomplish these dreams no matter what. God being so good, we all passed with flying colours, yes! Our hard work paid off. Gaining admission into the university now became our next priority.

Gerald, who was always glued to the internet researching on schools and scholarships one day saw an advertisement of an opportunity to study abroad. He broke this good news to us and we all decided to try our luck. We began to prepare earnestly towards the interview required for the scholarship. We all did our best especially Leslie. He barely slept and was always ahead of time, learning everything he came across. Anytime we came across a new information, he was always the first to read it. Leslie really took the scholarship thing personal.

On the fateful day of the interview, we donned our best shirts and tie, said our prayers and set off. I didn't forget my Ray Bans shades. I must confess we were all scared even though we’ve prepared adequately. This was because we didn’t know what to expect and also this was our first ever interview. After about 2 hours, we all came out full of joy. We were optimistic and knew without a shadow of doubt that we will make it, yes our ‘apor’ dropped. They told us that within three to five days' time, they will give us a call. That night, we organized a small party and had a lot of fun, yes ‘boys boys fun’.

 Four days later, Gerald and Leslie came to my house looking so happy, I've never seen them so happy before. ‘Charle Eko, have they called you too?  Gerald asked. I was like Who? Where? When?’ Then Leslie replied, ‘charle the scholarship people o,dem bell we like 10 mins ago say we qualify’(the scholarship guys called us about 10mins ago that we’ve qualified). ‘Good lawd!’ I exclaimed and quickly rushed to my room to check if they had called me. Yes, I had missed two calls from an unknown caller. You can imagine my excitement when I saw this. I was sure it was the scholarship people, I just wanted to verify so I called back. Guess what, it was Kyekyeku, my SHS school son who was calling to say hi, I almost fainted, in fact I died briefly. Gerald and Leslie assured me the deadline was tomorrow so we should just hope and pray. Just like me, Johannes didn’t receive any call too. So after one week, we realized we didn’t make the cut. We were all disappointed but Johannes was so devastated because he was the best among us and was very certain he would qualify only to be disappointed.
Two months later, it was time for Gerald and Leslie to travel to their school in Germany. We went to see them off at the airport and said our goodbyes. We were going to be separated for a very long time, what an emotional day it was. Johannes and I went home and started planning towards our next move. However, we didn't give up on the scholarship. We kept hoping and praying that we will be called too. We waited for another 3 months but the call never came. 

So I decided to forget about it, move on and look elsewhere."I can't be wasting my time on something which isn't coming" I said to myself. I encouraged Johannes to do same but he refused. “They are not going to call us and we are getting older as the days go by, so the earlier we realize this, the better”, this was what I kept repeating to Johannes but he wouldn't listen. "Massa, if you won't wait, go! Man of little faith, as for me, no Germany, no school!" So I decided to apply to other universities both home and abroad. Johannes on the other hand, who still hasn't gotten over the disappointment still kept his faith. He was gradually turning into a drunkard due to this issue and Sophia, his girlfriend left him as a result.

Fast forward, I gained admission to study the program of my choice. Gerald and Leslie are also enjoying life in Germany. What happened to Johannes? Well, Johannes has now resorted to selling and repairing phones and other gadgets at Kejetia. He said he’s given up on education because life hasn't been fair to him. Nonetheless, Gerald, Leslie and I are still encouraging him to buy forms and join us in school, he shouldn't give up just like that. He has now agreed to buy forms so hopefully by the end of the year, he will also be in the university and live his dream of becoming a doctor.

Life is a verb; everyday you make an action. As a matter of fact, life is all about our actions and inactions. In life, things wouldn't always be the way you want them, there will always be ups and downs. When you fall down don’t stay down like Johannes, you need to act! Yes life is a verb. Accept that the past can’t be changed and make the most of what lies ahead of you, just like I did. It’s not how often you fall down that matters, it’s how often you get up. Every time you do something, think of one extra thing you can do, that is, always have a Plan B. Also, make friends with serious people who will stick with you and act with you when the going gets tough. Are you like Johannes? Time to rise up and act because LIFE IS A VERB everyday you make an action!

Inspired by Who Moved My Cheese.

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