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Funmi Iyanda
Lagos, Nigeria
Funmi Iyanda is a multi award-winning producer and broadcast journalist. She is the CEO of Ignite Media and Executive Director of Creation Television
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Tuesday, January 02, 2007

Here Is Hoping

playwriter, director and lawyer laspapi and l post xmas glutonny



So second day of the 007 year huh? Happy New Year people! Apologies for the long absence. Body no be wood. On my part l have spent the holiday doing what all sensible, rational humans do at this time, getting introspective, depressed, then compensating by partying, drinking and eating too much, then waking up on the morning of New Year reaching for a bag of detox tea. Make no mistakes l am a person given to tentative extremes (my self preserving brain never shuts down long enough for me to get really plastered in any sense) so l take my New Year detox and renewal very seriously. This is especially more important as 2006 towards the end became truly bloody-minded. From the plane crash to the commando style politics and robberies, to the pipeline explosion, Godwin Agroko's death, Saddam's execution and the return of the fuel queues, that year dragged everyone down with her. Now l am perfectly aware that l am being ridiculous and it is all just another date but isn’t there a tiny bit of even the most rational mind that must buy into a little superstition.
Take that new Denzel film Déjà vu, beneath the entire science mumble jumble; it is after all a film about juju, religion and the drive for that one chance at snogging a beautiful girl. The world is taking inspiration from Nigeria.
Now as l totally abandon my rational mind which reminds me that each day is just a rotation of the earth and that the happenances of each day are a consequence of our actions or inactions of the day before and all the other days before. That mind pointing at the worsening fuel queues as an indication of where the new bride 007 is headed. However, heading that rational mind at this time will be denying one of the factors, which makes us human. The sense of hope. That is what a new year, a new child, a new job, a new relationship; a new pair of shoes is about. The sense that this time it will be better, we will be smarter, sexier, richer, wiser, and luckier. As with a new relationship, we will start by detoxing, hiding or trying to exorcise our flaws, then we will slowly get tired with aiming for perfection and begin to settle as other factors of life assail us until either like with 2006 we don’t ever want to see the frigging bastard again or as in the rare cases (haven’t got a year in recent Nigerian history to compare) we develop a shock absorbing, mutually honouring relationship that endures from year to year. That of course is true of individuals as is it of nations, more that anything else it s about developing a system that works, continually participating in and engaging the system knowing that there is no end, no nirvana, no utopia, just warm companionship occasionally broken by periods of great triumphs and turbulence.
In the year 007, Nigeria needs BONDs, Beacons Of a New Dawn; a new year is about hoping that we will find them. In the meantime l shall begin with the most invasive detox of them all, a colonic irrigation, maybe if l clean up well enough, l will get wiser, sexier, richer and happier, isn’t that what a new year is about?

12 comments:

Bella Naija said...

Happy New Year!
Have a great 2007 - I wish the same for Nigeria.
I luv your hair...very fab!

Toni Payne said...

Thats the beatiful thing about a new year. It's never easy to self motivate ones self but a new year never fails to do just that. We all know we may not attain all the goals we set, but it sure feels good to try.

Heck, I wanna get sexier and richer too.

Nilla said...

HAPPY NEW YEAR MADMOISELLE IYANDA!!

Anonymous said...

A happy new year to to you as well Funmi. Best wishees in the 007 monthly series.....

funmi said...

thanks people. odun a ya abo fun wa o (the year will be female for us), that is the literal meaning but the true meaning is that the year will be kind and compassionate to us. says a lot uhm?

chainreader said...

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

I love your take on the Deja vu movie! It's hella funny!

Your blog is interesting. blog away!

Anonymous said...

Happy New Year All!!!
I woke up to 2007 feeling very depressed, you know all the usual self evalutation and realisation of ones uncompleted life goal...

well, i am shrugging off all self disappointment this year and becoming an optimist...

Hope this year brings you and yours all your heart desires. Funmi, love your blog just stumbled upon it, and i must say, i am better for it. Tx

Anonymous said...

Happy New Year!! The thing about the new year(or the beginning of one) is that it gives us reason to hope that something good will eventually materialise. A reason to work alittle bit harder, to trust a little bit more and to love a little more in our otherwise hopeless(?) lives!

laspapi said...

Funmilola,
sign me up to be a BOND, will you? They say a person who has nothing to die for, has nothing to live for. May this year be the best we have ever lived, and the least of all the future years we will have.

cleo.kelvin said...

well hoope ur dreams come true cosi fu believe it wud hapy xmas thou its late and new year. filled of crime,critics and craze free.
stay cool

Ausartoamen said...

Happy New year Aunty Funmi. I'm sure you get this all the time but all the same; We've never met but I am a great admirer of your person and of the good work you are doing with your show and I and some colleagues of mine are greatly inspired by it all.

Your blog is really nice and the content very rich as well. keep it up and all the best to you in this new year.

God bless you, God bless Naija, God bless the World!

Ausartoamen said...

Hello aunty Funmi. A belated happy new year to you. I and some colleagues of mine are firm admirers of your person and of your passion for Naija that you effortlessly exhibit on your show.

You are doing really great work and we pray the Almighty continues to give strenght to your limbs and wit to your mind so that you can keep up this good work.

Your blog is really nice and the content is quite rich. All the best to you in this new year!

God bless you, God bless Naija, God bless the World!