About Me
- 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
Sunday, July 27, 2008
AFTER GUMP
I had a Forrest Gump moment. You know that moment in the film when Tom Hank’s character stopped running, turned back and wearily walked home. Like the Gump character, my race started with the need to get away from something although l did not know it at the time. So about 13 years ago l started running. I ran long and hard, hardly pausing for breath, maybe l occasionally paused to help a few people along the way but l ran with every fibre of my being. Along the line people took inspiration, imagining l had a great big reason for running, some threw me pure water, some watched in various shades of fascination, exasperation and irritation. A minute number watched in growing concern.
As the years wore on I began to flag as my unreplenished physical and emotional reserves ran dry but my mental strength carried my aching bones, blistered digits and spastic nerve endings forward. Sometime this year l had a few emotional upheavals (you will need to wait for the bookJ) that unbalanced my finely tuned knife edge existence and stopped me in my tracks. I stopped and looked back and l saw the many eager faces behind me, so l summoned all my mental energy and took a few steps forward then it happened. A complete blackout, a Paula Radcliffe at the Athens Olympiad moment. I just could not go on. I figuratively collapsed at the sidewalk exhausted in everyway impossible.
In the last few weeks, l have come out of the metaphoric coma, picked myself from the sidewalk, dodging the okadas and gawking onlookers and wearily walked home. I have embarked on an intensely personal journey of recovery, healing and nurturing. I have had support from and taken inspiration from the most unexpected things, events, places and people (living and dead). I am trying to take care of all bases, physically, spiritually and emotionally. I feel fucking fabulous.
It is still work in progress but l am quietly excited about where l am, how l am evolving and where l am going, the products of which will become clear in the near future.
I am in my rest period and thus will be irritating you with a few convoluted ideas and explanations in the next few weeks but yes aje ti de o, Ms Witch is back in the building.
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11 comments:
Welcome back. Sometimes it is necessary to pause, take stock and re-evaluate esp. for our sanity. Oprah once said something very true, 'you need to be your own best friend and advocate, you must come first'. As women, we juggle several balls (pls dont go there!!!) in the air. Once in a while, just drop the damn balls...
welcome back. ive missed you!
i missed ur articles...lol
u used f..king fabolous...
u finally like us mortals...lol
i'm seriously waiting for the book o...
wat was the race?
wat was the tipping point...
hurry up and finish o
It's nice to have you back.
Just take it easy with the steam.
Welcome back. Been checking daily for updates. Please feel free to bombard us with ruminations of your mind. I missed them...badly.
aje ti de o!
And are we glad for it. Welcome back. You have been missed.
Did you also sit at the bus stop and recount what mama said?? LOL!Welcome back!!
Aje kaabo sori eto yi. I missed you though. Efunsetan!!!
The world is like a spider web,only small insects get trapped!
keep on moving
I am sure glad to have you back. So you are working on a book-can't wait to read it.
Welcome!!
I totally feel this entry, considering the fact that just over a ear ago, I used the same metaphor of a race to describe the emotional, functional breakdown I was going through to a friend...I crawled to the finish line then in slow motion and took the advice of Pauolo Coelho from his book the flowing river about climbing mountains and achieving goals: he advised to stop at each level of the mountain climb to look around and admire the beauty of where you are, gain more strength to continue etc.. I didnt walk back home like Gump too far:))but I have taken an approach of enjoying, smiling at little mishaps and dreaming the next level.
Happy bday in advance fellow Leo, we are just two days apart and am I honoured to write on your blog.....goodluck with your journey, life is to be lived.