This is the third time I am asking this question but the more I ask, the more innocent lives are lost to avoidable deaths. We talk about death casually but I cannot but keep asking - what is the worth of an average Nigerian? Another nine (9) lives were lost in cold blood at Ojuelegba, Lagos penultimate Sunday. Yes, nine innocent lives were terminated by a fallen container in a system that keeps talking about the problem but does so little to solve the problem.

If you tell me not to worry when I tend to, I will understand. It is a wise counsel because worry does not solve any problem but it is not easy not to worry when there is cause to worry. If you are not the one wearing the shoe, don’t say you know where it pinches. Unfriendly as it sounds, no mortal can do without any problem. It is not a bad wish but the reality of life. I have a lighter way of describing problem to lessen the weight. I like to call it challenge to make it look easily surmountable.

It is not a bad thing for a person to be sad but it is a bad thing to be a sad person. The two are not the same. One is a momentary feeling, the other is an attribute. One describes an event but the other describes a person. Not all of us have a smiley face but when you see someone who is perpetually sad for reasons you cannot tie to a particular event and you still cannot find an explanation to indicate that it is just a matter of time, beware.

If I say thank you and thanks don’t mean the same thing you may say I am petty. Though the two are means of expressing gratitude, they both do not convey the same message. One is personalised but the other is not. An average human being has ego. That doesn’t make him egotistic but a massaged ego can be the difference you are looking for when you seek quick results at the most critical moments, even under unusual circumstances.

To say that the only thing that unifies Nigerians is sports is not an exaggeration. If you want to be specific, football helps Nigerians to forget their differences, even if momentarily. The build-up to AFCON finals was not only intriguing, it was exhilarating, hope-instilling and as well disappointing. That is the name of the game. Some must smile while others agonise.

Verbal or written, communication has some silent rules worthy of attention. Many times we think we communicate when in actual sense we don’t. If you can, make your message as short and simple as possible because the attention span of most people is very short, particularly if you don’t have the skill to retain their attention in the first few lines. Desirable as it is to make your message as precise as possible, your message may also be short and still not communicate if it fails the simple rules test. If you use the right words and emotional connection, your message can be fairly long and well digested.

I used to have a boss. If you pronounce her name wrongly, she finds it highly offensive but she could still pardon you, particularly if you are not from her tribe or country but if you misspell her name, she would not even read your document at all. Truly and truly, if you want to get my attention, I won’t be asking for too much to request that you write my name correctly or at least pronounce my name in a dignifying manner without making me feel less of myself.

If you see an ardent football lover who is also a believer and moral crusader, he cares less about the faith the defenders of his preferred team profess. The tattoo on the body of his best striker does not matter to him. All he wants to see is a harvest of goals but none against his preferred team. Pray you don’t have an ailing daughter who needs an emergency surgery. The gender of the surgeon to open her up will not be an issue. The relevant question will be if the surgeon is a specialist in his/her field of medicine. Music is tonic to the soul. If you are a lover of music, you would have started humming and dancing to the music of a gifted musician before you realise the singer is an “unbeliever”. His inward and outward appearance is not too important.

Nothing good comes easy. Of all the rules of life, love stands tall. Even the book of life, The Bible, commanded that you should love your neighbour as yourself. It sounds easy but it is not as easy as it sounds to love. Nobody said it’s going to be easy but love is a beautiful thing. Difficult as it is to love your neighbour, it is more difficult for you to measure your love for yourself because no one is complaining of lack of love. Before you can love your neighbour, the first rule you must obey is to love yourself. If you are not the vigilant type, you may get carried away trying to show love to others without observing the first rule. It has repercussions.