HIDE and SEEK (poem)

A mild and gentle wind from the ocean’s deep
hovered around me like a sweet lover’s embrace…
And above my head I caught a glimpse of the
harmless Sunday sun hiding away its charming smiles.

The innocent sun, like an introverted child with
no courage, could not gaze into my face…
But it giggled at me from behind the crispy blue
lining clouds from a thousand miles.

Oh, I thought the sun was shy and so
ashamed to whisper my name…
But no, the sun was calling me to come
play the hide-and-seek game.

Written & Authored:
Ebenezer O. Akinrinade (CYFI Fellow)
+2348027701092
gent2poetry@gmail.com
http://gent2smile.blogspot.com

MY ENCOUNTER WITH A FRAUDSTER (True Story)

This morning (September 25th, 2013) I just finished a phone conversation with a fraudster pretending to be a family relative from abroad.

This scrupulous man with his baritone voice called with a private number and fooled himself (not me) into guessing a name of someone I know abroad. After a name had been mentioned, he fell in love with his new found identity and gathered enough confidence to continue his mission. In an attempt to show concern, he asked about how work and family was doing, which I responded nicely to.

Now to the main business, he gave me his new phone number ( +447045715066 ) and said there is an envelope he sent to Nigeria via his friend named Mr Felix Ajayi ( 07033344593 ). The letter was addressed to me and the content therein are (1) BlackBerry (2) Rolex Wristwatch and (3) 500 pounds sterling.

He said he need my assistance to secure a document in Nigeria which he mumbled together as "International Residence Permit" or something like that. His friend Felix Ajayi is on a visit to Kogi State to see a sick family member of his, therefore I am expected to call him and know his movement and how to get the envelope.

My dear fake relative had enough time to explain himself and I was not in a hurry either since my call credit is not going to be deducted anyway.
He went ahead to get me excited by saying the BlackBerry and Rolex Wristwatch are mine and added to that is a token of N30,000 which I am expected to deduct after the pound sterling is converted to Nigerian currency.

Several minutes was spent on explanations and guidelines. After the whole talk and everything, I then asked him what his name was again and he responded with the magic name I gave initially. I smiled, and said to him, "Hello sir, I have spoken to many people like you before and..." but unfortunately he didn't allow me to finish my sentence before he dropped the call.

= Final Note =
It's really a sad thing to note that there are still evil geniuses like this who are determined to destroy the image of Nigeria and Nigerians.

What benefits do they stand to gain by defrauding innocent people? Please let us change our ways and put Nigeria in a positive light. You don't need to be corrupt to make a living. Be creative in a positive way and add value to other people instead of trying to cause them pain and anguish.

I believe in the future of Nigeria and I know things will get better in my own lifetime.

Ebenezer Akinrinade (CYFI Fellow)
Social Worker | Writer & Editor | Social Media Strategist
http://gent2smile.blogspot.com
Tweet @gent2smile
+2348027701092

WORD UP: War of Words Season 2 begins.........!!!!!

A platform for poetic armies to showcase their artistic missiles and lyrical strength.

WORD UP: War of Words Season 2 begins.........!!!!!

AN ATTRACTIVE DISTRACTION (poem)

Amidst the gathering of hundreds, she stood out like the Sun at noonday.
My breath was taken away as I stood still…mute, not knowing what to say.

Upon her face, a brilliant smile adorned so perfectly like cosmetic from Mary Kay.
My heart raced with the wind and a new song in my head began to play.

So sweet and soft, the voice with which she spoke to me
And for a moment I thought I was listening to a celestial hymn.

But even if I were deaf, such a melody would bring me healing
And it does not matter if I had faith already or just about believing.

Indeed, a wondrous work the potter's hand hath made  from fine clay
An attractive distraction intentionally positioned on my way

This gift I cannot refuse...this beauty I cannot resist.
For in her, I found the missing piece which makes me complete.


Written & Authored by:
Ebenezer O. Akinrinade (CYFI Fellow)
�� +2348027701092
�� gent2poetry@gmail.com
�� ebenezer.akinrinade@gmail.com
Follow @gent2smile
Copyright  2013.

Meet Kunbi Adefule...the Nigerian who traveled the world

Kunbi Adefule is an extraordinary Nigerian and a solo adventurer who traveled across 27 countries around the world between 2001 and December 2012, and her journey still continues.
Her first traveling experience outside Nigeria was a family trip to the United States of America. But after that trip, she developed the appetite to travel the world and see places beyond the boarders of her father's land.

Kunbi is a strong self-believer and a free soul, with a different perspective to life, religion and believes.
The stories of her adventures are shared on her personal website:
The Adventure of a Nigerian-American
One of the funny experience she wrote about that got me laughing was a story about a time when someone tried to cast demons out of her because of the jaimacan style of dreadlock on her head which she promised not to cut off.
I met Kunbi in the month of July 2013, when I was invited as one of the resource persons for the Summer Camp Nigeria project organized by the Brainy Educare Services with Kunbi was the project cordinator. Working with her opened up a small window for me to know little about her unique personality and experience.

You can read all about her adventure, life experiences and culture shock she encountered in her voyage around the world.
The Adventure of a Nigerian-American
She's one of the many making Nigeria proud.
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Apply: Knight International Journalism Fellow (Nigeria)

The International Center for Journalists (ICFJ) seeks a Knight International Journalism Fellow to be based in Nigeria for 10 months to help amplify the impact of our partners’ innovative health journalism.

We are looking for a media professional, with deep roots in newsrooms, who has managed complex digital innovation projects and teams, and who has a demonstrable track-record for creating ways for audiences to engage with the news.
The Fellow will work with other ICFJ Fellows both in Nigeria and elsewhere in Africa, as well as local and international technologists, to ensure that our journalist partners produce health stories that engage audiences.

We define audience engagement as measurable instances where citizens:
* Consume and interact with news
* Contribute to and co-create news
* Amplify the news by sharing it online and offline
* Act on news, by responding to issues or events
* Explore issues or data reported in news, by accessing additional information or resources
A major emphasis of our program is to create health news that empowers audiences.

Qualifications and Skills
The successful candidate should be able to demonstrate:
# Experience working in newsrooms
# Experience creating digital and/or mobile news media
# Experience managing digital production teams, while working to tight deadlines
# Experience integrating social media into news media
# Success in achieving measurable audience engagement
# Success at replicating or repurposing technologies to answer local needs
# Strong leadership qualities
# Strong project and time management skills
# Experience in Nigeria or elsewhere in Africa is strongly preferred
# Training or coaching experience is a plus

The fellowship is open to any nationality. The Fellowship duration is 10 months, starting October 1st 2013. If you're interested in applying, get your application (a CV & short motivation about why you're the perfect candidate) in ASAP.

The Knight International Journalism Fellowships are designed to instill a culture of news innovation and experimentation worldwide. The goal is to seed new ideas and services that deepen coverage, expand news delivery and engage citizens in the editorial process.

The program is funded by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. The Fellows build on past successes in the Knight program, which has a strong record of achieving impact. They work in countries where there is a good opportunity to create the news media of the future. With additional support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Knight Fellows are empowering journalists in sub-Saharan Africa to use the latest digital tools to tell compelling stories on health and development issues.

Applications should be sent to:
Code4Africa@gmail.com