Learn To Listen

I sat across the table with an old friend, we were talking about some years we spent together as teenagers, then he said, "Wait a bit, this guy, how come you became rich, and I am poor? I have asked myself that question so many times in my musings.
I came into money when you were still working at that small cubicle somewhere around Ketu
I started travelling abroad before you got your international passport
So what happened?
I have all the right friends and connections
You were a recluse
You refused to socialise
You read books and write
You prefer to keep your own company, and till now, I don't think you have the kind of network and success relationships I have built
I mean, I have a lot of billionaire friends and multi-millionaire friends in real estate, media, clothing and fashion, oil and gas, and entertainment industries
I have shared a table with DJ Jimmy Jatt, Shina Peller, Dbanj, and some of the greatest movers and shakers of society
I am a happening guy, and you are a dulling guy
I was always the one coming to look for you so that you don't choke to death with loneliness
Yes, I acknowledge the fact that you are book smart and brilliant academically, but so are many others who are frustrated when they face the beast called life
I used to laugh at you
I used to say, "Who brilliance help?" and then I would mention you by name and cite you as an example of book brilliance and life failure
Here we are today.
I came to ask you to invest in my company
I came knowing you would give me money for my transportation back home
I know you will feed me and comfort me as you usually do
I kept asking myself how I found myself here
Do you remember?
My digital postcards from New York, China, and all the European countries I visited?
I sent them to you on Facebook those days
I wanted you to at least see what those who dared to live are doing with their lives, while you moan and groan with the burden of unrealised potential
So how come you are successful now, and I am not?
What happened?
I tithe, I sow seed, and I give offerings to God generously
In fact, let me tell you something that happened like two years ago
Some co-workers and I defrauded our company of some serious money in foreign currency
We had a pact that if anyone got arrested, the person must not tell on the others
We were seven who ran that game
The others went to do diabolical things so that they wouldn't get caught
I went to a pastor, and I sowed a seed
We were all dragged to EFCC
Would you believe that I was the only one the EFCC cleared of all wrongdoing?
I said that to make you see how my seed sowing had worked for me
So what did you do that turned your life around this drastically?
How come you are there, and I am here?
What is the mystery you decoded that I didn't decode?
The last time I slept in a good hotel was over eight years ago
Do you remember?
Those days when I came to your office at OPIC and saw that your HR manager, Biola, I dated that girl, nah
I used to lodge her at the best hotels in Lagos
You were nothing then, men
We both used to laugh at you
What was the name of the TV station where you were working again?
eh...ehn, Core something
I was living on top of the world, mehn
I doubt you have ever been to a club before
I was the life of the party
I sprayed only God knows how much in clubs
The strippers got so much money from me, they started fighting over who would give a free lap dance and who would come over to my apartment
I called kings by their names, and the sons of governors were my best friends
You were nothing then
I mean, I sometimes drove past you on the road, but would look away because I didn't want my guys knowing I know someone like you
I am forty-four years old now, and I have not lived well for the last ten years
I have lost my wife and son due to my inability to provide
I have a series of broken relationships, and I could barely pay my rent
This life is funny, to be real
You are here, and you have consistently held on to these blessings
I had a bet with a friend about ten years ago
You don't know that friend, but I mentioned you in a conversation and said, "That guy won't make it, and if he did, it wouldn't last."
Today, I am here
It just didn't add up
Why are you blessed, and I am not?
It is still a puzzle to me...

PS: I just kept my mouth shut and listened
It pays to listen
It pays to nod your head and encourage others to talk
There is great wisdom in listening

-GSW-