YES U CAN

Man has been created by the Divine in various shapes and sizes from physical, psychological, emotional and mental perspectives. Some people are born with certain disabilities that make them feel less important than other members of the society. The society regards them as victims of circumstances but only a few of them are able to stand up and challenge this generally acceptable norms of the society, prove the so called ‘rule’ wrong and live a normal life like any member of the society. How many physically challenged people believe they can live above the poverty line and write their names in the books of history like Stevie Wonder (Stevland Hardaway Judkins), a blind man who received twenty-two Grammy Awards, a rare feat that is used to distinguish great musicians from the ordinary. Stevie Wonder is also a United Nations (UN)’s messenger of Peace. On February 23, 2009, Wonder became the second recipient of the Library of Congress's Gershwin Prize for pop music, honored by President Barack Obama at the White House.
It is interesting to know that Albert Einstein had learning disabilities and did not speak until the age of 3 years. Similarly, learning disabilities was experienced by Alexander Graham Bell, George Washington and Walt Disney at certain stages of their lifetime.

Despite the so called disabilities, Elbert Einstein became one of the most influential and best known scientists and intellectuals of all time. He is often regarded as the father of modern physics. He received the 1921 Nobel Prize in Physics for his services to Theoretical Physics, and especially for his discovery of the law of the photoelectric effect. Einstein published more than 300 scientific and over 150 non-scientific works; he additionally wrote and commentated prolifically on various philosophical and political subjects. His great intelligence and originality has made the word "Einstein" synonymous with genius.

Alexander Graham Bell's father, grandfather, and brother had all been associated with work on elocution and speech, and both his mother and wife were deaf, profoundly influencing Bell's life's work. His research on hearing and speech further led him to experiment with hearing devices which eventually culminated in Bell being awarded the first U.S. patent for the telephone in 1876. His invention has practically changed our lifestyle to the extent that in the 21st century, if you are deprived of your telephone, you think you are incomplete.

George Washington served as the first President of the United States from 1789 to 1797 and as the commander of the Continental Army in the American Revolutionary War from 1775 to 1783. Because of his significant role in the revolution and in the formation of the United States, he is highly revered by Americans as the "Father of Our Country".

Walt Disney was a film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor, animator, entrepreneur, entertainer, international icon and philanthropist. Disney is famous for his influence in the field of entertainment during the 20th century. As the co-founder (with his brother Roy O. Disney) of Walt Disney Productions, Disney became one of the best-known motion picture producers in the world. The corporation he co-founded, now known as The Walt Disney Company, today has annual revenues of approximately U.S. $35 billion. He has won 26 Academy Awards out of 59 nominations, including a record four in one year, giving him more awards and nominations than any other individual. He also won seven Emmy Awards.

These achievers, worked over their disabilities, exerted their energies into transforming their lives into memorable experiences that made them fly and soar in their different endeavours. They became the joy and pride of not only their societies but the world at large. They did not only live fulfilling lives, they are also remembered for their impact on the people they came in contact with during their lifetime.

These people, as well as some others in their category, applied themselves to the fullest despite all odds. They have reasons to complain and proclaim that nature is unfair to them. They could have lost hope at the early stage of their lives and continue to depend on social welfare funds, families, friends (if any) to sustain themselves. They could have envied the ‘normal’ man, and worship him simply because he possesses some attributes that are apparently not found in them. They could have continuously proclaimed that the society is being unfair to them or they are being victimised by the other members of the society and use this as excuses not to apply their God-given potentials.

Instead, they did not allow themselves to be victimised, and thrown into the dustbin of history. Franklin D. Roosevelt had polio, was governor of New York State then elected President of the United States for 4 terms. This shows the extent to which a man can attain, if he believes himself and consciously applies himself without looking back. Looking back, will only draw him back, discourage him from seeing the big picture and dissuade him from reaching his promised land.

On the other hand, the physically challenged need to be encouraged, motivated and inspired. Some of them require some activation energy to discover their potentials, believe in their capacities and aim for nothing but the peak of their chosen endeavours. Individuals, corporate bodies and the government need to support the physically challenged and make them appreciate the values in them.

Employers of labour should not introduce any form of direct or indirect discrimination that will prevent the physically less challenged to compete favourably with other candidates. The government should lead by example and demonstrate equal opportunities practices that will encourage physically challenges people and make them relevant in the scheme of activities such as employment, recognition, honorary awards, etc.

Furthermore, government agencies should be on the lookout for discriminating employers and appropriate sanctions should be imposed on them. This will serve as a deterrent to others and create a level playing ground for everyone in the society to compete without any reference to your physical disabilities in as much as the physical attributes is not really required in the discharge of the required services.

This does not mean that the physically challenged should then sit back and be complacent. Like everybody, he needs to run the race of life with vigour, integrity, focus and vision. He should continue to believe in himself and say to himself consistently that if anyone can, then ‘HE CAN’.
Saheed Bashiru (July 9 2010)

FUN CENTRE - A JOKE

An airplane was about to crash; there were 5 passengers on board but only 4 parachutes. The first passenger said, 'I'm Zinedine Zidane, the world's Number1 footballer. FIFA needs me, I can't afford to die.' So he took the first pack and left the plane.

The second passenger, Hilary Clinton, said, 'I am the wife of the former President of the United States, I am the most ambitious woman in the world. I am also the US Secretary of State and a potential future President.' She just took the 2nd parachute and jumped out of the plane.

The third passenger, Robert Mugabe, said, 'I'm President of Zimbabwe and I have 13 million helpless people who always look to me for guidance. Above all I'm the cleverest President in African history, and Africa's people won't let me die'. So he put on a pack next to him and jumped out of the plane.

The fourth passenger, Nelson Mandela, says to the fifth passenger, a 10yr old Chinese school boy, 'I'm old and have lived a fruitful life, God will decide my fate, so I'll let you have the last parachute'..

The boy said, 'It's OK, there's a parachute left for you. Africa 's cleverest President (Robert Mugabe) has taken my schoolbag'.

Man, who are you?

This is a question every individual need to ask himself. No matter how fraudulent od dishonest a man is, he needs to be very sicncere with himself.
A scriptural saying goes thus: "Man, know thyself". I was expectng a question like this "Why do i need to know who i am?". This is a valid question which i will try to provide an answer to. Man has been created by God in different shapes, colours, sizes and intellectual endownments. This does not mean that the creator is partial: no, never !!! It only means that he has

endowed you with what is beneficial to you, but you need to look inward and outward to appreciate this wonderful gift of God. Man often limits himself because he does not know his capacity. The brain power is so magnanimous and overwhelming that most of us do not use up to 1% of its capacity. Do you really know that you can turn your hobby into fortune, do you know that you have the potentials to be a hero, do you know that you may have what it takes to lead your community into the future, do you know that you may have certain potentials that can turnaround your live.

It takes a conscious effort to discover oneself but it is an exercise that is worthy of being performed afterall. Some guidelines can be applied to enable an individual better discover himself and these include:

• Self assessment - what are your preferences, what do you enjoy doing (reading, writing, talking, sports, art work, engineering works, taking care of people, buying and selling, consultancy work, etc.)
• Consult trusted friends - what do people feel about you based on cummulative interactions and observations of your personality.
• What are your aspirations- what do you want to be in the short and long term. This will go a long way to assist in reshaping and refocusing your career path.
• What are your capabilities: what do you have in terms of knowledge, skills and resources that will move you towards your aspirations. This will assist you to develop a plan for knowledge and skills acquisition to enable you move closer to the achievement of your set goals.
• Continuous review and reassessment: it is important to continuously review your position, vis a vis your goals and personal objectives.

It is after you have discovered who you, that you can adequately define who you want to be. For instance, if you set a goal to be an angel without first realising that you are a human being, the goal is far from beinng realised....

... to be continued