CAN I WRAP MY HEAD AROUND IT?

Oscrempe! Ignapo!

Oscrempe! Ignastyle!

Oscrempe! In God we trust.

Whatever this means I do not know and still do not know. I have asked Kayode and Tunji and they say only you may know, maybe you coined it out of somewhere. If Kayode doesn't know who else do i ask? Too bad!

How do I find out the meaning now when you have left this world?

How do I get into your head to search out the meaning?

I remember how the boys in our class at Babcock University High School would shout out OSCREMPE each time they saw either of us.

Babajide Micheal Owoseje! How do I begin to describe the man that you were, what word can I say to tell the world how wonderful and intelligent you were. When Gbolahan said to me that you were ill and that we should pray that you get better, I didn't think of death, somehow I was so confident that you couldn't leave this world. Somehow I was so sure that someone like Babajide would not die, i just thought you were too cheerful to die, too smart to go, too determined to leave us, i just thought you would still be around much longer, somehow I just thought you would be back in no time and things would go to normal.

But how wrong I was, the cold hands of death has snatched you away from us. I have never prayed this much that something would actually be a film or dream. I wanted someone to say it’s a movie, I wanted someone to wake me up and say it was all a lie. But today I witnessed it, I put sand in my hands and poured it on your grave, I saw them lower you in the ground, I saw them put you down forever and I knew that it was true, I knew that it was the end, I knew that you had gone, gone to a better place, gone to a place where sickness and sorrow would not trouble you anymore, gone to a place of peace and calm.

The question now is can I wrap my head around your death? As real as it is already, its so difficult for us all to believe that you are actually gone, gone forever. Its hard to come to terms with the fact that you cannot take your calls again when we call you, you cannot receive pings anymore, you cannot sit and hang out with friends anymore, its hard to think that we cannot share this world with you anymore.

Death has taken a gem. A sweet, wonderful, kind, industrious, strong, energetic and persevering young man. You were a source a joy to everyone who knew you, young as you were, you impacted lives. You had a beautiful and large heart and this we will all remember. You may be gone from this world but you are alive in our hearts, the memories that you have left are unforgettable, the lessons that you have taught are unforgettable, the lives that you have reached out to are the seeds that you have sown.

So rather than continually shedding tears of pain, we would celebrate your life, we would celebrate your legacy, we would celebrate the man that you were. Without a doubt I know that if you were here, that’s what you would want us to do. Somewhere in my mind I am still hoping something changes all this, but then again I must accept this cold reality.

You were a wonderful friend, a leading brother and a priceless son. But God gives and He takes, we cannot question Him.

Kabi o o si o

You are the God of heaven and the earth,

Kabi o o si o X2

I know that for everything that happens it is for a good cause. So we push back every tear and replace with the smile that was always plastered on your face and we choose to celebrate your life. You would have done more but for the ones that you have done, we salute your courage and we celebrate you.

I could go on and on, but I wouldn’t still exhaust my thoughts, mere words cannot describe how I feel but I am hopeful that God knows and sees all things.

I celebrate a friend, a fighter, a teacher, and a son.

One in a million, lowered in the ground today. Live on Gem, live on Friend.

Friends and family let us live our lives as examples and in honour to God. Let Jide’s life inspire us to live a better life. God keep us all and strengthen us.

So Babajide, what is the meaning of Oscrempe?

GOD IS NEVER MISSING.

Life has taught me a lot. I have seen the good times and I have seen the bad, the beautiful and the ugly, the sweet and the bitter. Sometimes I weigh the outcomes and I think that the bad outweighs the good and I wonder in the innermost part of my heart if it is all worth it, I ask where God is in the midst of all this.

When I open a door and it stays shut,

When I use an umbrella and I still get drenched in the rain,

When I put my hands in my pocket to bring out naira notes but my eyes meet with paper,

When I start to laugh but my eyes are filled with tears,

When I walk the streets and my feet is almost kissing the ground from my bad shoes,

When I can’t feed except I go borrowing,

When my mind wants to know but I cannot understand,

When I am lost and can’t seem to find my way,

Where are you oh God?

When my happiness is dependent on another person’s provision,

When I am empty and helpless,

When fulfilment and joy becomes a long lost dream,

When the downs outweighs the ups,

When my world is taking a downward slope,

When people around just barely tolerate me,

When I am not good enough,

When pain becomes my friend,

And loneliness a close ally,

Where do I find you God?

When I need you the most,

When I need you to make the best of my life,

When I need you to roll away my shame,

When I need you to speak to me,

When I need you to comfort me,

Then in the midst of it all, I hear your voice like thunder, and I hear you say to me:

‘I am always there where you are, every time and everywhere’

And tears rolled down my face,

How could I have ever thought that the bad outweighed the good?

It never ever does. That I am still breathing is a good that bad can never outweigh

That I know God is a good that bad can never outweigh,

That I hear Him is a good that bad can never outweigh,

God is always there, holding my hands,

Giving me the push to live through all the struggles,

Giving me strength to carry on,

Giving me the hope that will carry me through each day.

So I know that in the midst of it all God is never missing, God is never wanting.

He is there, pulling me, holding me and backing me.

So I know that I would not be in the midst of this forever I will patiently wait on God to finish His work of safely pulling me and landing me in His purpose.

So I say that in the midst of it all God is never missing, He is always there and I choose to walk with Him.

THE THINGS I SEE

My strength is almost gone, how can i carry on, if i can't find you...

Still there is hope.

I look through life; i see the hustle, the pain, the regrets, the anguish, the stress, the heartache, the disappointment, the shame, the agony, and the heartbreak that stares us in the face.

I read through the news and i see death, disasters, anger, envy, jealousy, brutality, impatience, violence and hatred.

I watch the television and i see moral decadence, nudity, abuse, disrespect and dead values.

I watch families and i see pretence, unfaithfulness, abuse, infidelity, irresponsibility, disappointment, greed and intolerance. 

I look at friendships and i see pretence, jealousy, greed, lies, unfaithfulness, deceit and hypocrisy.

I look at the church and I see hypocrisy, pretence, hatred, power tussle, greed, envy, lies and heaviness.

I look at the country and I see lies, power tussle, lack of care for humanity, terror, fear, corruption and anguish.

I look at organizations and I see competition, fear, comparison, abuse and hypocrisy.

I look, I look and I keep looking.

Can my strength take all that I see?

Can my body bear the pain?

Can my mind accept the picture?

Can I live one more day without losing my mind?

Can my mind understand why that young man should have killed that woman for money?

Can I bear the thought of seeing that young child suffer abuse for so long?

Can my mind accept the nudity that parades the media?

Can my being take the unfaithfulness that coughs out in families?

Can my mind accept the downward slope in government?

Can my mind bear the agony of the mother who loses her only son?

Can my mind bear the thought of that teenager Shade aborting her baby?

Can i take my mind off that maid who goes on fingering poor little Nosa?

Can i overlook the insensitivity of the church to the needs of members?

Can my mind take the killings and terrorist attacks?

Can my mind accept the cheating husband who leaves his wife in rejection?

Can I really take it?

The thought makes me weak.

The imagination grieves me.

But then again in the midst of all this I find hope.

A friend once said to me ‘what is life without hope’

It might be so bad, things might happen in a rush, but I stand in hope, I stand in the promise that Christ gives.

I am still alive, I am still breathing, I am here for a purpose, I am here for a change.

I will do the little I can while I am still breathing, I will help those that I can, I will watch, but no longer will I look away, I will do that which is good and hope that as life unfolds, as I magnify my lenses, God will make something good out of THE THINGS I SEE