Thin line

When you are asked to choose between your will and God's will, trust me on this, don't contemplate or think twice at all, please, just go with his own will because if you don't, you'd end up going in circles and if HE eventually gives you a second chance, you can be sure you've wasted alot of time in those circles.

I always had the mindset that becoming big and successful at what you do means learning from the biggest person or should I say place?Resumption time at this new barbing salon I joined was 9:30am,but as the early bird I wanted to be, I resumed 9:00am and of course not without the whine I presented to them as a custom of acceptance in the barbing industry. I started the needful, I even helped out in the process of dying a client's hair, but before then I didn't just know why my spirit kept prompting me to call the boss and inform him that I was present at the salon already (as a newcomer), so I followed my intuition.

Didn't I mention in my previous post that he said he was willing to take the stipends I had.?, so I thought as well until oga told me on the phone that we didn't agree on the amount I sent and  that it was meant to be the amount I sent turned around e.g (70 and not 17).I replied with shock and told him that my tthinking all along was that we agreed on the initial amount I forwarded to his account and that his wife could bear me witness as she was present whilst we had the conversation that day,,and so he said the amount was too little that I should add more. I told him with plea that he wasnt going to believe if I told him how I gathered the present money I forwarded to him and so he agreed. 

Fast forward till after helping out with dying a client's hair, he called back again to say he can't recieve the money that it was too little. I pleaded and told him that I was going to run around and try to add something to it but every of my plea fell on a deaf ear.(hnmmmm). Where do I start from?, where do I go from here?, what do I do with the whine that's equivalent to my tfare for 2weeks ? my hope started shattering, my heart broke, and yes I started tearing up.

I wiped off those tears, straightened up and went straight into the shop to pick my bag up and bade them farewell,only for the shop manager to instruct me to take my whine along with me and with a reply, I made him understand that I wasn't an alcoholic drinker and they could throw the whine away if it was of no use to them. 

On my way out, I sighted another barbing salon directly opposite to the one I just left, and I remembered this popular quote that says "winner's don't quit " so, I decided to shoot another shot and this time I was accepted with my stipends and wasn't given any required duration of training (how God works).

On noticing my quick move and decision to try another barbing salon, I guess the workers in the first salon called their boss to hint him on the new ddevelopment and so he started dialing my number to inform me to come back, he even sent one of his workers to bring me back to his salon, but guess what, it was too late. I already reached an agreement with the second barber and he took me in regardless my stipends. Though this new barbing salon might not be the biggest in town but trust me when I say i'm so contented because I'm sure this is God's will. 

Apprehension

It's been a year since I tried barbing someone's hair professionally ,my ex boss made me feel being a female barber is a crime that shouldn't be overlooked, he literally brought hell on earth on my case, he pushed me to the wall and at some point becoming a barber started to seem vague. 

Today, I'm starting with a new aspiration, a new zeal, a new passion and a new kind of energy. 

Let's just say I'm hopeful for this phase of life I'm about to reopen n. Also, I anticipate thie new salon I'm about to join, probably because my new boss seem nice and pleasant. The testimony there is that it's the biggest salon in town and he's going to be taking any amount I have to offer💃. I made him understand where I was coming from and the experience I've had ( both the good, the bad and the ugly) and he assured me things were going to be different in his salon( as a matter of fact his wife is as well a female barber). 

Dear readers, don't you think God has a hand in this? ☺, so henceforth, I'd be keeping you updated about this new shoes I'm about to put on, hopefully it fits perfectly and in the right place.(fingers crossed 🤞) 

The unexpected

Life has a way of messing around with you when you think everything is finally falling into place, this time it wasn't with my job nor my barbing sessions, but with the apartment i stayed.

It was the raining season, i saw myself swimming in my dream, only to wake up to being soaked with water while still on the bed. 

Hold on there, don't get it mixed up, it wasn't urine but flood!, yes flood, like my house was basically flooded with water!😕. I only see this on T.V but witnessing or experiencing it was way far from what i expected. The landlord scammed us was the only thing i could think of, like how could he build an apartment in a swampy area and still have the mind in bring in tenants to pay hugely during the dry season, To show how caring and concerned he was all he did was to stay in his apartment,  pretending like nothing happened.

 From raising all items on the floor to the kuchen slab to packing the little clothes we could lay hands on because as confused as we were, we knew we needed to vacate the place for a while and also the water was already getting above my kneel-cap. My sister made few calls and we got a friend of hers who was ready to take us in just as displaced as we were not minding how far the distance is from our place of work to her apartment(Festac to 7up, toll gate... Two different extreme ends in Lagos ) 

                                         

At first, i tried juggling going to work every weekday and to the barber shop during the weekends, but then, my boss at the barber shop started complaining of how fatigue i easily became while in the shop to the point that i suddenly broke down with illness due to stress and restlessness. Going back to resume at the barber shop, my boss didn't seem to believe i was ill all along, he concluded i was just trying to avoid work and he gave me a hard time, but not to forget he still wasn't instilling the knowledge of barbing into me. I knew something wasn't n't right but decided to keep my cool. There came a day he unconsciously spilled  it out to one of his clients that has been on my case and wanted me to go out with him that he knew my absence from the shop for those period of time wasn't because i was sick but because i went visiting my boyfriend (pheeeeeew).My boss wasn't an upright person when it came to moral standards and values, sometimes he advised me to go out with big men (his clients) who were obviously married and had kids that were old enough to be my aunt's and uncles. and the single ones that appeared boxed up he tried to initiate closeness between us. Though i had no parent and appeared an hustler, but one thing i was taught was never to sell my body for money and to make my money the legitimate way, but this my boss didn't understand because he was too money conscious and as the only female barber he had, he saw me as a means to an end if you understand my point of view.

He took out his frustrations on me subsequently and blamed me for being a bad market (a whole me), but as fate would have it i couldn't get enough.

 

Beauty in the Broken

All my life, i've always envisage serving my fatherland not because i really wanted to though , but because of the monthly allowance and of course the glitz and glamor that is attached to it,but if i had known it would have disrupted the whole process of my barbing tutorials i wouldn't have anticipated all along. 

I was posted to Edo state for my youth service and i didn't only have to pause my barbing sessions but also  i had to prematurely quit my well paying job!😭. At first, i was displaced, i felt like a fish that was suddenly removed from the sea and was expected to live, i couldn't fathom why things had to happen the way it did,but then I gathered some strength when I remembered the 3 weeks orientation camp, I had learnt it was always fun filled and an unforgettable experience. 

To compensate the whole situation, my siblings made sure I had everything I needed to keep me comfortable throughout my stay ,and even during my stay,my brother made sure I didn't have to taste the kitchen food, he was always showering me with money to get food from maami market. (You are allowed to think I'm blessed with lovely siblings because that's exactly how I feel every day of my life) 

                               

My constant visit to maami drew my attention to lots of things, one of which was a barber's shop,. How on earth could they possibly have a barber shop for the period of our 3weeks stay?, woooow! this opportunity must not slip off I thought to myself as I went straight into the shop and liaise with the barber in charge. I avoided almost every camp activity and was always found in the barber shop but due to the mufti I always appeared in, the soldiers assumes that I was only an apprentice brought from town to assist her boss. Most of my friends found it ridiculous and always laughed about it but isn't there a saying that there's never enough time to do all the nothing you want?

Redeploying isn't such an easy task,if you know what i'm talking about, from waiting for the redeployment letter to reflect on your portal, to sourcing for a primary place of assignment all by yourself if you don't want to be dumped in a government school as a teacher,  and of course you  had two weeks to do that.

After much hunt, i finally found four different places inviting me for an interview. The first didn't seem too good as it was an auto mobile place where car parts was sold and it was owned by an Indian who wanted to pay "5k" (that rings a bell right?). The second place was actually the career i envied but I was virtually going to be spending my salary on transportation alone and some days I might go borrowing if they didn't pay on time. The third place was a government owned organization and they weren't willing to pay because they believed the allowance paid by the federal government should be enough for me but they were ready to grant me the job even without an interview(sighs). The fourth place which was the final were willing to pay but didn't state their pay, they even made me believe it was going to be stipends but I took it nonetheless because it was closer to my house and it was the last and most reasonable option I had.

Fortunately for me, by the end of the month I was paid hugely. I got back on track with life as I went back to my barbing sessions but as usual the unusual happened. 

Miracles

My sister is one character i can recommend that is worthy of emulation. Unlike the isle that i am, she has had  her branches spread across different positive people and you can be sure she is as well a bucket filler (good vibe).

I continued my job search regardless the stumbling blocks and obstacles, but at some point i started feeling blue and depressed. "Some nerves you've got" i said to the invisible force which seem like an ill luck,  assigned to monitor my life. Unlike before, this time i decided to drag God into the whole situation, giving him every details through prayers and receiving feedback that uplifted my soul through the Bible.

On this particular day, one of my sister's friend who worked in the bank called and informed us of a job  opening for fresh graduates who had not gone for youth service {NYSC},  he stated that the pay was convincing and encouraging and that he could help me speak with the HR and the branch manager of his bank for quick hiring. "That was you" (God), i said under my breath as my heart was filled with awe,  i was convinced about being a celebrity barber in the nearest future

I got my first salary, removed my tithes and paid for the barbing fee but of course,  not without the contribution of my siblings. Though my barbing sessions had to be scheduled for weekends because of how time consuming my new job is  but nonetheless, you can be sure that if it was about barbing,I've been endowed as an immovable object that no force could ever uproot.

My boss was such a softhearted person but didn't have time on his side to train me, (so i thought at first), but with time, i started getting fed up of having to stand all day behind his client's, staring and pretending to understand how fast every client's hair took a new turn through the act of carving and cutting . I needed more, i needed answers to lots of questions burning in my heart as regards barbing but unfortunately  my boss wasn't much of a teacher. I requested that he compile a handout for me so i could understand the logic behind giving a successful haircut, but he kept making empty promises which later weared off  with time.

Why can't people stand by their words?, why can't they be sincere with other people's sweat?, these were the questions i had to deal with before the unprecedented happened.

Wakapass 👩‍🦯👩‍🦯👩‍🦯

Sleeping with a troubled mind is one of the most hardest things to do and if you eventually drift into it, you can be sure your dreams will revolve around the whole situation you're in, if not resulting into a nightmare. 

I knew within that i needed to get a more comfortable and well paying job, save up before having access into  the barbing industry,  but the question is how do i go about it...? I took my time to search for job openings on the internet,  and among all i got attracted to this one that had a reasonable pay, though it carried the title of a sales rep., but i applied nonetheless and sent out my CV to as many organisations that was hiring.

Somehow luck came visiting and this particular organisation i had my eyes on mailed me to come for a job interview, i attended but surprisingly, it was a closet where shoes were sold (O.M.G), on the second thought, i remembered the pay and what i needed it for, it might not be that bad, i thought to myself, so i went for it and of course i was employed. I got home and broke the news to everyone who cared to listen and trust me that night was one of the most peaceful nights i ever had.

As the literate and graduate that  i am, i decided to go formal in my dress code ,but little did i know that  oga madame was going to get offended , she literally wanted me to work as a common sales girl!!! from washing the toilet to moping the floor and cleaning every damn shoe she sold and then arranging it by quality,sizes and color,you wouldn't imagine how plenty the shoes were,like she had tons of them. I don't think i mentioned i was on a fast that day just so i could settled the deal with God for providing the "mouth-watering job" i needed, and by the time i was done with the cleaning,moping,washing and arranging my body started shaking, but i decided to be a strong girl. 

The last straw that broke the camel's back was when my sister's call came in and my phone rang, oga madame yelled from her chair that i dare not pick the call (hehehehe🙉), i explained that it was my sister's call but she sure wasn't taking back her words, instead she said when next i'm coming to her shop i should always submit my phone to her and i shouldn't bother bringing an handbag because that was the new means sales girls used in stealing their bosses goods (pheeeeew😳). It was at this point i lost it, if i was going to take anything it's not going to be in the case of theft and just as in the bible i dusted off the sand under my shoes and told her i quit.  

Loops!

Ever felt you've finally reached a decision on something or perhaps, have things planned well in your head  and suddenly life throws you off balance,  making it seem an invisible force is monitoring every of your thoughts..?, well, so it was for me.

I messaged my boss the next morning, informing him i was resigning but to my utmost surprise or should i say relief ,he never replied my message nor called back (grin). I determined to chase those dreams like it was the last bus of the night. Fast forward, did i mention my siblings and i lost our parent at a tender age..?well, yes,we did and my darling sister was the little mom we never had (a rare soul).

 We took it upon ourselves this fateful day to stroll the whole street and discover the best and most sane barbing salon around, there i was beaming like a newly wedded bride, rejoicing to run her race. We approached the first salon and it seemed welcoming but for the barber in charge who wanted a hundred and fifty thousand naira for just 3 months training (pheeeeeeew), in case you are getting it all twisted, the fee is not inclusive of  a clipper nor other barbing equipment i will be needing all through my stay o, we bargained and he  said he wasn't going to take nothing less than 90k i.e.,30k per month, it was at this junction i knew nothing in this country is close to fair.

 Moving to the next salon, it was a total NO, NO for me, the barber didn't seem a pleasant person, he looked frustrated and sounded like a pessimist, he mentioned at some point that i wasn't going to get the nitty gritty of barbing except he trained me for 3 straight years , (you don't want to calculate the amount).. After what seem like a fruitless effort, we went back home with mixed feelings but I wasn't going to give up anyway because didn't they say after the darkest night comes a beautiful morning..?😌

How it all started

My name is Ruth Agbabiaka, a young girl trying to pursue what she doesn't even know her dream is, ridiculous right? Wait a minute, am i the only one that have this weird feeling that fitting in isn't for everyone? like i practically  feel i was divinely created to be an island wherever i found myself but trust me when i say that's where i draw my strength and uniqueness from. Well lets skip the details till further notice.

So,I've had my eyes on barbing  from my secondary school days,but as the girl child that i was,my guardians didn't approve it, they were too scared i could be abused in the whole process, so i decided to take a potent chill pill because growing up in the 21st century wasn't beans if you know what i'm talking about . Fast forward to after graduation from the university and getting an intern job that pays 5k per month for 3 months and then pays 20k afterwards just so they could be sure of your passion and drive for their organisation (how funny). As the desperate graduate that i was back then i decided to give in and yes, i got the job or should i say i gave in to the desperation.

After the first day of resumption, this particular day came and i resumed work 7:49am, you really don't want to believe how my boss was ranting on me (a new comer),i explained to him that my resumption time was 8:00am according to the job contract,. but oga said we needed to change the resumption time from 8:00am to 7:00am because as the receptionist,he feels i should be the first to come in and the last to go home (for 5k o).I got home that day,had a rethink and knew i was acting in the rubbish by allowing these so called private ceo's  walk all over me,i realized i was perceived as naive and desperate.but little did i realize that that experience was all i needed for my breakthrough, i confided in myself that being my own boss wasn't going to be a bad idea and behold,, my passion for barbing came alive again, i became intoxicated with the spirit of barbing, that mind picture i created; seeing myself holding a clipper, styling and giving a clean haircut to both sexes dominated my whole heart and soul and that was how it all began...😉