In the world of science a cliche says, “never say never.” I agree with the tremendous wisdom hidden in that cliche. In actual sense, nothing is impossible.
Do you know that some selected ‘dead’ men and women had the uncommon priviledge of reading their own respective obituaries! You may wish to argue that dead people cannot read. What a wrong conclusion! And before you protest, I urge you to learn more about one unique man called Alfred Nobel.
ALFRED NOBEL (1833-1896) was a notable swedish inventor. He was the inventor of dynamite and holder of 355 patents. The man made so much money from deadly explosives and ballistic devices. By naira standard, Alfred Nobel was a billionaire. Think of him as one of the high and mighty in the society.
However, something happened and it was, indeed, a turning point in the life of Alfred Nobel. It turned out that Ludvig Nobel (Alfred Nobel’s brother) had died in 1888 and a French newspaper mistakenly thought it was Alfred Nobel who died. The obituary was captioned: “The Merchant of Death is dead.”
The story about Alfred Nobel was quite unpleasant. The paper said: “Dr. Alfred Nobel, who became rich by finding ways to kill more people faster than ever before, died yesterday.” Alfred Nobel, in this case, was one of the few to read their own obituary. However, he was shocked to see himself in a different light. In fact, Greenberg said, “What he read horrified him.”
At last, Alfred Nobel discovered for the first time that he was, actually, amassing blood money.
Producing and selling explosives is not in the best interest of humanity. What is that thing we are doing that is harming others?
Living to read his obituary changed Alfred Nobel’s life for good. He did not want to be remembered for swelling the population of orphans, widows/widowers, amputees, displaced people, etc. Thinking of what people will say after we are gone is important. It helped men/women of discretion to make necessary adjustment before it’s too late.
Immediately Alfred Nobel discovered that his explosives have notably endangered global peace, he thought of how to salvage the ugly situation. Consequently, he instituted the NOBEL PEACE PRIZE as a way of promoting global peace. He left about 265 million dollars (in contemporary value) in his Will to fund the prizes.
The award being the world most famous award is restricted to five selected fields, namely: Literature, Peace, Economics, Medicine and the Sciences. The prize has achieved so much that nothing compares to being a Nobel Laureate. In the history of Nigeria, Prof. Wole Soyinka is so far the only beneficiary!
What is the basis of this post?
Many of us carry on in life without a proper understanding of who we are. We don’t care about the impact of our attitudes/conducts on others. Think of the way you talk to people. The way you treat your juniors. The way you relate with members of your family. The way you treat your customers. As public servants, the way you treat those you are serving, etc.
What are people saying behind you? Forget the nice words uttered in your presence. Many are secretly praying to God to reduce their “cross/heavy burden” by taking you off their way! What a reality!!!
Many are merely relating with you and tolerating you because they have no better options. If you care to know, the level of secret hatred against you is beyond description.
Briefly put, your presence means unwelcomed bad news to many.
It’s time to have a sober rethink and do every necessary adjustments.
You may not be privileged to read your own obituary, but in all honesty you should know some of the things about you that has being fueling the sorrow/agony of others.
Change is the preservative of life.
The time for change is now. Make people happier and not gloomy. Add value to people.
Make it a point of duty not to devalue people. That is the way to go.
Have a memorable life ahead.
