THE YOUTH AND THE FUTURE

THE YOUTH AND THE FUTURE

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The future has a lot to offer as long as we give it what it takes, writes Gladys Ayorinde

We all have dreams, ambitions, inspirations and passions about something that we look forward to fulfilling, not mindful of what the future holds. As such, this makes one to ponder, “Should I work towards making my ambition/dream fulfilled? Or Should I just allow my future to tell itself?

We always look forward to seeing the future we had planned for, even though ‘not everybody plans’. Individuals’ future holds different things. And when the future doesn’t bring what we expect out of it, who do we blame? The future  that rests in its blossom waiting for whom to use it or the thought that fills our hearts when we were still in our reverie dictating for the future and not working towards what we have dictated for it? Or should we just blame ourselves for even thinking about the future?

We see future as a mirage because we are so engrossed in the merriments of yesterday and today. But can we sum up this as tomorrow?

Our future holds a lot for us. But some youths’ future holds nothing because they themselves have tampered with their future; they believe in the mere saying that ‘You Only Live Once’ and by misinterpreting that maxim, they forget that ‘You are the architect of your own life’. They think that the future is still far away. 

Some youths’ future keeps telling them, ‘Can’t you just be somewhere so quiet, where no one would see or hear you?’ They have forgotten that the Divine has crafted and sculptured the future well for them but because of what their past experiences and mistakes hold, they tend to continue leaning on, meditating on and living with the past(mistakes and experiences) and allowing those mistakes to hunt them down. We should always remember that it’s not about our pasts. It’s not about the mistakes we have made, but it’s about where we are heading to. We should never allow our pasts to hunt us down. 

Some people say, ‘I have lived amidst young people who had ambitions, but no more live with the ambitions’. I have seen young people who tried to live by their ambitions, but ended up living with another person’s ambitions’. “How will my story not end like this?” should always be the thought that fills our hearts all the time.

Do we really now know what the future holds for us, even when we don’t plan for it? Maybe not!

It’s a future when you had it in mind to study medicine but ended up studying agricultural economics and later became a successful fashion designer.

It’s also a future when you fumbled to study Law and you ended up studying or found yourself in adult education. Does that mean I will become a teacher, in Nigeria? It’s unknown to you that you can redefine your future if you have found out that the future you had earlier planned for will not yield you success. 

Today’s young people no more think of how to maximize their talents to influence their life, other people’s lives and the world positively. Instead, they tend to do things that will yield that ‘instant money’ and later put them into ‘everlasting trouble’. For instance the word ‘YAHOO’ that I know is a search engine/web portal and the full form is ‘Yet Another Hierarchical Officious Oracle’ but what do people use it for today, particularly among ‘young people’? Fraudulent acquisition of money!

The future has a lot to offer so far we are ready to give it what it takes. We should not undermine what we are capable of doing. Since we don’t know what the future holds, it’s never too early to start thinking about the future and the best we can bring out of it.

It’s our duty to lay the foundation of our future. The kind of foundation an individual lays will determine how productive, fruitful or vice versa the future will be.

An anonymous writer once said that your mental picture will determine your actual future. This literally means that whatsoever image a being has programmed in his brain about the future, will be what he will be working toward making into reality.

 

To untell the future, you plan for the future. Make plans; set positive/realistic goals and work towards fulfilling those goals. Set resolutions and think realistically to making the resolutions fulfilled. Fear kills hopes; fear kills dreams; do not be afraid to take few risks. Make a plan with details of how you are going to get your ideal future. Do you need to study hard to get your dream come to pass? Do you need to get engaged into extra curriculum activities in school to reach that target goal? Do you need to learn a trade or any vocational skill? Do you intend to be a powerful industrialist or captain of industry? Start building that ideal future now. Know your ability and what you’re capable of.

 

 gladysayorinde@gmail.com

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