LORD BE WITH ME

my place it's so amazing how a great man like me could come from such a rural area. from a place where no one could actually think I came from. my name is osaruchi and I am born in port Harcourt, rivers state Nigeria. in the year 1905 in a town called Rumuodara. yes it is true noone will ever believe it and will ever believe what I will say, one, because I am a lawyer and a political activist an stands for that which is always right. My parents who are Mr. and Mrs. Amaehule share the same residence with me , but were born some 23 years before me. I was a little boy and as all will say " the young hall grow ." I had always had dreams and aspirations of becoming someone that will change the perspective of the world, right from where they gave birth to me. Would I say that I am destined for opportunities are always ahead of me. Or will I say that I will always ensure to accomplish. Right on that very day on the summer of Rumuodara No.7 , street2 my parents had me on a Saturday evening at about 3 pm at st. Maria's hospital .Mom's everywhere would always pat their their babies , but my mom didn't, she was so strict. My dad was an average man. To give a detailed summary of my boyhood experience wouldn't be so easy, but all in all, I'll give what I can give and say what I will say to everyone reading. Right from when I was born, doctors knew how I will do in the future. " They would always look at you , nod their heads, fold their arms and then smile. "Some may even laugh as well " my mom would say. but I will always think they !are fun of my lips, not knowing they had the chains of surprise on their looks. I was still part of those babies that will weigh an average of 3 and above kg of weight am still among those who will never shut up and will always cry till I get breast milk. I am still part of those babies that was very curious. I will never rest until I find the solution to a personal problem which I hav long compiled. well I guess that curiosity turned against me later on . playing as a child was never interesting, but exploring was my thing. instead of the toys, I will explore the whole room or may even see what the toy was made of. I was the only child of my parents and had no other biological or step or adopted. pretty nice , but boring as well. playing on the street with the normal street boys was a daily activity." I am already use to walking on the streets, but th road and the rest of the world ...." I will always tell myself. I was just so curious. I will always listen to my parents, that was my only hope, otherwise I would have long time gone, maybe because of a car or kidnap or something. well , not my fault, I guess every kid who is the only child will do the same. I was " greedy" to people . yes I tagged it, because to me I was not , but people kept telling me that I was, which was unfair. I loved and still love food, to me nothing is more pleasing than to take a spoon or a bite of a combination of flavours, and please who wants to share that with anyone. I will just like that environment of i alone , and noone else. noone dares to come close to me . it's quite interesting that despite how people thought I was special, that didn't really bother me at all. I lived my own life , going to church only twice every six months and being a really naughty boy at school. my parents on the other hand , showed no interest in changing my thoughts. rather they tried to support me in anyway they could and ensured I was okay and fine each time I was at home. I will always thank God for those kind of parents. As the world may say ' train up a child the way he should grow and when ......' would I say I never in one day acknowledged that sentence. I considered it a big fat lie. you may not entirely train your own child, you may not as well train him or her. you may not even decide to hav hoping or her close to you. others mention , ' your words to that child represents you training ' , my mom will always say. while others ' your actions will do even better ' my dad will always say, while I was still some month old. but how true I that . I believed that every man was to fend for him or her self, as it was in the days of old. I still believed that innovations were part of life as well and believed in no such thing as a transfer of norms and values. a child in all , will decide to take what he wants to take and leav what he doesn't want. isn't that the cycle of life?. I am not so certain about the rest of the world, but I am sure in this part of the world, being Nigeria, people like doing things on their own. I am indeed part of those people that would never like anyone near me while doing something or would like unnecessary distractions from people while on my own thing. I am already use to finding solutions to my own problems, so I don't need anyone to tell !e what I should do. at a year old , I had already started talking without going to school not because my parents told me anything to say, but because I decided to. I had already mad up my mind to not go to church on Sundays, until my parents will try to force me to go. I had a lot of things that I would like to do and things that I would not like to do. surprisingly, many of them grew with me. my life is just that I don't like being underestimated by people for whatever reason. to be an only child was a task ahead of me, it was a free home to me, but also a really difficult position in the house as 'the only womb' my dad will always tell my mom. For two good years, my parents waited for another child, but there seemed to be none. Looks like I was the only jewel they had and will ever have . I would eat , sleep, wake-up the following morning. Nothing more, nothing less. I will only work when I had the strength. Although all the attitudes, I still thanked God for all the things he does for the family each day I wake and sleep. I also acknowledge my parents and consider them as one of the priceless gifts I have on the earth . I love and cherish each of their admonishing and love every aspects of them. As a child growing up,my curiosity didn't end with imaginations an tool, but as well ended up with spiritual matters. I wanted to know more . At a young and tender age, I developed a serious passion to know God and how he works. well, what I will say is that my dreams and aspirations were so numerous that till date I have only accomplished barely half of them. I would always tell my dad . " I'm going to be all the professions in the world" and he would always tell me " bubu work hard, that's all, then go to church". the nam of my church is the church on Jesus Christ of latter-day saints. founded in 1830 by a man called Joseph Smith. we are a very lovely people and acknowledge different people from all over the globe. we know that Go loves all His children and offcourse that is enough reason for me to decide that I do want to go to clubs every Sunday afternoon. My parents didn't find it really pleasing , but I really didn't really know why they still could not understand. I visit Clausiggne reserver club and so many nice clubs, their all part of my ' agency' as the members of the church would say an will never care. To some people, they would always tag me as a naughty boy, while some other people will tag me as free boy, I didn't really care to be honest about whatever anybody said about me. I had my standards I followed on a regular. that didn't still decline my feelings about going to church. Yes of course, you have to belong to a religious party, was the criteria in Rumuodara, before you could get a nice paid job, and I can't even afford leaving my parents, talk more of leaving my own church. I still had to know more about where I came from. I had to be taught about the celestial kingdom and the rest , then the plan of salvation, which was God's plan for his children, but I still never agreed to that ' only true church ' , I mean , there are different churches that long ago existed before this church, why would I just say that. That may be part of the reasons why why I would miss church every fast and testimony Sunday and maybe the rest of the other Sundays. Apart from the first Sunday of the monthan the last Sunday of the next 5 Months. Good luck on January 14th was my birth month and day. I will always call it as part of the special moments in my life. it was really special to me, because noone if I am not mistaking is born on that day and offcourse January is he first month of the year. I was asked by my parents to go live with my uncle. The first question I asked myself was that are they going to adopt a child and dump me with my uncle. it was a trying moment for me, because at a young age, I didn't really expect such things to happen. The worst part was that it was on !y birthday that all those nightmares began manifesting. ' be still, be still ' I kept telling myself for a really big moment. I was so sad, I really didn't expect myself to feel that way. in the next 6 months, I was still in my uncles house, expecting my parents to come pick me an yet noone came. Then the news arrived that I am my uncle are about to move to another state. The news was so shocking, heartbreaking and nothing to talk about. I really cried for the first time in my life. At age 5, leaving my parents to some unknown destination. I finally arrived at Enugu where all things seemed so weird , beginning from their language to their food , to their culture and everything. I was being irritated by their language each morning I woke up. Including their food and some of their snacks which included something I pronounced okpa if not mistaking, which they said is fried bread fruit with coconut. An their other meal which included fried insects, specifically the flies that surrounds light bulb when it's on. it was horrible and terrible for me as well. I didn't bother to know the nam of thi streets or what ever they call them. I still didn't bother to learn their language, but I still did eat many of their food and still did play with their children on the streets, which !ust have made me familiar with their culture. I spent some 2-3 years on the streets of a nowhere area at Enugu , still waiting for the arrival of my parents, I heard nothing about them. well I had no choice, I had to , infact I was forced to learn the culture of the so called ibo people and could begin to speak a little of their dialet.it was there I made my tight padiman , an Igbo man at age 17 . I was tired of people telling me that ikwerre which is my do dialet came from this disgusting tribe called Igbo. it's something that I hate hearing and would never love to hear . How would Nzube my tight padiman even speak against me. ' Nna , ikwerre na Nkwerre,na ibo as wellu' he said. and I would always reply him back ' oza, oza, Igbo zi Igbo- etche ozi iwhuruohna.' please just tell me, how a person in his or her right state of mind would go to a place and meet a people, hear from them and know their tradition, then come to their land and say to the public that ikwerre is an Igbo entity. I chimzibudu osaruchi Ama-Amos, declare that as insanity. I am speaking to the world right now and whosoever reads this book, Igbo is a confused culture. Their people do not even know where they came from. you and I can testify that they have mentioned so many countries where they came from. some say the Philistines or whatever. It is so bad how a culture can be so ignorant. you don't even know where you came from and yet claiming another man's culture . please, did you fall from the sky? well, this was almost the exact words I spake to those people crying that I am from igbo and after that they went with real tears. That's myself. be you the greatest person, I don't hide the truth. I went to a grammar school at mbeize at okwundi phase3. it was fun, because of all the friends I had at the school.My other friends left me, I didn't care about that too. I talk to who I want to talk to. I still tried to make friends with people in my class. Age 17 , I was in ss2 at my semifinal class. just at first term everything turned the other way around. people hated me for no just reason, but I didn't make that my problem. I had a very stupid principal, whose name was Dominic. I would always call him foolish, one he harrased me because of his foolish position and couldn't even say sorry to me. if my parents were to hear that, they would have used him to the court and he would have never had a place to stay. I bet that man should be grateful for his home and his other substances. Well, the past is the past, we'll mov on to the next phase of life. I think that is what business is all about. I later on forgot about that I am a very good artist and a very good musician. I can draw and design what you never imagined I doing, including singing any type of song.i joined the choir in my stake later on and tried to get along with the music. I got complemented on my voice which they said was' a 5 men voice ' said the Chairman, who later turned out to be blessing okochu, it was amazing how I sang in the choir of a church I only attended barely 3 times every 6 months. choristers tried to persuade me, but it was so hard. I also engage in drawing so many beautiful pictures that fetched m some millions from them. Required one of my greatest theorem being that innovations come individually was so strong and firm to me, that nothing could actually move me anytime I say these words anywhere. but what could be that thing that may be required of me to achieve my dreams, so numerous that I can't even number them. let's together analyze this together please, because even I don't even understand. it's so confusing. I am a boy, born on the first month of every year. I am the only child of my parents, I have my own ways, I am free to express my own self, so what then?. After my senior secondary school 2, I entered my next class, which started with a serious revision in class. It wasn't easy as well, I also struggled greatly individually. I felt all hope was gone. Not being with your biological parents and staying with an uncle that dislikes you, along side preparing for an external examination was very challenging for me then. That same year, I still was reminded by my branch president my branch, being Okwundi branch, that I had to prepare for my mission, which I was going the next year when I'll be turning 18 years old. How could that possibly b possible when my waec would b next year as well. Each day, I would sit down and think, sometimes about to cry. Christmas time was fast approaching and still no family to celebrate with. Lif was really hard then. I began saving money or my mission and also saving money to settle the invigilators in Waec. would they God really help me . How can I really tell he is helping me when he sees my struggles and my pain, how? . During the holidays period, I began my tailoring class, where everything Changed, well because I may have gotten another skill. While working for my boss, calle Mr. Chimemeze I begged him to help me with a sum of 20000 naira , so I could b abl to pay my Waec fees and also settle my missionary form. I then prayed for god to help me achieve those things that I required........ to be continued continuation part 2 After a whole month, saving a reasonable amount of money, I was finally prepared to go on mission and writing my WAEC exams. My second term was when I began to seriously engage myself on helpful things . I prepared very well for my external examination and also began reading my scriptures and other inspirational books from my church library in preparation for my mission. after all my struggles, the time for my mission and my waec was approaching, so I wrote my waec first and then entered my mission immediately. the MTC or missionary training centre was in Ghana where I stayed there and trained for about 6 weeks before I was allowed to go to where I was serving. I served at akwa ibom. the plac was a nice place to stay, the roads were also good as well. I had to be given very difficult companions who made me angry while on the mission field. the hardest part was talking to people I didn't really know an trying to teach them doctrines I didn't even understand. after 6 months, I was transferred to another area where there where mush of religious people and pastors. I felt like coming back, until I received a letter from my mother. she tried to encourage me, she wrote to me. " my dearest som, I am still around I am not dead, neither hav I travelled. I still lov and cherish you, and still pray and have not forgotten to. I am aware of everything that is happening to you, I still know about your mission, and pray that God will give you the strength to overcome your challenges." hearing that letter made me cry, but I still wasn't comforted enough, because I didn't hear from my father. so I wrote back to her, " mummy, why do you and daddy decide to do this to me. why did you and daddy decide to do this to me. why did you and daddy make me feel unimportant again mummy. I'm sure you and daddy are aware of the pains I pass through and you knew al of this before you left me. that's beside. I don't want to dwell again in the past. please, how is daddy doing now, I hope he is fine, haven't heard from him." being on the mission field was a really hard task, but through all the rough times, I guess I was made stronger in the church. contend the rough times for me were already over,after two years on the mission field.it was over, because I decided to. apart from having so many dreams, I wouldn't lie to anyone, would I say I had a thirst for girls. I'm about to reveal the truth, that I tried to hide. already, it was something that my parents were aware of right from my childhood. sometimes, I will shout at my mother because of a girl I just met for the first time. and I will always stay awake in the night, thinking of a particular girl.there was this girl whose name was ibaletee, she was a really, really beautiful girl to me, but my parents considered her as a thrash girl , one, because she came from a poor family and two she was a Muslim. it sounds so insane how I would like a poor Muslim, but I would say that she was not the only one that I had a crush on. I liked so many girls , both the one I had on the streets and the one I had at school. my parents then called me almost everytime , telling me to reduce the number of girls I talked to. they told me that they would always fail you. well , would I say I didn't listen to that. I still decided to live my life. in fact , that was one of my standards, that eventually grew with me till date. after my mission, I then decided to get married. it was then that I got stuck. I tried to see if I could trace all the girls I had long time dated. but it seemed that I already made a number of girlfriends at Enugu. in the year 1929 , was when I really made the toughest decision in my life. I had so many on my mind , I had ibilatee, I had glory, I had Helen, I had delight, I had mmesoma and also had divine amanze. two lived here at Enugu, while three lived in port Harcourt. I eventually travelled to port Harcourt to find the three girls whom I preferred, most especially Helen, who was my favourite, but it seemed that the other two staying at Enugu came back in search of me. it was so alarming when I heard of the arrival of Mmesoma and Amanze . as at that time , I was in Helen's house . it was a very difficult decision to make. while they both came to my house after using the address I gave them while at Enugu, they waited for me in a guest house in the form of a normal villager , until I arrived. not knowing all that was happening,I came back home tired and exhausted and just expecting a good rest at home, but it seemed that my trouble had much more increased. just about to enter my house, one of the ladies visited me and held me right there at the public on the collar of my shirt, immediately I turned. I then realized that it was Mmesoma, who held me . what I then did immediately was to immediately try to force myself inside, was when I was then shocked again ." if you try to enter inside was what I heard , then I realized that it was Amaze. After all of that , there was a real fight between the both of them, so I didn't even bother to stay at home again, I ran back to my uncle's house from my father's side. I spent 2 nights at his house before I had to think of moving again. Moving wasn't easy as well. To just try to make up my mind was one of the hardest things to do. it was a struggle of the heart. so what I just did was to erase those two touts who made my nights horrible for me, and choose between glory an Helen. Eventually I got married to Helen . I had to spend nearly 7 million naira for our traditional marriage which was held right there at her house. it was a big one though, all my friends at my secondary school came for the party.i had some of my men which included Jason, Denzyl, Godswill, Titus, Tomiwa, And all the rest. " guy you never go school na in you wan marry". Godswill said . " you dey mad , you wan chook mouth ,how it take concern you?". " wow" I said to myself. " everything happened so fast." I said again. just after our marriage we went to find a rented apartment, where according to us, we could stay temporarily. for some few months we lived together and then she got pregnant for me. This was a bomb for me, because I had never had a personal experience with a child before. I don't even know how to hold a baby, talk more of fending for that baby. so that I would say in total is that the load was too much for me to handle. Deceive every night , I would lie flat on my bed, thinking on how I could possibly do all of this on my own. at times , I would really get bitter and regret Why I actually came to this earth , sometimes I would just sit on the public places with my hands folded in regret. I decided on my own that I have had enough. I went to my wife and told her that I will be finding a job for us that it my take the whole day, that was all. but it looked like that wasn't my real plan. I had to find a way to pay my school fees at UST and begin my 100 level, alongside begin my business dreams. I would do that consistently and try to make some money as well. I also did some tailoring stuffs like abada, senator, and other dresses as well. My family members began patronising my products, there I also found an opportunity to also draw some pictures for them and sell. I had a store called rain store , where people from different states came , or would I say different geopolitical zones. my business began to grow , which served as a hope to my wife , but unaware to her, I was still going to school along that. some of my men knew of this and kept reminding me to tell my wife all about my plans. I knew what I was doing, so I didn't need anyone to tell me what I should do. after a year in the university, I had finally written my examination, and got an average score , barely beating the cutoff mark. I studied business administration in the university. my business had gone national and it even had branches in some states, which we also had shares in some companies. I had already made up my mind long ago that I would begin to go to church. that was immediately I returned from my mission, I had some supportive friends in the church who would always encourage me. April 7 th 1931 was when we had our first child. please forgive me how would Helen forgive me , if I told her that I still go to school, where as , she is done with her's . I bet she would be really mad at me. before we got married, we already not to ever lie at each other, so I have no excuse. God knows deep down inside my heart that I would want her to really really forgive me. but I don't still know if he knows how she can. at times , I would arrive very late back home, with an excuse that I was always taking care of my parents. it got so bad , that the bishop of our ward had to call the both of us for counsel or a brief talk rather. I wasn't even sure that I would make it to the bishop's office, was it that I wasn't humble enough, or that I was too busy, or that I don't really care about anything church. it got so worse, that I had to excuse myself and go live in a rented apartment, where only I could concentrate and do what was needful for I and my family. yes, it was bad seeing my wife weep everyday, I couldn't even bare the tears , talk more of the cry. her voice alone would make me humble. but I knew I still had to go to school. on my arrival to rumuagholu , I lived at a place I couldn't really remember the name, but I knew that it was in a place covered with thick green trees. I lived in a bungalow , that street people would call face me I face you . Every day I would wake up at about 3 am in the morning, take my bath , brush my teeth and hurry to work, at about 3 pm in the afternoon, I would be at school, but just went. at times , I would leave some money with Helen , and sometimes I wouldn't. I tried my best to provide the little I could even though I knew it wasn't easy though. but sometimes I would ask my self