“The beach, in the middle of the week, during office hours?”

I managed to quieten Jasmine for about 30 minutes and quickly rounded up what I was doing. Truth be told? She was on a long business call with her Client from South Africa. Jasmine is not an easy person to refuse so I rounded up what I was doing and as soon as she was done we hit the road. “Where are we going Jaz?” I asked after a while. “You’ll see,” she said, an impish smile hovering around her lips. “The beach? In the middle of the week? During office hours?” I exclaimed in disbelief as she parked the car. “Yes Tobs, it’s therapeutic,” she said grinning unrepentantly. “Common,” she said already out of the car. I looked at my heely pumps, no can’t do. Is Jasmine crazy? I sat back in the car grouchy.

I had a lot on my plate and my weekends are already booked till God knows when. Catching fun in the middle of the week just didn’t seem right. “Tobs I got you flats if it’s because of your fancy shoes you don’t want to step out,” Jasmine said looking at me in exasperation. I sensed her irritation but I didn’t care.

Who comes to the beach in the middle of the week, during work hours? I grumbled. I reluctantly followed Jasmine to a small thatch hut too close to the waves for my comfort. “Surprise!” The girls all screamed.

I was dumbfounded, what is going on here? Kaycee, Zara and Bola were there. There was food, all sorts of fruit drinks and a small life band played not too far from where we were. “Don’t look so surprised Tobs, you’ve been slaving away in the office and you hardly have time for yourself so Jasmine came up with this idea and we all caught the bug.

We knew if anyone will be able to get you away from work it will be Jasmine,” Bola said excitedly. “Tobs relax joor, don’t come here and be forming busy for us,’ Zara said annoyingly. “Forming busy?” I asked ready to pounce on her. “Hey Zara, shut the f**k up, we didn’t come here to get our nerves worked up,” Jasmine said softening her harsh words with a smile while giving me an apologetic look. “Look Tobs, the idea is for you to relax, no pressure, no boy talk, no shop talk. “Ok but I cannot stay beyond two hours, I was invited to give a keynote address at an on line Event organised by a Network of Organisations in the gender based violence space,” I said finishing off in a rush. “Wow Tobs, that is awesome.

I know you will nail it,” Kaycee said looking at me with open admiration. The girls were genuinely proud of me, I could see that. It will be uncharitable of me to act grouchy. Relax Tobs, it’s just us girls having fun and relaxing for a change.” Bola said. “No boy talk? Who talk so? Abeg I wan talk about man oh,” Zara said in her usual brash uncouth way.

We all burst into laughter and it was enough to douse the tension that was building within me. Time spent with the girls at the beach was one of my best in a long while. You guys should try it. The tranquillity it brings to a tumultuous soul is indescribable. I was at peace with myself and the world; no Rick, no Dennis, just me. I learnt a valuable lesson that day; life will happen to us all; it all depends on how we relate to things. Do we make lemonade from lemons thrown at us? Is the glass half full or half empty? Is the grass always looking greener on the other side? Take care of yourself and take a moment to relax and enjoy yourself or someone else will come along and enjoy all you’ve worked for. Examples abound around us.

Be wise. I had a Clubhouse Session with my Women Active in Politics which is a Project I run under Warien Rose Foundation and it was the first in many Series. We discussed the Nigerian National Gender Policy 2021-2026, examined the key objectives, strategies, and approaches outlined in the policy and explored the potential impact it can have on Nigeria’s quest for gender equality in regards to Women Active in Politics. It was awesome