All the things I have loved.

Our heart is a museum of all the things we have ever loved.

It is weird how the slightest and random things stick to my mind more than the most necessary things. Like quotes from books, the wink of a stranger, the whiff of perfume from the Suya guy at Agbowo, and the first taste I had of peppery Sharwama.

We carry a bit of these people, memories, events, feelings, and places with us.

Sometimes. I am extra convinced that I have moved past a situation or an event and then, the slightest thing reminds me of it again. That's just a cycle in my life I am used to.

 

Peace.

I have known Peace since I was in junior secondary school however, we never clicked until our senior secondary school.

Fun fact: We were always in different arms of class all through our six years of college.

We used to get shipped as a couple by our classmates and even seniors. It used to be funny because I never even understood how love interest works. All I knew was that I loved him like a family. Peace did not have a sister, so he automatically adopted me as one. That was all we both needed from each other. A sibling backing.

It's been a while with Peace, but I am grateful for our time together.

 

Redemption Camp

I do not do well with change or changing location for some time. Packing is not my best forte.

However, it is different with Redemption Camp.

When I was younger, I used to look forward to being at Camp during my break for the Convention, Congress, April Special Holy Ghost Service, and Daddy Adeboye's Birthday Thanksgiving/March Holy Ghost Night.

I loved camp as if it were home. 

I have lived in different places for different periods up until now, so I know a time will come for me to pack up and move again. However, with Camp, it was like going home, away from everything life threw at me.

Redemption Camp brings me closer at heart to a lost loved one.

 

Novels

I come off as a woman with a tough front and there is no doubt about that as the only romance I can tolerate are the ones in books. I get to visualize to whatever extent I want. I know when to stop and when to tweak the feelings. I like the random smile that creeps in when I think about the characters in my current read. It is like something is going on in my head that the world will never understand.

I got exposed to novels during my third year in secondary school. My sister gifted me the first novel I have ever gotten as a gift.

When my mates were distracted by guys, gossip, and the internet, I had my head buried in novels. At a point, it became an addiction that grew into my guilty pleasure. It was love. I got over it due to external exams but the reality is that it never stopped being my guilty pleasure. Do indulge me. Recommend books to me. Romance, Fictional books, Self-improvement books, Supernaturals…any good read.

 

First Date

I am just a girl, allow.

My first date was an ice cream date. My date asked me what I wanted and that he wanted to make it a memorable first date. Baby girl thought it would not be bad to bond over an ice cream date.

Allow me to dream all I want but I would never change it for anything. It was nothing extravagant at that time, but we did have funnnnn. We talked about life, expectations, growth, spirituality, strengths, and many other things.

Honest truth? No date has surpassed how I felt on that date.

And no, we did not end up together. Some of us are just better friends than romantic partners. 

Disclaimer: If any of my family members are reading this, I do not know what a romantic relationship means.

 

Hugs

Anyone who knows me personally knows that I am not a people person, at the same time, I am. I prefer relating with crowds to individual persons. It is less complicated, I do not have to vibe with each person, I just need to sync with the crowd.

Physical touch was something I never got to explore while growing up. I do not have a great experience with it. This made me detest hugs and other forms of physical touch with people. The first time I hugged someone was in my first year in the University and that was because the person crashed me into a bone-crushing hug since that was our first time meeting physically. Surprisingly, I was comfortable with hugging him because I saw him as a friend.

The University felt like a location to explore physical touch with people. Everyone here was hugging people and touching hands and all of those things. It was alarming, at first. I had to consciously learn to accept hugs from my friends alone and offer a handshake to people who do not come close, but I can tolerate.

So yeah, I hate hugs, but I do not mind hugging my friends.

 

Jenny’s head rubs.

The next best thing to seeing my loved one's smile is Jenny’s head rub. No soft feeling matches up to feeling her hands rub my scalp. Jenny has very soft skin and her palms? They are to die for. I can feel my scalp tingly at the thought of the base of her fingers running through my head when a lecturer is late to class or after a really long day.

That feeling mentally brings me to tears while falling to my knees at the comfort I get from it. It is like biting into a soft hot doughnut or the melting taste of chocolate cake.

 

I’ll keep loving bits and bits of random things while storing them in this museum, my heart. I hope you do too.