[b][/b]
The venue for the appointment was in his hotel room. Michael was already set. He said, "I used to think that it took me longer than the Israelites had to wait to move from Egypt to the promised land. I don't know about the people led by Moses but for me, I think the journey was worth it. Photography had always fascinated me as a kid but I was keen on doing something better as a means of livelihood. Photography was my passion but I thought that it was not going to offer me the life I had planned ahead of me. With this in mind, I went to the university to study Civil engineering but I graduated and spent several years searching for jobs. I strived hard enough to send my three children to school, though we managed to feed from hand to mouth. I struggled to make something bigger and more meaningful out of life but the harder I tried, the more difficult everything seemed.

He continued while gesticulating with a TV remote in hand. " I would run from pillar to post searching for a worthwhile life. Whatever I did or whichever way I went, life kept me underwhelmed. I knew I was not running at full cylinders. I was always late on rent. This resulted in unusual embarrassment from the landlords. I kept changing place of residence as if the house owners were the issues- but I knew that my issue with finance was the crux of the matter. Not that I cared much but I was worried that my peers were far ahead of me. And for this reason, I was not accorded the respect I deserved. Obviously, but unfairly, having enough riches comes with some level of power or influence. The car I managed to buy was more of a leaking jalopy than a mechanical canopy."

He kept talking. "My life was drifting away and I felt the pain as each day passed by. It came to a point that I simply gave up- it was on my 60th birthday. I knew that time had never been a friend of man. We waste away unapologetically. And there is nothing anybody could do about this. I was one of those that believed that the maxim that age was nothing but a number was a fluke. I keep asking myself, 'Why do businesses look for young people to work with and why do sportsmen retire or get released by their club sides or team at the twilight of their career?' Time happened on them. And I knew it had come for me too."

He would close the story by saying. "One late evening, as I was about to retire for the day, I saw a documentary on 'Photography' on a DSTV channel. There was this excitement that flashed through my heart. I knew exactly that a part of me had been yearning for photography. In spite of the fact that I neglected this over the years, the love never left me. I sold my jalopy, bought some cameras and other equipment. I went for an online course on photography while I sustained myself with the little I made on the street. I would end up becoming a big player in digital photography. Big multinationals and Nollywood paid for my services and I earned big. Today, though much older, I live in my own house and own a fleet of automobiles. My kids were all grown which accorded me all the time I needed to chase my dreams. To pay for the childhood I never gave them, we all went on a holiday to Barbados to chill out. Life finally proved me wrong. My age didn't matter anymore because I was living my dreams. What I could not achieve in the first 60 years of my life I did within four years post my 60th birthday"

REFLECTION
It is given that age places a limit on us but our purpose dwells in us until death. Our approaches could change but the purpose remains the same. It is always imperative to start with the end in mind. It can never be late to become what you might have been as long as the desire keeps burning in your heart and you are ready to push for it.

I have seen people marry at 60; I have seen people graduate at 70; I have seen people build their first house at 50; Janet Jackson had her first baby at 50; Roger Milla scored at 42 in a world cup; Isaak Hayik played as a goalkeeper for Israeli team Ironi Or Yehuda at 73, etc

History has records of people who defied nature and followed their dreams at old age. What we all need are the necessary drive and the follow-through. Olusegun Obasanjo, after becoming a two-time president of Nigeria was admitted by the National Open University of Nigeria in 2014 at 78 years. He went on to bag his Msc and finally his Ph.D. in Christian Theology in 2018 at 82 years. I know age has done numbers on you but you are closer to your dreams than where you were coming from.

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