GHANA MAN BLUES

Lanre has an important meeting, Esiaba is caught up in traffic, Nana Yaa is trying to get through Lanre and Naa is finally getting married. Missed Episode 1? Here's a recap on http//:ghblessed.blogspot.com/2016/08/hi-cherished-changers-of-the-status-quo_17.html?m=1
The blues continue with:

EPISODE 2

When Esiaba saw the neatly dressed but tired looking socks seller, she remembered that her 15 year old son had been pestering her for those new colorful socks that seemed to be in vogue now. Her son just had a way of being stubbornly persistent, but it was one thing she loved about him. She honked her horn one more time before she saw the seller running as fast as he could towards the car. 
"Good afternoon, Madam", he said, trying to catch his breath. 
"Hello. How much does a set of your socks cost?"
As they talked the price out, Esiaba realised how well spoken the seller was. Before she drove off, she asked him his name. 
"John please. John Owusu. John the Great!", he grinned broadly. 
"Keep the change okay?", Esiaba responded. 
"Thank you Madam!", John responded excitedly. Today was one of those blessed days for John when he came across a rare person who seemed at least a bit concerned about his welfare. Should he use the money, at least some of it, to buy his favourite Kofi Brokeman, or he should save it and go hungry? As he debated with himself, he barely heard Esiaba as she said "Don't mention it. God loves you."....

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Lanre saw the last member of the delegation off, after the meeting had come to an unfruitful conclusion. This man had tried to slip "something small" into Lanre's palm, but he had politely refused. This job got quite tiring at times, and even felt a bit insulting occasionally, as all kinds of people thought they could just buy their way through the system. Everyone just wanted the easy way out these days, something Lanre knew didn't always pay off. Before he could take a trip down memory lane, his phone rang again.... 

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"Finally, ConnecTel has decided to behave!", Nana Yaa said jubilantly just before Lanre answered the phone. She and Lanre had met in Junior Secondary School and had been good friends since then, even at a time most of her mates avoided Lanre because he seemed too "weird and reserved." Over the years, he had risen through the ranks and had become sought-after in the Employment and Human Resource sector. Of late, they talked more often than usual due to some growing suspicions Lanre had begun to have about his secretariat.  
"Hello, Nana Yaa, are you there?" 
"Ei Lanre, sorry oh..." 

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Naa Aku Quartey was just too excited. The moment she had been waiting for was almost here, and she was going to be a wife, and soon hopefully, a mother. Nii had done his best to secure a well paying job and was finally ready to take the next step. They hadn't paid attention to their meddling friends and even family, who kept asking when these two were finally getting married. "Observers are always worried!", Naa chuckled to herself as she surfed the Internet for possible wedding venues. These days weddings had become more of a social competition but she had made up her mind to keep things simple. "Hmmmm", she murmured absent-mindedly when she remembered her friend Dede, who had had a smashing wedding but was unfortunately divorced a few years later. The guy had turned out to be "Something Different" as Dede had put it. They had courted for just two months, and despite warnings to get to know each other more, Dede and 'her man' as she proudly called him quickly got hitched before she began to see him for who he truly was... A handsome wife beater. 
Her mood being almost ruined by her thoughts, Naa picked up her phone to check on Dede.... 

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Dede Quanson was always grateful to see Naa Aku's name flash across her phone screen. She had been one of the few people who still constantly stayed in touch, even after the divorce. Dede had been the victim in her marriage, but that did nothing to change how people had treated her, even in church, as if she deserved what she got. Her marriage had left her bitter, but she had at least gotten a beautiful gift out of it, her daughter Safoa. 
She had resorted to writing and had developed a budding blog over the past year. "That reminds me.. I haven't posted anything in quite a while." She said to herself, jumping off her couch to get a pen and paper. Just before she could put her new post title down, the lights went off.  "This dumsor again!" She exclaimed, trying to find her way through the dark when her neighbour's loud generator broke the silence. She almost didn't hear the loud bang on her gate.... 

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*Esiaba's kindness to John the Great reminds us of the beauty in helping others, and also looking for opportunities, no matter how ordinary to be a reminder of God's love. When was the last time we showed kindness to someone we knew couldn't repay us? 
*Lanre, despite his position, refused the bribe that was being given to him. Have you faced a similar situation? How did you deal with it? 
*Nana Yaa had decided to be a friend to Lanre, even when most people didn't want to. How does this influence the way we treat others? 
*Naa Aku wanted a simple ceremony, despite the new social trends. What are some of the trends that have arisen in society, and how have we been changers of the status quo? 
*Dede Quanson had almost no support, even in the church. Have you had any similar experience? Have you passed up the opportunity to lend a listening ear to someone everyone else seems to have written off? 
*Out of Dede's experience came a daughter and a blog. Have you identified any blessings that came out of any unpleasant situation you faced? 


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