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*LESSONS FROM FAILURE: THE EAGLES WILL FLY ANOTHER DAY*
It is not only in the classroom but also in all things, failure, for those who recognize it's formative impact, is a catalyst for success; success from struggle, from determination, from resilience, from a sense of challenge, from the will not to let down, from the will to prove one's capacity tell the watching world, "I can do better than that."
A pupil who fails an examination, if they are the serious ones, would struggle to either surpass or erase that shameful record next time. A toddler who stumbles and falls several times will always rise and attempt the task against because it desires to walk. And if it keeps on trying, one day, it would walk, nay it would run. An eaglet must have tried it's wings several times. But one day the determined eagle will conquer the wind and rule sky.
I'm not someone you would call a serious football follower - I follow football when I have to. I had to follow the Super Eagles of Nigeria through the World Cup qualifiers. My national pride was at stake. My love for homeland faced palpable suspense when the wind was against 'my super eagles'. I didn't lose hope until the very end of the mundial road. I prayed too. In the end I think I surrendered. Extra-pitch petitions has never appealed to me.
*DETERMINATION*
Now, I have come to learn that I was wrong to surrender. The Super Eagles did not surrender. They took the will to another space in the sky. The African Cup of Nations, Morocco 2025. Has been the opportunity for them to prove that they could do better. And they did. They won every match from the preliminaries till the ill-fated semi-final match against the host nation. In fact, the Super Eagles did not lose the match. They simply did not win.
What saw the team that far were two things. One; every player in the team played their hearts out as if to say " 'I' have a point to prove. My country must not fail. All eyes are on me to deliver, and I must not disappoint them."
*SYNERGY*
The second and perhaps the most important factor that brought the Super Eagles that far was their team spirit. There is no doubt that every objective analyst would give it to this team as one which has by all standards surpassed many teams before them in terms of playing as a team. The visible cooperation and companionship was practically non-pareil. Even when there was a rift among some of the players, they quickly made it up and forged ahead.
Even if they are not coming home with the trophy, they have won the hearts of not only Nigerians but also all genuine followers of football across the globe. Certainly, these eagles will fly another day.
*WHY CAN'T WE FLY LIKE THESE EAGLES?*
As a nation, why can't we fly like these eagles? Why can't we learn from our past mistakes and make amends? The answers, I think, are not far-fetched. We are not determined to change. Every politician is a potential thief and we go to the political pitch as individuals and not as a progressive team. Each one trying to sustain their egoistic self-desire and yahooic acquisition at the expense of the masses, our leaders and our self-representatives have, with the weight their loot, continued to keep us weighed down to the ground like a big-for-nothing ostrich boasting of size and majesty.
When are we going to learn from the eagles. When are we going to fly?
*Sunday Akinbulejo*
Ayemafuge Radio,
Igbokoda,
Ondo State,
Nigeria.