I used to spend most of my spare time gisting with my friends, singing alone or playing with my baby sister.
One day, I made a joke with my friends about starting a singing group. At first, they laughed. Then they saw I was serious. So some of them joined.
We chose two days in the week to practice, with plans to sing in front of my house every Saturday evening to entertain passersby.
One day, we noticed the children from the compound listening to us practice some of our local songs. They cheered when we finished.
Soon some adults noticed us. Aunty Chidinma who was in the crowd invited us to sing at her church. They clapped for us when we sang there. They even gave us money.
From there, Mrs Madu a matron at our community health centre invited us to sing at the health centre.
When we sang at the health centre, I saw how happy the patients were when we sang in our own language. They didn’t want us to stop.
Now most girls in my area want to join our singing group. I even heard some boys have formed their own singing club.
I have made new friends from the singing group. We are like sisters in the group. Through the group we have been able to help each other with some of our challenges both at home and at school.
I am happy I can bring smiles to people’s faces in my free time.
What’s your passion? Like Nneka it can turn into a fun activity or way to build your confidence or even make new friends! You could learn a new skill or you could be like Nneka and start a group it doesn’t have to be singing it could be a book club, sewing club or dancing club.
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