Dear THEWILL DOWNTOWN, Hope you’re doing well.

I haven’t known you for very long. I feel like we’re new friends, and you fell in love with me so deeply that you invited me to your birthday party after just a month of getting to know each other, and now the MC has given me the microphone to give a speech. You don’t know me well enough to know I don’t like public speaking, but you like me well enough to know you want to hear what I have to say about you and our one-month romance (because, yes, romance also exists in platonic friendships).

So I’ve collected the microphone, and my aim is not only to share a piece of myself with you and your friends but also to let you know that though I haven’t known you very long, I’m so happy to be here because I’ve fallen in love with you right back.

Our first conversation was evidence of the “love at first sight” phenomenon, often dismissed as a myth. Truth is, I’d known who you were for quite some time, but I never got the chance to speak with you, and now, I’m smitten.

In just one exchange, you managed to expand my horizons more than some of my acquaintances have achieved over the years, and that’s what I call adult friendships these days – a discerning openness that fosters vulnerability. I find that when I make genuine friends as an 18-year-old [with 14 years experience], it feels a lot easier because we are more discerning and vulnerable. And there’s nothing that intensifies a friendship like openness.

Yes, there are other things that help friendships flourish; some may be even more important. But the effect that openness and vulnerability have on a friendship or relationship of any kind cannot be undermined. It is like unlocking a world of limitless possibilities, opening a new portal to a different dimension, and creating a unique timeline in the multiverse of our lives. You never know what lies ahead, but you must take that leap to find out.

It offers the freedom to explore while simultaneously presenting the fear of the unknown. Yet, it is the bravery to venture deeper into the unknown that becomes our guiding light through life. It’s absolute freedom in some cases, and for others, it’s absolute fear, but the bravery remains. The bravery MUST remain.

Freedom and fear. Life often presents us with binary choices at various crossroads, shaping us into the individuals we eventually become. This duality can be bittersweet, but it is an essential part of existence; we must live with it. We must embrace the uncertainty of tomorrow, hoping for the best but prepared for the worst.

If we’re lucky, our bravery gets to outshine our fears in this lifetime, allowing us to live authentically and true to ourselves, the way you love yourself to be, the way you were created to be. And there is nothing sweeter than knowing we seized life by the horns and made it our own, for whose life is it if not our own?

As you celebrate another year, I hope you have the courage to conquer every fear that may hinder your journey towards embracing your most authentic self, the best version of who you are. And I hope we all have the privilege of witnessing and participating in this remarkable transformation with you.

Cheers

SGD Spotlight
Quote of the week:

“I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear.” Nelson Mandela

IMAGE: eki ogunbor thewill downtown1

Ms. Eki Ogunbor has been appointed Lifestyle Editor at Large of THEWILL DOWNTOWN.
Eki Ogunbor
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Eki Ogunbor has a Vogue Fashion Certificate from Conde Nast College of Fashion & Design and also attended Central Saint Martins, London College of Fashion and the University of Kent. Eki headed the Design Operations at a top Nigerian womenswear fashion brand before developing her own brand, KISARA. She is the Editor-At-Large at THEWILL DOWNTOWN.