Asleep To Our Own Snores

I graduated from the American University of Nigeria with a B.Sc. in Computer Science on Sunday the 15th of May 2011. The reason i am exact to the day of the week my graduation took place, is because it was probably one of the greatest days of my life. I still remember taking loads and loads of pictures and taking that deep sigh of relief--i had just completed a major phase of my life.

Like most of the people i graduated with, my plan was to go to the UK for my Masters and then return to serve Nigeria, in the compulsory National Youth Service Corps (NYSC). For me, it was a case of placing the promised land before the wilderness, because i really wasn't looking forward to one year of wearing that horrific khaki! Then there was the fear of being posted to a strange village where i would have to walk miles to find drinking water or have to climb a tree to get telephone reception. 

As time went on, i shared my fears with my close friends and that conversation usually ended with them laughing and calling me an 'ajebutter' (Nigerian slang for posh :D ). So anyway, one thing led to another and my plans failed, the order was reversed. NYSC before Masters; the wilderness before the promised land. Just like it was in the scriptures, i would have to go through the rigors of NYSC before i taste milk and honey.

On Monday the 21st day of November 2011, after months of preparation, i was finally on my way to the Abuja NYSC camp in Kubwa. i had my white shirt and shorts, a pile of documents and all kinds of temptations to turn back towards my house. Strangely, what kept me motivated and unwilling to turn back was the desire to prove all my friends wrong! I won't be mistaken for an 'ajebutter' by anyone. No! No! No! I was going to show them just how much i can fit in anywhere.

Interestingly, i did just that; i fit in perfectly! NYSC camp for me was no different from boarding school. It was like re-living my days in boarding school. Waking up for exercise, going for lectures, fetching water in buckets, sanitation duties, bunk beds and being in the hostel with all kinds of people. It was pretty much the same! 

The first few days on camp, i was quiet and kept to myself, but soon enough i started to make new friends, started to get aquatinted with more people and generally i loosened up. Meeting new people, inspired many new experiences, which inspired many new lessons. While there are many of such people, experiences and lessons i can write about, i will let you in on the most interesting.

Like i stated earlier, there were bunk beds on camp. I was on the top of my bunk and there was someone under me. The hostels weren't too spacious, so everyone was in everyone's business. There was no such thing as a private moment. Even at midnight, there was the sound of heavy snores, so heavy u literally felt as though someone was beating you into a coma. Unfortunately for me, the guys on the bunk right next to me, were two of the greatest 'snorers'!

For the purpose of clarity, let's give these guys hypothetical names. Let's say the guy on the top bunk is Festus and the guy under is Theophilus. These two guys could really snore! Many nights i sat on my bed just watching them angrily. I felt like stuffing their noses with raisins, particularly the guy on the top bunk, Festus. While Theophilus could snore, he was nothing compared to Festus. I mean this guy could snore for Africa! He was really bad!

2 weeks had gone and i had become an expert at sleeping in the midst of the snores. I thought to myself, if Jesus could sleep through a storm, surely i can sleep through these snores! (Can i get an Amen?). I was getting sleep now, which means i was less grumpy and more friendly. 

One faithful morning, Theophilus and i were walking to the parade ground and he seemed really bothered about something. So i asked him what it was, and he said that Festus (the guy on the top bunk, the chief snorer) was accusing him of stealing his sleep because of how much he snores at night. Just to be clear i said "Can you say that again?" He said, "Festus said i snore so much, he often can't sleep at night". You can imagine the comedy this created for me! How can Festus accuse anyone in this world of snoring. I mean, if there was a world snoring competition, this guy will win it 10 times over! How could he possibly accuse anyone of stealing his sleep.

I laughed so hard and soon enough Theophilus joined in, and blotted out something like, "that guy snores the most in that hostel", and i nodded in agreement. I thought to myself, is this guy not ashamed, can't he even hear himself snore? And then suddenly it hit me...He obviously can't hear himself snore...he's asleep when he does it!

In the midst of the laughter i heard myself say to Theophilus:

"We are asleep to our own snores, often blind to our own flaws."

The mood of the conversation changed from comical to philosophical. I started to show him how as people, we notice everyone's flaws except ours. We are quick to point out the errors of others, forgetting that we are just as flawed as they are. We are defensive when it comes to our short-comings but we will attack others and judge them with our last breath. We are not more perfect than others, we are just more accommodating of our own flaws. We only remember mercy when the odds are against us.

Festus is asleep when he snores, so he can't hear what havoc he causes. We had all endured his earthquakes, yet when he had a chance, he accused another of the very same thing he is guilty of. Is this not how we live? As i conclude, i could think of no better way to end this, than the words of Jesus..

"Matthew 7:5(ESV): You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye."

Daniel Addo

@PastorDanAddo