Dead But Alive

Lara’s grandmother, Mama Bisi, had been buried for weeks, and the family had just begun to move on. But one night, Lara heard faint knocks on her window. She brushed it off as the wind, until she heard the familiar voice.

“Lara… my dear… open the window,” it whispered, low and cracked.

Frozen with fear, Lara peeked through the curtains. Standing outside was her grandmother, pale, with earth still clinging to her dress, her eyes cloudy and distant. “They buried me,” Mama Bisi rasped, “but I’m still alive…”

Lara backed away, but the knocking grew louder, insistent. “Don’t you love me, Lara? Open the window,” Mama Bisi’s voice pleaded, now cold and hollow.

Terrified, Lara called her parents, but when they checked outside, no one was there. They dismissed it as a bad dream. But each night, the knocking returned, and the voice grew angrier: “Why won’t you let me in?”

One night, unable to take it anymore, Lara cracked open the window, hoping to end the nightmare. But as soon as she did, a cold hand grabbed her arm, pulling her closer. Mama Bisi’s face pressed against the glass, grinning with rotted teeth, whispering, “Now, you’ll join me… in the grave.”

The next morning, her family found the window open and her room empty, except for a faint trail of dirt leading out toward the graveyard.

"A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives." – Jackie Robinson

"Many of life's failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up." – Thomas Edison

"I believe that if you'll just stand up and go, life will open up for you. Something just motivates you to keep moving." – Tina TurnerI

The Half Dead

In a quiet village, people spoke in hushed tones about the Half Dead—villagers who wandered back from the forest after being presumed dead. They looked the same but didn’t talk much and never seemed fully… alive.

One stormy night, Ada’s brother, Kunle, who had vanished years ago, appeared at her door. His face was pale, eyes hollow, and he moved slowly, like someone learning how to walk again. Ada’s heart pounded, but she hugged him, grateful to see him again.

As days passed, Kunle never ate or slept. He just sat, staring into the darkness, with a strange, haunted smile. When Ada asked him where he’d been, he only muttered, “Between worlds, waiting.”

One night, she found him standing over her bed, his cold hands reaching for her. His hollow voice whispered, “I came back to bring you with me.” Before she could scream, he vanished, leaving only a chill in the air.

Since then, Ada’s neighbors say she’s been acting strange—half here, half somewhere else.

The Shadow in the Mirror

Late one night, Amara was washing her face in her small bathroom, ready to end the long day. As she looked up into the mirror, something felt wrong. Her reflection didn’t quite match her movements—it blinked a moment too late, and the smile she saw wasn’t hers.
She stepped back, her heart racing, but the reflection stayed, grinning wider, showing rows of sharp teeth. Frozen in fear, Amara tried to scream, but no sound came out. The reflection reached out, pressing a hand against the mirror, and suddenly her own hand moved to match it, though she wasn’t controlling it.

Then, in a voice that sounded like hers but twisted, the reflection whispered, “Your turn on this side.”

With a blink, she found herself inside the mirror, watching in horror as her own body, controlled by the shadow, turned and walked away.

Now, she waits every night, trapped in the glass, hoping someone will set her free—but all they see is a harmless reflection.

"It's your outlook on life that counts. If you take yourself lightly and don't take yourself too seriously, pretty soon you can find the humor in our everyday lives. And sometimes it can be a lifesaver." – Betty White

‘When life breaks you, it is because you are ready to be put back together differently.

Every piece of you that feels shattered is a piece that will find a new place, a new purpose, a new meaning.

Trust that the cracks are where the light gets in. And sometimes, in our brokenness, we find our greatest wholeness.

We find the courage to rebuild, to reimagine, to redefine what it means to be strong.

You are not broken; you are breaking through!

Just because you fit in doesn’t mean you’re meant to be there. I know that doesn’t ring a bell, but that’s it. Most life changing ideas aren’t going to meet you meet in every turn of the road. I am not saying this is going to be a life changing idea for you, but it could be depending on the level of meaning you choose to derive from it.

Let’s get into the meat of things straight away—many of us spend years doing work/things we’re comfortable at or even good at.

We show up, get the job done, maybe even earn some praise. We fit the role perfectly, or at least we think so. But there’s a difference between doing what fits and doing what fulfills.

Let’s be real, we’re often too quick to settle for comfort zones, those places where our skills are enough to get by. But ask yourself: is this where I truly come alive? Is this the work that taps into my potential or just a convenient landing spot?

Unfortunately, this is where the majority find themselves. I know that’s not you, but you at least know a couple of persons who are in that position right now.

It’s easy to confuse “fitting in” with finding purpose. But purpose calls for more. Sometimes it demands that we walk away from comfort into uncharted territory.

So, before you tell yourself, “I’m doing alright here,” consider if alright is what you were made for—or if there’s something greater calling you forward.

Until next time, keep striving to living your best life until you can perfectly connect the dots!