A Sitdown With Rasheed & Ibiso Danjuma

September 8, 2017 UNwankwor 5 Comments

So we’ve come to the end of the week, I hope you’ve enjoyed being reacquainted( or meeting) with Rasheed & Ibiso. Anyway, I found this little piece from a sit down I had with these two. It was right after Jabir’s wedding. I cornered them and we had a small chat. You know Rasheed is not a media person however with his wife’s new found fame, he is adjusting but only indulged me for a couple of minutes. Enjoy……………………………………………

I sit at the edge of my chair with my tape recorder. This couple spent months with me but after their wedding we kinda lost touch. Now they have a handsome baby boy. There’s a knock on the door and in walks Ibiso followed by her husband, Rasheed. Her smile is contagious so I relax a bit and returned the emotion. Rasheed on the other hand acknowledged me with a head nod. He wore a serious expression. He had one hand on the small of Ibiso’s back and the other one was holding his phone to his ear. He was engrossed in conversation. I could tell it was business and he was trying to get the person off the phone.

“Ah Unoma, it’s so nice to see you again,” Ibiso said.

“Same here. You look stunning,” I responded.

I meant it too. She had on a high waist, multicolored, pencil cut Ankara skirt that stopped below her knees. It had a high slit that stopped at her thigh. She wore it with a white short sleeved lace blouse. To compliment her look, she had on some red stilettos and a red clutch bag. Her make up flawless and her low cut was on point. For a minutes I wondered if I could rock my hair that low

By this time Rasheed gets off the phone. “Unoma, you look good.”

“Hey you and don’t flatter me. I’m so tired from dealing with your brothers but thanks anyway.”

Rasheed chuckled. “You gave yourself that job, writing their stories. So that’s on you. Besides they are not that bad.”

“You are so wrong but you can have that,” I said.

Rasheed grabbed Ibiso’s hand as I ushered them to the love seat on the other side of the table.

“Okay I gotta catch a flight back to Atlanta and I know you Rasheed are headed to Lagos in the morning so this is going to be quick,” I said.

Rasheed : “Good deal.”

Unoma: “So how has married life been?”

The couple look at each other and smile. They then turn to me and say “Great.” in unison.

Ibiso : I mean it’s been great in general. Do we disagree? Yes. Does he still get buried in his work and I get on him? Yes. But we keep communication open and listen to the other to understand and not to respond.

Unoma : Nice. I’m so happy. How is Sodienye?

Rasheed: Still getting on my nerves.

I raise my brow. Ibiso laughed and kissed her husbands cheek.

Rasheed: Seriously though, we now have an understanding that she (he points to Ibiso) is all me now. I exist for her and my son. He gets it for the most part but still tries to baby her. I’m the only one allowed to baby my wife.

Unoma: Aww that’s so sweet.

Ibiso: I’m blessed.

Unoma : That you are. So how has parenthood been?

Rasheed : The day he was born I wept. I wept for God to give me the strength and guidance to be to him what mine never was to me and more.

Rasheed puts his head down briefly and Ibiso rubs his back in a circular motion.

Ibiso: And you are baby. A great father.

Ibiso then turns to me. : It has been great. Between my husband, mom and Mama D I have more than enough help. I had enough systems in place to not work in my restaurant for 6 months after giving birth.

Unoma :Wow that was a long time.

Ibiso: Yes it was. I know not everyone can do that but I’m glad I was able to. YoYo and I had so much fun.

Unoma: YoYo?

Rasheed furrowed his eyebrows at Ibiso: I told you to stop calling my son that.

Ibiso laughed “RaRa, why now? It’s cute.

Rasheed :Okay I see you want to be in time out.

They carried on for a few minutes teasing each other like I wasn’t in the room. The love in their eyes couldn’t be denied.

Unoma : Okay, I got one more question for the both of you. What’s next for Danjuma Group and Bisso Bites?

Ibiso: I have finally opened a branch in Lagos. As you know I have a new location here in Abuja. It’s no longer just Amina and I. I am living my dream. A husband and child I adore, my family and I are on great terms and my new family is fantastic. Now that we are done with Jabir’s wedding I cant wait to see what is in store for Kammy.

Rasheed cupped the back of Ibiso’s head and drew her in to place a kiss on her forehead.

Rasheed: Danjuma Group is expanding to East Africa now that we have West Africa down. Next will be South Africa. But that would depend on the environment and the Xenophobia currently going on.

Unoma: I have never understood the reasoning behind xenophobia.

Ibiso: Me either. I got an email from a Mrs. Rice about catering her son’s wedding in South Africa but my baby here isn’t too happy about it.

Rasheed: The only way you are going is if I’m with you.

Ibiso: Yes sir (she gave him a military salute)

Rasheed: Cut it out SoSo.

Unoma: Both of you are so cute together.

Rasheed opened his mouth to object at the term but was interrupted by none other than Kamal Danjuma bursting in the room.

Kamal: Oh my bad. Y’all still in here. Unoma, Stone Cold ain’t got that much going on so what can you possibly be asking him?

Ibiso: Kammy, leave my husband alone.

Rasheed: Leave him to keep running his mouth. He’ll be walking to the airport when it’s time for him to leave in a couple of weeks.

Kamal: Stop threatening the kid. Alright I’m gone.

Kamal walked over to me and pulled me into a hug. “Unoma, don’t be having me looking corny in your little book.

Rasheed: Bro, get out of here man let her finish. I need to get my family home. I’ll be gone a week I need to make sure my wife is good.

Rasheed winked at Ibiso, She blushed and Kamal made gagging noises.

Kamal: Imma about to go. I ain’t trying to hear all that. Sis, don’t forget to hook those snacks up for me.

Kamal gives us the peace sign and walks out.

Unoma: Okay guy, I’m going to let you go. I think I have enough for the fans. Thank you so much for your time.

I and the couple exchanged hugs and took a couple of pictures before they left. This couple started the Sons of Ishmael series. If you haven’t read their story, you can get it here for $1.99

Blessings

Unoma

Living With Expectancy by Ibiso Danjuma of Bisso Bites

September 6, 2017 UNwankwor 4 Comments

Hey everybody!

Unoma has allowed me to talk to you all. Isn’t the Lord good. Okay so she wanted me to talk about living a life of expectancy. You know she is so passionate about living with the confident expectations in God’s promise. So, let me give you a little bit about me and how I came about living my life in expectancy. I was what you would call the prodigal daughter of my family. I come from a middle class family of four. I am the baby having an older brother that is over bearing but so loving. I was a daddy’s girl before he died and my daddy shielded me from the harshness of the world.

Then I strayed. I met a man who had my nose so wide open that I left my plans, my family and followed him half way around the country without a ring on it. Who does that? Me that’s who. Well soon after, he up and left me. Kai! The shame ehn… I had to back track and by then, my mother and brother no longer had my time. My family was angry I left and brought disgrace to the family. Adding to that, my mother didn’t understand why I didn’t use my degree to get a reasonable job. She describes me as an ordinary cook. Well not any more. -)

After my set back I moved to a new city, Abuja and decided to open my own Bistro, anything you can think of Naija food, I’m an expert. Yep I’m tooting my horn, if I don’t who will? I cook other stuff but I love Nigerian food. Now let’s get to the crux of the matter. I had everything going well for two years, the Bistro called Bistro Bites was doing well. I was proud of myself and thankful to God for a second chance. Then everything was at the brink of falling down the drain when I fell behind on the rent. My dreams, my passion, my second chance would be gone poof if I didn’t come up with N800,000. This is when expectancy came in….

Living with expectancy is the belief that God will do something. I didn’t know how He would but I knew He would. I had the hope and faith that He would provide a way out for me. Why? Because He said it. Therefore every day I woke up and look to Him, he provided clients, He also allowed tests but through it all I stayed firm. I couldn’t fail the test, not again. As I stayed in him and continued to look to Him, doing the assignment He sent me on, He showed up and showed out. On of such jobs that would give me some extra money to what I was saving up, I met my husband. Yep I didn’t know it then but the way we met could have wiped all hope from my face( You got to read the book to find out) In that moment, I could have given up but I didn’t. Little did I know God was up to something.

Ibiso Danjuma

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Hi there! This is Unoma. What Ibiso said is so correct. Expectancy means you know He will do something. What it is, you have no idea but in His Sovereignty believe that whatever it is will be good. And Peter directed his gaze at him, as did John, and said, “Look at us.”And he fixed his attention on them, expecting to receive something from them. But Peter said, “I have no silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk!” Acts 3 4-6

Key words from this verse , Look at us ( Always look to God)…He fixed His attention expecting to receive something good( He didn’t know what it was but he knew it would be good) Rise and Walk( Silver and Gold would have been good too 🙂 ). I mean if he had it he could live more comfortably, but what he was given was what he needed. Have you read a Scoop of Love? Order your copy for just $1.99 here

Blessings

Unoma

Reviews & Character Behind The Scenes

Men At Work: An Unbalanced Work Life

September 4, 2017 UNwankwor 6 Comments

Hey there! This is Unoma. Happy Labor Day… most are off in the US but today I want to start our Men At Work discussion with the Danjuma brothers. Oh by the way, did you catch Mrs. Danjuma’s features last week? If you didn’t just go to the home page and access them, Today we’re talking to Rasheed Danjuma. The day his father walked out of their lives, Rasheed swore to himself that failure would never be an option. His number one goal was to prove to his dad that he was capable of being something and taking care of his mother and brother by himself. Now let’s read his own words. Did he let that desire consume him?

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Hello Everyone, this is Rasheed or Stone Cold as my nutty brothers like to call me. Thank you to Unoma & all the readers who have supported us during this journey. Baring our souls and telling our stories isn’t something that came easy. However, since my pops( it feels weird calling him that. For so long I’ve called him “the one who contributed to my genetic make up) decided to disturb my life in London by dying and summoning me back home, I was game for Unoma writing our stories.

Today, I’ve been told to talk about how the absence of my pops affected the way I work. You’ve read my story, you know growing up without a father had a huge impact on me. What? Wait…you haven’t read the story? Why. It’s $1.99 I know you can afford that so just click here and get your copy.

I’m the first son as you know and in any African culture especially Nigeria where we are from, that’s a serious role. Even if your father is with you, you still have responsibilities. With mine gone, I felt the pressure. He was a coward when he cracked and left us and I was determined not to do the same. That determination was the sole driver behind my unbalanced life.

The betrayal, rage and hurt I felt, drove my desire to be better than my pops. But then that desire became toxic. Nothing else mattered. Despite what my brothers thought, I had lady friends but they were far and few in between. Love was taboo for me, look what it did to my mom. So no, I wanted none of it. I lived an unbalanced life married to my desire to succeed.

So what is success? Before I speak on that, let me tell you some of the lessons I’ve learnt:

Your past has the ability to mold you. You have to make sure it’s molding you the right way. Use God’s Word as a road map.
Motives for Success. The Bible talks about the motive behind our actions. Make sure yours do not have its root in “self”.
This is a practical tip…when “busy” gets in the way, reflect on your core values, then create reoccurring time blocks around them. That way nothing suffers.

I will leave you with a few of my favorite quotes. My wife put them in a frame in my home office. You remember how I almost lost her? That same toxic desire reared its head and nearly cost me dearly.

Balance is not better time management, but better boundary management. Balance means making choices and enjoying those choices.
Betsy Jacobson

We have overstretched our personal boundaries and forgotten that true happiness comes from living an authentic life fueled with a sense of purpose and balance.
Dr. Kathleen Hall

Most of us spend too much time on what is urgent and not enough time on what is important.
Stephen R Covey

When King David was about to die, this was the advice he gave is son, “Do what the LORD your God commands and follow his teachings. Obey everything written in the Law of Moses. Then you will be a success, no matter what you do or where you go” (1 Kings 2:3)

That my friends is the true foundation of success.

Rasheed Danjuma

Reviews & Character Behind The Scenes

A Mother & Her Sons~Obiageli Danjuma

September 1, 2017 UNwankwor 4 Comments

Ha! My people Ndewo nu! How are you all? We’ve come to the end of our time together o. You’ll hear from me again in the book Mended With Love. Releasing Oct 6th. First let me give you a little visual of the family.

Today I want to talk about my sons. Umu m oma (that means my good children) The last time I spoke to you, about them in particular, you were getting ready to meet my second son Jabir. Hmm, I smile when I remember the roller-coaster he and Damisi took us on. Their back and forth nearly drove me to drink but the enemy did not win. I was on my knees for those two because even after seven years apart, they couldn’t make up their minds. I’m thankful to the I am that I am that He finally got Jabir to surrender and be the man he was made to be.

So let me give you an update. Ibiso and Rahseed are still doing great. My diokpara, (that’s what my people call first son) still shows his hard exterior but pay him no attention, Ibiso has softened what matters most, his heart. She’s his perfect match. Yohance is their blessing from God. Despite not growing up with one, Rasheed is a great father. I praise God for them both.

Jabir and Damisi are waxing strong as well. Those media people wanted to run them mad, but my God pass them. The news cycle has since changed and they finally allowed my daughter, Damisi to have peace of mind. You see, even though Jabir & Dami were no longer in Nigeria, old fans were still sending her silly messages that time. But you see how God works, now, she’s being praised for her new blog Mosiac. I want to encourage you reading this, know that joy always, always comes in the morning. God will always turn your mess into a message. People may sway but God will be God, unchanging. As I’m talking to you now, I’m getting my Visa processed to go and see them. I don’t usually stay long o. I love my home but I go and refresh and come back. I miss my granddaughters but Jabir set my phone up so I can see them and talk to them…chai, what is it called?? Ehen Facetime or I use that Skype thing when my service works.

Now to the reason why I’m here, you’re about to meet my last son, my baby, my trouble maker. My son Emeka, his full name is Kamal Chukwuemeka Danjuma. I call him Emeka for short. The full name means God has done so much. Oh wait, I remember you people know him as Kamal or is it Kammy? I don’t call him that, he’s the only one I call by his Ibo name. He was given that name at birth but I started using it when he turned over a new leaf. Emeka has come a long way from his childhood. Eewo! That child gave me problems, I know he was hurting from his dad’s absence because he was closest to him. I praise God for how he has turned out, don’t misunderstand me, his wahala (trouble) is still a lot but he has made me so proud.

Recently I have started noticing his hot head is reappearing. They think I don’t know, that he has been in the news recently for nonsense behavior. My children don’t know that know that Nkechi, you remember her, the young lady that lives with me…ehen she helped me put that Instagram on my phone. I don’t know what is wrong with him, but I know he needs the love of a good woman. Not the one that will see him and think he is now her lottery ticket. Ha! Mba nu nu. As far as I’m alive, I will not allow that happen to him. He needs a woman who cares about him. The man and not that football thing he’s doing.

Anytime he comes home, as soon as he leaves, one girl or the other is greeting me extra hard at church or the market or wherever they see me. They go as far as asking to come cook for me. I don’t know what he has told them but I see their eyes shining for gold and silver. I just return their greeting and go my way. No, I don’t need you to cook for me my dear, that is how I answer them. I guess they forgot who my daughter-in-law is. If it is cooking my Ibiso has that area covered.

I know Emeka has this oyinbo ( white) girlfriend there in America. Although he never told me o, I use that Instagram to see these things. Since he hasn’t told me, it’s not serious, that’s my conclusion so I won’t say anything. So, just like you, I’m waiting to see what he is going to do with his life.

I want to thank Unoma for telling the stories of my sons and I. I also want to say Daalu nu for reading, your comments, reviews and enjoying our stories. At the time my husband left us, I didn’t foresee this outcome. I knew God had us and wouldn’t forsake us but the way my sons have turned out is just a blessing.

Ok, I will go now, remember to take one last ride with us with Emeka’s story. You can pre order it now. I suggest you do that so when the book is ready, you have no stress.

If you haven’t read Rasheed and Jabir’s story…ah! You’re missing o, see where you can order them. They say is is a holiday in America this weekend, so just get whatever beverage you drink and settle down to read the books. The family and I will see you in the book Mended by Love coming to you Oct 6th. We’ll catch you up more then.

Next week my son Rasheed and his wife Ibiso are taking over…treat them well o

Daalu Nu. Chukwu gozie unu(God bless you)

Obiageli

Hey y’all Unoma here. I hope you enjoyed Mama D. I had fun bringing another sie of her to you. Do what she ssaid order the series or preorder Mended With Love if you’ve already read the other books. You can do that here

Have a Safe weekend. Blessings

Unoma

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