Four years ago, this was my home. I visited it again yesterday.
I come back every now and then not because I miss the struggle, but because I never want to forget where I started.
It reminds me to thank God for how far He’s brought me, to stay humble, and to keep working hard.
The gap between where I came from and where I’m going should always be greater than the gap behind me.
Alhamdulillah. The journey continues.
If you are from a poor home, and you start making it, take care of your parents first before anyone. I have one spiritual believe that the more you take care of your parents, the more God blesses you.
During my masters program (LLM) at the University of Lagos, as a full time student, I took a total of 8 courses (4 in each semester) and my dissertation. Aside earning a 5.00 grade point in my dissertation/project, I scored the highest marks in 6 out of 8 courses; 3rd highest marks in the remaining 2 courses. I really wished I could do better. 🙈
With a mix of humility and pride, as I reflect on this success today, being my graduation day, I dare say that the most daunting task I have undertaken during my journey in pursuit of knowledge is this degree 📜 Whilst running a full time rigorous academic program, I was also running a full service young law firm, trying to find its feet in the industry. This has now made me hungry for more knowledge and determination to pursue further education at the doctorate level, in no distant future, as I believe I still a lot more to learn and give to scholarship.
I am eternally grateful to God who made it possible and successful; as my efforts alone wouldn’t have it happen. I pray that He blesses this new milestone with abundance of grace as He has always done in the last decade. Special thanks to my family, and the entire members of staff of Muhammed Adam & Associates, as well as every member of class of 2024/2025, for their supports and cooperation during my journey.
To my lecturers, thank you for your patience, knowledge and openness. It is my prayer that God continues to bless your work beyond your efforts.
Muhammed Adam, LLB, BL and LLM.
People don't really know how terrible poverty is.
They think it's just a lack of money.
Meanwhile, it's lack of money, access, help, choice, mentorship, and so much more.
It's the absence of someone to guide you through doors you didn't even know existed.
It's watching opportunities pass by not because you're lazy, but because you never even heard they were calling.
It's waking up with talent in your bones, fire in your chest, but nowhere to pour it into.
It's being brilliant, but stuck, because brilliance alone can't buy data, can't pay transport, can't afford connections.
Poverty blocks travel. It blocks exposure. It blocks the kind of education that teaches you how to dream and reach.
It blocks safety, because when you're poor, even sickness becomes a luxury you can't afford to have.
It blocks creativity. Not because the ideas aren't there, but because survival takes up all the mental space.
It blocks confidence. When all you've ever known is lack, it rewires your self-worth.
It blocks voice. Because society listens differently to someone with empty pockets.
It blocks experimentation, because you can't afford to fail when failure means hunger, prison or even death.
It blocks rest. It steals sleep. It drains peace.
It blocks time, as everything takes longer when you have to figure it all out alone, from scratch, with no safety net.
It blocks joy. Not all of it, but the kind that lasts.
It blocks visibility. You can be exceptional and invisible at the same time if you're poor.
It blocks love. Real, safe, sustained love.
It blocks even the belief that things could ever be different.
But here's what makes it more tragic... Poverty is not just financial. It becomes mental. Emotional. Generational.
It passes down like an unwanted inheritance. A chain of silence, of limits, of "manage it like that,"
... of "this is how it's always been."
Gradually, it stops being just a condition. It becomes an environment. A culture. A cage.
So if you've escaped poverty, I congratulate you. What you have accomplished is in the list of top three most difficult things in the world. Please, don't just count your blessings, reach back, open doors and help some out too. Just be sure that you've escaped totally. You can pull people out of the well if you've made it outside the well. Doing it inside the well can make you fall back to the bottom.
If you're still in it, hold on. You're not crazy. You're not broken. The system is.
And if you're in a position to do something, do something. Not everyone needs a miracle. Sometimes, people just need a ride to the interview.
A connection. A kind word. A break.
What you feel is a negligible help might just be what they need to begin to break the chain.