Being Nigerian In A Foreign Country.

Humour

Can I just say that Africans have a wicked sense of humour. Well . . . maybe it's because I'm an African and I still don't fully understand British humour. lol

One things about Africans, is that, we say things the way it is. We don't mince words or try to sugar-coat anything. The words just come out and we don't even thinking about whether it would hurt anyone's feeling or not. We expect the people at the receiving end to be tough enough to take the 'blow'

Here in Britain, it's different. People are afraid of people. What I mean is, they don't want to get other people upset. They take people's feelings into consideration. So, you'll hear things like, "Oh you can't say that, you'll hurt their feelings."

"Fee....what? Did you say feelings? Abeg  toughen up jare. . ." is the the Nigerian way. Sometimes, it can be your parents sef; the way they would speak to you, you'll start to think about your life.

But on a serious note though, there are times that people need to hear the truth, and the truth they should hear. It's bitter, they say, but swallow it and move on ahnahn.

Okay, for instance, you have a bit of food stuck in between your teeth or in the corner of your lips, or your hair is in a mess, or something like that and you're in a conversation with someone, they won't even tell you anything, you'll sit there and be smiling, shining your teeth. You'll then leave there not knowing you look hideous, And when you finally see yourself in the mirror, you wonder why you got ridiculous stares from people.

Na wa o. Me, I've learnt the hard way sha. When I'm talking to a person and I notice that they're eyes are staring at a particular part of my body, say, my mouth or my hair. Then I know something is not right. I would have to excuse myself from that conversation and go straight to the nearest mirror to suss myself out. 

And also there is this word, "fat." Oh my my my! People absolutely dread that word here. It's like an abomination, a taboo, to mention it to someone. In fact, I've learnt not to say the word at all, instead use other mild synonyms for it. Call someone fat here and the gasps of horror and looks you'll receive, you'll think you've accidently killed someone. Or if you tell someone they're adding weight, my goodness, you've totally destroyed that person's self-esteem. You've sent their confidence crashing down.

Just don't.

You see, I don't remember it being like that in Nigeria. Your neighbour will see you from afar and their greeting to you will be "oh boy, you don dey fat o, wetin you dey chop?"  Boy you're getting fat. What the heck are you eating?

Lol Honestly...

Africans need to chill sometimes, I swear

Comment let me know what you think. And don't forget to keep the votes coming too. Muah!