divv.dev (Divinne)

My secondary school principal once told me, “You will reap whatever you sow.” Years ago, I watched my mum kneel and beg her over prize money I won at a tech competition. Back in secondary school, I was always going for tech competitions. For one of them, a few of us built a robotics project. I handled most of the building and coding, other students helped, and the school supported us with equipment too. We placed in the competition and won some money. We even met with a senior official in our Lagos education district, who told us the prize money was for the students, not the school. I had no idea how much trouble that money would cause. At that point, I badly needed a laptop. I was writing frontend and backend code on my phone and borrowing people’s laptops to build things. My mum was doing her best, but a laptop wasn’t something we could afford. That prize money felt like my chance. When the money entered my account, I gave some to the people who worked with me. I also offered ₦30k to the school. I told my physics teacher, who had mentored me for years, that I wanted to add my savings to what was left and finally buy a laptop. I thought she’d understand because she knew my struggle. Instead, she felt insulted by my offer. My mum even sent her a voice note explaining why I needed the laptop. She never replied. That was the last time we spoke. I still appreciate everything she taught me though. Later, I returned to school because I urgently needed my school documents. The principal told me they wouldn’t release them until I brought the prize money. I called my mum. What happened next is something I still think about. My mum came to the school and knelt on the floor, begging the principal to let me get my documents. I stood there watching her plead. It hurt so much. She knew what that laptop meant to me and was willing to humble herself just so I could move forward. Eventually, another teacher helped us. We contributed towards a printer the school wanted, and I was finally allowed to process my documents. I got that laptop. And I genuinely don’t know where I’d be today if I hadn’t. My principal once said, “You will reap whatever you sow.” I think I am and I’m grateful to God I bought that laptop