Impossibility is a myth

BY OZICHUKWU TAGBO-OKEKE

To me, words have power. Enough power to define our lives. God created everything with the power of his words. He said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. So when we say impossibility is a myth, we aren’t saying it for fun and games. We mean it in our hearts. At first, I didn’t believe it, “something just scientifically can’t happen,” I think to myself. But Kanyeachukwu has not only enlightened me but also inspired me. He has inspired me to find the different possibilities in what we label as impossible.

Children like Kanye are sometimes written off from birth by today’s society. Our society sometimes neglect children like Kanyeyachukwu Tagbo Okeke with special needs. But Kanye showed that despite being an underdog, with enough belief and hard work, was able to achieve greatness showing that you can accomplish any goal you set your mind to. My brother Kanye is not just an artist, but I see him as a symbol. Kanye symbolizes that no child is a waste.

Everyone is on this earth for a reason. Kanye symbolises the voice. A voice of the people telling our Nigerian government that, “No CHILD MUST BE LEFT BEHIND,” whether autistic, whether dyslexic, or if that child has no disability. All are still children.

Kanye is such a great artist, not just because of the stroke of his brush but because of the story behind his art. The voices we are able to see through his canvas. The voices of children who have been tossed aside and labelled as “rejects”.

Through all the awards and accolades, you may see a star or a celebrity, but I saw my younger brother who is differently abled.

Believe it or not, the way I see my autistic brother isn’t the way others may view their family members battling with special needs.

Most parents and families with special needs carry their child along as an insecurity. So they hide their children from the world. You see what I’ve observed is that the main problem when talking about special needs children isn’t the disability they are facing, it’s how that disability is dealt with and treated.

Locking a child away as an “insecurity” may look like an stress-free course of action, but it’s really doing more harm than good. You see, hiding insecurities gives a false sense of security; we are securing things that don’t need to be secured. Our problems make us whole, they outline who were are. Our hurdles are part of our identity. A challenge is not something to be covered up, it is something to be embraced because facing a challenge is the next step to progress and healing.

Kanyeyachukwu Tagbo Okeke is a 15-year-old world-renowned artist who recently broke the Guinness World Record for the largest art painting in the world, he is also an example of this progress and healing. Kanye has won multiple awards like the Flame of Peace Award, the Indomie Heroes Award, Guinness World Record, etc., but leave all that for a second and let’s look at a deeper story.

Though he may be a world-renowned artist, I still see him as a boy with a dream. A dream that nothing can stop him from achieving. I see the hurdles God sent Kanye’s way as secret stepping stones. Because as he leaps over each hurdle, he reaches new heights in life. The funny thing about Kanye’s story is that when you hear it, the first thing that comes to you is, “that is impossible”, yet our motto is that impossibility is a myth.

Impossibility does not exist. This isn’t an ad, nor is it just me iterating a catch phrase; it is me showing you concrete evidence that anything is possible. No child deserves to be neglected, and the Nigerian government continue to invest in us, for innovators like Kanye and I, are the future of Nigeria.