IMAX'S CORNER

I don’t think I fully understand the meaning of love, but I think I might know what it means to be loved. I know it's a concept that thrives in the little things—like remembering how I like my fish, that I prefer my fried rice without veggies, or that I like my omelet plain. It’s being seen—even in the smallest ways. It’s the constant showing up by my friends and family. The gentle encouragements. The reassuring smiles when I feel clueless. The hugs that feel like home. The loud applause for the simplest achievements. And of course, the constant banter that warms the soul. I see how my family wouldn’t let me suffer. My mum would literally give me the moon if I asked. We’d fight first o, but she’d come around. My Uncle Austin genuinely believes I can be an astronaut if I wanted to. My friend Nneoma swears I could be a superhero—specifically Superman—because of how strong she thinks I am. I'm grateful even to strangers who’ve called me talented. It's the little acts of kindne...

It’s currently 12:36 AM. All my roommates are fast asleep. I just woke up and I plan to take a bath. Don’t ask me why I’m bathing this late—and mummy, if you're reading this, I’m sorry. It won’t happen again. But back to the actual picture: it’s past midnight and I’m left with my thoughts in the silence of my room. So I’ve decided to do what I love—write. Now, I’m not going to come here and give excuses for not writing in a while. I'm not even going to say “school has been after my life.", even though it has. I’ll own up to my inconsistency because something I’m learning lately is to be more accountable for my actions. Someone asked me today why I still hadn’t written—even though they remind me every time. The answer was already at the tip of my tongue: “I’ve just been so busy.” And that wouldn’t have been a lie. This semester has hit me with waves of emotions and intense fatigue. But I didn’t say that. Despite the chaos, I had made a promise to myself to write more on my ...

I sat with my younger self today for Amala because I wanted to remind her that it is a safe space. We both arrived late. Punctuality was clearly still a problem for us, but I told her how I had somehow managed to become a punctuality prefect in secondary school. We laughed. I don’t know if she believed me, but she’ll see. I watched her eat excitedly. I still loved Amala as much as she did—if not more now. She asked if I had finally decided on a career path. I said no, but at least now, I knew some things I wanted to do. I told her I had learned to love reading novels, although I still struggled with consistency. She asked if we still played the violin. I told her I hadn’t played in years, but I promised to start again because I knew how much she loved it. I missed it too. I told her I loved that I was understanding Mum a lot better, and she was understanding me too. I had realized she was just a girl—figuring things out, just like me. She asked if we were still shy. I told her yes, but...

 It's big 2025! Let’s pretend it’s still the first day of the year—starting everything clean and brand new. Happy New Year, eyin fans mi! Welcome to 2025, and thank you for all the laughs and engagement last year. Cheers to even more fun and laughter this year! I haven’t made New Year’s resolutions in the past 2–3 years. Instead, I’ve written love letters to myself—little guides to help me navigate the year—and this time, I’ve decided to share this year’s version with you. Dear me, love yourself enough to walk away from situations that don't serve you. One of my favourite lines from Shayo's Soft life rendition is " if it doesn't serve you, it don't deserve you ".  It’s not selfish to protect your peace; it’s survival.  Be bold enough to choose you this year, be kind enough to love yourself more this year, Walk away from people or situations that drain you or make you feel small, value yourself enough to say “no” to anything that doesn’t align with your g...

 Are you crazy? Are you unhinged? Congratulations, you’re halfway to surviving Lagos. If you ask me about Lagos, I'll probably say it's a crazy place. But if you buy me a hot plate of abula from the iyalamala across the street, washed down with a “mortuary standard” Pepsi,  I'll tell you how unreal a place it is. One of the things that makes Lagos so unpredictable is that every outing is an adventure.  As someone who doesn’t go out much, every time I step outside, Lagos greets me with something unexpected.   Lagos houses some of  the biggest markets in Africa, so market madness is inevitable. Take the day in October when I went to the market. It seemed like a normal day—until I saw a whole family of five: father, mother, two sons, and a daughter, in a full-blown wrestling match with a vendor. Or the first time I went to Lagos Island market alone and experienced the infamous 'marriage by change'.  The danfo driver gave me and another passenger a si...

 Dearest gentle reader, Newsletters from my favorite people have become one of my new favorite things. In Adekunle Gold’s latest “love letter” (as I like to call them), he asked where my mind was at. His exact words were, "So Immaculata, how's your mind?" You can call this my open response to AG Baby’s love letter.   It took me some time to reflect on AG's question because we’re so used to the typical, “How are you?” and let’s be honest, the response, “I’m fine,” has become almost robotic—rarely requiring any deep reflection. "How is your mind?" was more thought-provoking for me. It felt personal, deliberate, and demanding of thought. I honestly don't think I have all the answers yet, but here it goes.   I’d like to believe that, in its entirety, my mind is calm yet hungry. It’s been everywhere lately—hungry yet grateful, appreciative yet unsatisfied. It wants more out of life than I can articulate, but I’m learning to balance these desires with gratitud...