"Awoof dey run belle"




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What do you make out of a situation where you get to pay less than the original price? Probably a rare offer to jump at quickly? Or do you rush at the offer or pause to weigh your options before making a choice?


Sometimes having to pay less than the original price ( what we call 'Awoof') might not necessarily be a bonanza spree. It might be another bait to dupe unsuspecting customers. And as the saying goes, 'Awoof dey burst belle' which when translated means freebies/cheap things do not give optimum satisfaction or pleasure.
In essence, the beneficiary does not get to enjoy what he/she paid for in true sense after all.



My conclusion is based on some experiences proving that  it is better to go for quality and pay higher provided you enjoy what you paid for than pay less then end up spending more.


Forget Monday morning runs, Sunday morning runs also holds in this part of the world. Ever since church service included a special early morning series on finance, I deemed it necessary to attend all the series. Normally, I would have taken my time and gone for other later services where I would have time to dress up, makeup, eat and stroll into service.


However, the introduction of early 7 a.m finance series with top seasoned speakers in their fields giving financial insights, got me on my toes. Throwing away all my conveniences, I became more disciplined to make it all for the special Sunday series. After all, they said that the secret of great men is in their stories. Being an area, I would say I was kind of struggling with, I just had to make sure that  I attended all the series, learn and applied my learning. No data to burn to watch videos or money to buy tapes. I believe there is an anointing that comes with physical presence.  And that was my motivation.


I had two options: cab services or public transport. I opted for the later.  Don't ask me why. Early Sunday morning, the sleep was so sweet, I wished I would have continued but my alarm clock in the opposite room was disturbing. I had to get up to shut it up, that is how the sweet sleep left instantly. Preparation for Sunday service started immediately. Thankfully, I was done in the nick of time, I was sure I would get to church in time.



Everything was going well from when I got to the bus stop until I saw several buses beckoning me to fill up their seats. With so many bus conductors persuading the available passengers, I decided to go with the one with an unusual 'abnormal' low fare. First of all, this driver was taking time to leave the bus stop, he made sure his bus got completely filled with passengers. As I sat patiently without complaining, I felt satisfied that in the long run, I would have some change to keep.


Then, the  journey commenced and the normal tradition of transport fares were being collected by the bus conductor. All was going on well until the bus abruptly stopped on the way!


Without apologising to his passengers for the inconveniences caused, the bus driver came down from bus to change his tyre. Who does that? I mean, he knew quite well that he had a bad tyre but went ahead to carry unsuspecting passengers, no wonder the bus fare was 'unusually abnormally low' and we fell for that bait.


It was unwise to demand a refund, after all, on a normal day, the money paid was enough to take one to where the bus stopped. I could not wait for the bus driver to change his flat tyre; remember I  had a Sunday series to catch up in church. I jumped down from the bus and sharply looked for another. I ended up paying twice the normal bus fare based on my calculation. If I had followed my instinct, I would have paid once and for all and saved some money!


This brings back to another experience. As an undergraduate, I needed a pen to some assignments.  I got duped in broad daylight by the pen seller. She was selling a pack of pen(of a brand I have never heard). After tactfully convincing me to buy them, I ended buying the unidentified pen brand. To start with, she gave me one that was writing to test its effectiveness and that how I swallowed her bait.


It would have made more sense if I gently went for my bic pen but no I wanted a cheap one.  In my mind, I would have enough change to  buy other stuffs. In the end, the pack of pen bought were useless, had to buy another set and that meant spending more.

Would you go for quantity over quality? Do you jump at every offer without weighing your options? Do you follow your instincts or go with the crowd? One has to be careful because 'Awoof really runs belle" True or False?

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