10 years, 10 dates
It is often said that we can only connect the dots when looking back... Well, looking at the last decade, I can point at 10 dates that defined the path to the man I am today.
08/10/10, I landed in America (from France) for the first time. In NYC, the city that changed me dramatically. I particularly cherish the souvenir of seeing Lady Liberty, my reminder that the sky is not the limit, but the beginning.
31/07/11, during my first trip to the UK, I met the lady who would later say yes to me... It was a beautiful (and boozy) night out at O'Bar night club in SE15.
01/06/12, I left SocGen after 3.5 years as a Valuation Analyst. I was 26, ready to kick-off my self-discovery journey... with a €100K check in hand! I then moved to the US for the whole summer, then relocated to the UK.
24/06/13, I formed my food recovery company Sincuru.com. Lots of ups and downs, incubation at the tech-for-good accelerator Bethnal Green Ventures... And even if we failed, I'm proud to have contributed to sparking the "ending food waste" business movement.
05/07/14, she said I do... And marrying the very incomplete man I was then was the greatest sign of love she could ever show me. I sadly learnt along the way that a man in deep soul-searching hardly can be a good husband... And I ruined our marriage over time. QED.
30/11/15, the first time I slept in the street… A very cold and windy London night. Another pivotal moment for me, and today my reminder to never fall into despair, whatever happens… It triggered the return to Cameroon where I bounced back.
07/12/17, my daughter was born. The greatest joy of my life and a revealing moment for me. I realised that I could not lie to myself anymore, that I would only be the best father to my daughter if a happy man myself. Hard decisions were coming my way...
25/06/18, my mother moved to France in a medical emergency. In all honesty, I thought I would never see my Mom again. Thank God she's feeling much better today. It took me a long time to process that moment. If I needed another wake-up call, that was one...
07/03/19, my daughter and wife left Abidjan for Paris. I had decided to divorce… It was indeed one of the most painful decisions of my life, if not the most painful to this day. But it was needed to start afresh.
25/06/19, I landed in Senegal for the next chapter of my life. I am not superstitious at all, but often think that it's not pure luck that it happened exactly one year after my mom had her medical emergency travel...
I am a huge believer in silver linings. So when I look at these dates, some happy and others less so, I see the curve of a man growing and learning... Today, I feel that I am where I am supposed to be in my life, that things are aligned and in place, that a new story begins.
If I just went through my decade of learnings, then comes the time to build and earn?
I am grateful to the women and men who hold my hand on this beautiful journey that life is, and look forward to the next chapters.
On to the next 10 years... To a prosperous 2020, and a prosperous decade!
