Inside “Yndico Is”
“Ynidco Is” appears to be a children’s book, both whimsical and colorful, but just as cliché goes, ‘Don’t judge a book by its cover.’ The novel, written by Sandra Olajide, packs a lot of punch and is a story, similar to the fantasy world in Alice in Wonderland. Ynidico is a young girl who struggles with the confines placed on her by adults and a reality that doesn’t seem to nurture or acknowledge her unique gifts. It is this struggle that causes her accidental journey into a timeless reality, where past, present and future operate simultaneously. In this space, called ‘Everwhen,’ she meets another young girl, Issy, who, with her incredible secrets and enormous powers, agrees to help Ynidico back to where she came from. VAIN interviewed the imaginative author whose creativity is turning the wheels of the minds of individuals of all ages.
VAIN: To have created a fantasy/science fiction filled-novel, would you say that you’ve always had a large imagination as child?
Sandra Olajide: “I was as imaginative as they come. I always imagined that I could have my reality the way that I wanted it. And for the most part, I would say that I have.”
What was the inspiration behind your book?
“When I was a tween, and when my own children were at that age, I found that I came to a point where, I began to question life consciously, how I felt myself in it…versus the expectations of me and from the world surrounding me. How I was going to maintain this very real connection with myself –who I knew I was and who I wanted to grow and become- versus the peer pressure, parental pressures, just the pressures of the world…”
Absolutely. That’s pretty profound.
“…There isn’t enough being said about it; I think that by reconnecting with that moment and allowing parents to re-experience and reconnect with that moment, we could actually help our youth move through that transitional phase – that rite of passage if you will – fully intact and learning what they need to learn and at the same time having a very conscious knowledge of themselves and who they were in the process.”
What shapes your philosophy about maintaining self-consciousness?
“We all come to certain transition points when we are asking questions about life. I think that now, more and more, children need to be given more than a traditional education to hold them in good stead. Through the experiences that I have had in my own life and that I have watched my own children go though, I think that they really need to have something that we as adults recognize in them to help them not to forget the very core of themselves. I think that we are more in touch with that as children. “This is an obstacle, let me move around it imaginatively and intuitively…” [as children,] We respond to life in a much more pure fashion.”
How did you come to such a deep understanding of self?
“Before we become disenchanted and jaded by what life is throwing at us, there is a natural way we have of responding to life’s circumstances. Whether its with our imagination or creativity, however. It’s important that we maintain that connection because it allows us to maintain a part of ourselves that is very strong really fundamental and doesn’t change. We tend to lose our focus and get taken off path and learn that other things are more important.”
What triggered your self-consciousness?
“At the age of 18, I became pregnant with my first child. After his birth, I went back to school and found it so difficult to really spend the time with him that I wanted to spend and to take both of us on the journey where I was working a job that I wanted to be in, where I was being fulfilled but also left me free enough to be with him, raising him. And, one day, I got a call from someone who heard me sing in a concert when I was twelve. Asked me if I was singing and if I was interested in auditioning.”
So you did it?
“I auditioned. I was thrown in the deep end with a lot of musicians who were 10-15 years my senior, and I think that that changed me. It made me realize that you can set your mind on having your life be a certain way, and it can happen. From then on I realized that little things were happening when I set my mind to them, when I desired them allowing opportunities to come my way and taking them.”
Taking into account your life experiences, what would you advise individuals to do to?
“I think its more important to focus first on the self and to act from the self first, outwards towards the world and if you are in touch with that and you really know yourself and can be creative and intuitive about how you meet the challenges of life, then I think that life becomes less about a path of challenges but a journey.”
NAME: Sandra Olajide
CAREER: Singer, Songwriter, Author
FOCUS: Yndico Is, the first book of a series, introduces the story of a young girl, Yndico, who struggles to maintain her self-conciousness in a reality that demands
WEBSITE: www.yndicois.com
EDUCATION: Some College; A student of life experiences
CAREER ADVICE: “Be what you are”
ROLE MODEL(S):
“My father. With a grade six education, lost his mother at an early
age, was passed from relative to relative and yet, even though my
mother was absent from our lives, he did his very best, got up every
single day and put one foot in front of the other and did every job he
could to keep body and soul together. He really taught me the meaning
of integrity and having passion, soul, and compassion. He embodies
tenacity; the will to get up every morning, come what may, and feed and
love his children.”
“My children are inspiration to me because I see them and I see life
and if I fail them then I failed life which is bigger than all of us.”
BOOK: “Yndico Is”*
PUBLISHER: Seventh Synchrony
PAGES: 97 (Paperback)
COST: $14.95
AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE AT: www.yndicois.com Amazon and Fred Segal in LA.
*“Ynidico Is” by singer, songwriter Sandra Olajide is the first book in a series written. The second book in this series is to be released in early February. Visit the web site for more on “Yndicio Is” music, video and blog.
STORY BY: Melissa Holloway
The first time I fell in love is a tumultuous story, but unlike Romeo and Juliet or Tristan and Isolde, my tragedy would be one that I survived and eventually thrived from. I was seventeen, and like most girls my age, I fell hopelessly and completely in love for the very first time. This was a difficult period in my life as I was lonely, things at home were tough, and I rarely had anyone to turn to for advice. I was yearning to experience love, even though all I knew of it was garnered from a few romantic movies and an old beat up harlequin novel. I knew even less about sex, and by the time I turned 18, I was pregnant with my first son.
My boyfriend at the time, was my great love, and we had big plans to raise our child together. He was a football star, who had scholarships and offers from agents, who pursued him to go pro. We were both in college and the fantasy we had created of the life we would live as a family was perfect. Looking back, I can now see how the obstacles were stacked against us. Juggling college and the demands of a new baby, the pressure began to get the better of us. His mother became a negative force in our lives, whispering in his ear that I would never amount to anything, and the baby would be nothing more than a ball and chain in his future. That argument eventually took root, and he came home one night and started a massive fight. He had succumbed to the pressure, and as he spewed his mothers venom, I had hoped that he would come to his senses and choose differently. His words were so spiteful that I could only counter by telling him he was free to go if he felt that way. He surprised me by saying that if I wanted him to go, then he would go. He had found the perfect excuse to get out.
He collected a few of his things, but left behind some of his most prized football possessions. As I touched his favorite game ball, and spied his shoes on the floor, I had the sinking feeling of abandonment and betrayal. I had $20 to my name, and even though I was working at the time, I was two weeks away from my next paycheck. He hadn't bothered to leave any money, and I knew that my only choice was to feed my son, while I went hungry. I became angry and frustrated, and in a fit of rage I took a screwdriver to his game ball, and turned all his other belongings into confetti. I trashed them all, like he had trashed my life, and began shaking my fists at the sky and railing against he, his mother, and god. I loved him and I hated him, and I didn't know how to reconcile such conflicting emotions.
Through out those days I cried constantly until I felt completely empty. On the third day I awoke to giant swollen eyes that felt like two huge sticky golf balls. Focusing my attention on my son, I realized that he had been eerily quiet through out my meltdown. Oh my god! What a great baby life has given me. He didn't make a sound for the entire three days unless he was hungry. He is a blessing and he deserves better. He deserves my attention, and my love. A new strength surged inside of me, and I knew that it was time to say "Enough!"
I grabbed the stroller and pushed him outside into a bright spring morning. The sunlight was burning my eyes, since I had spent the last three days locked up like a mole in a hole. Walking past the mailbox, I refrained from checking it, since it would only be filled with bills anyway. I felt good for the first time in a long time, and I wanted to spend the day enjoying my son. Suddenly something made me stop, and I walked back to the mailbox. You know what? I can face whatever is out there, bills or no bills, it doesn't matter. Opening the mailbox, I pulled out two envelopes that were both from the IRS. Ripping one open, I scanned it quickly and as my eyes fell upon the sum of $1500. Peering down at my son, I felt connected to him, connected to my feelings, and connected to myself, and it made me smile. I was in one of the most awful predicaments of my life, and I was smiling. Suddenly a rectangular paper fell out of the envelope. As I leaned over to pick it up, I realized it was a check for $1500. My heart raced as I tentatively opened the second envelope, sure that the IRS had made a mistake and would want me to return the check. Once again, I scanned it quickly, and found a check in the amount of $1800. I was getting a tax refund for over $3000, and as the realization hit me, I was ecstatic.
It dawned on me that I had learned a profound lesson. I had learned the power of surrender. To surrender enough to feel myself, and connect with a force that allowed me to get up and carry on through an incredibly painful experience. I can see now that the circumstances of how I learned that lesson do not matter. Only that I learned the skill that would color my journey through life. Surrender is simple, though not always easy, but once you embrace it, you will be able to connect with your true self.
http://www.bvonlove.com/2009/11/05/she-caught-the-crazy-the-conscious-surrender-of-sandra-olajide/
- Sandra Olajide
"Never before in history have our children needed to be so innovative, creative, soulful, mindful and so intelligent. They will need to draw upon the curious, natural power they brought into the world to fuel whomever they are, and whatever they do!"
- Sandra Olajide
c 2009 Sandra Olajide
