NAME: Nimatu Sakibu

ID: 10957247

Course Code: EDTE304

Date: July 7, 2024.

Self-Reflection Essay

In this write-up, I am going to take you through one of the painful experiences I
once faced on my journey through life. Life, as they say, is full of surprises and
lessons. At the end of my writing, I am going to narrate my painful experience, my
self-reflection, strategies I took to overcome that experience, lessons learned, and
a message of hope.

During my first year at the University of Ghana, Legon, on one early morning to
campus, I boarded a taxi in which there were two men plus the driver, and I was
the only female in the taxi. To me, those men were passengers, and to my
surprise, they were a bunch of criminals. I ignorantly sat in the taxi, heading to
campus. Immediately, I sat down, and the man sitting beside me wore his nose
mask so that I wouldn’t recognize him. When I got to the junction, the driver
intentionally locked the door and told me to open it. I struggled with the door, but
the driver kept distracting me. At that moment, the guy sitting beside me opened
and took my smartphone from my bag. Everything happened so fast that I did not
know what they were plotting. After taking the phone, the guy alerted the driver,
and he opened the door for me to go out. Imagine that at that instance I saw the
guy taking the phone out. If my bag andI tried to struggle with them to take my
phone back, I would have been stabbed or they would have hurt me physically. I
realized it took a while. I got down, and I intended to take my phone out, but my
phone was gone. This was my experience; I was traumatized because that was my
first time being attacked or robbed by men, and I started to recall all that
happened behind my back. I was so scared and worried and wanted to take back
my phone. I was not thinking at that moment. I took a tricycle to follow the taxi,
but to no avail. This experience was painful because I failed my online test, which
I was supposed to do with my phone. At the time, at then I had no laptop and was
a non-resident.

When I reflected on it, I found out my weakness, which was trust. I easily trust
people because when I saw the men in the taxi, I thought they were passengers,
and they spoke to me nicely, and I did not mind that there are people with evil
intentions with a fake smile.

I overcame this experience bycalming myself down so I could think straight

because I did not know how to inform my mom about it. I spoke to some of my
friends and finally told my mom. My mom scolded me for being careless and also
thanked God that those men did not do anything bad to me. This was how I tried to
get out of what I was going through at that moment.
My self-reflection on my experience has taught me a lot of lessons, including how
to limit the level of my trust, handle my valuable items with care and be vigilant,
and not ride in a taxi full of men. A lesson has been learned and is never to be
repeated.

I want to conclude with my final message of hope to those who have gone through
this experience or any kind of experience. Mine would have been worse, but I was
saved. Self-reflection is not about dwelling on the past but about learning from it.
Remember that every self-reflection is an opportunity to rediscover yourself and
learn from it. Self-reflection is not a sign of weakness but a sign of strength. It is
because I have reflected on myself that I was able to discover my weakness and
work on it. When you find yourself in such situations, calm down. Talk to close
friends, family, or anyone you trust who can help you solve whatever you’re going
through. Never let your past experience prevent you from working on your bright
future.