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MUST READ: Phone Rules For Couples

PHONE USE RULES FOR COUPLES:

1. Don't make a habit of putting your phone on silent mode or turning it off each time you're with your partner. It makes you look like you are hiding something

2. Save your partner's phone number using a special title like "Hubby", "Love", "Wife", "Sweetie". Or save using a title plus the official name. Using the official name only makes your partner look like just the other contacts on your phone

3. Answer your partner's phone call with loving affectionate words like "Hi love", and "Hey honey". How a conversation starts determines how it flows. If you start warm, you two will enjoy talking with each other on the phone

4. End the talk on a high. Say "I love you", say a joke, a compliment, a warm phrase before you hang up. Hang up with a smile

5. It is OK to chat with friends online. But never chat with another person more than you chat with your partner

6. If you will be busy, notify your partner you will not be able to pick up calls or reply to texts promptly. Inform your partner what you will be doing and approximately for how long. This prepares your partner and brings peace because your partner will not feel ignored

7. Flirting on phone is good but only flirt with your partner

8. Tell off people who try to flirt with you, entice you, and charm you on phone. Let them know that you are taken

9. Take lots of photos and videos together to capture moments. You will need those pics and videos in the future as you look back
MUST READ: Phone Rules For Couples
MUST READ: Phone Rules For Couples

10. When you go out on dates, keep the phone away, and minimize phone use so that you focus on each other

11. Don't make a habit of walking away from your partner to answer phone calls. Your partner will perceive you are hiding something or having an affair. Love is about perception

12. After the date and you don't live together; man, call her up and check on her, tell her you got home safe; lady, send him a text, thanking him for a wonderful time

13. Unless it's an emergency when you can't reach your partner and you probably know he/she is at work or doing something; don't keep calling and texting desperately. You will only look like a nag to your partner and that will make your partner detest phone contact with you. Relax, your partner will see your missed call and text

14. When you see a missed call or text from your partner, please call back or reply as soon as you can. Put your partner at ease

15. Save your partner's phone number as an emergency number to be contacted in case something happens to you and your phone is locked

16. Avoid fights and arguments over the phone, they are difficult to manage and leave a bad feeling when you hang up, thus negatively affecting how you two relate. Talk about serious issues that are volatile face to face

17. When your partner offends you or you two aggravate each other, never refuse to pick up your partner's phone call. That only makes matters worse. Keep the line of communication open so that you work things out. If you can't talk at the moment you are hurting, just pick up the call and say "I can't talk right now" and your partner will understand

18. Inform your partner when and why you need to turn off your phone when you two are apart. Keep your partner from worrying

19. When you two are having fun together, it is good to celebrate your love online but don't post too much about your love life. Some things are best kept private. The world doesn't have to know every detail of how you love each other

20. When you two are having problems, don't vent about your partner directly or indirectly on your social media posts

21. Don't let your partner get news about you from social media like your online friends. Tell the news to your partner first, and then post it online

22. If your partner tries calling you but your line is engaged, explain who you were talking to. If someone calls you when you're with your partner, say who it was. Transparency and clarity enhance trust

23. Remember it is your role to communicate. None of you should feel he/she is forcing a conversation or is doing much of the talking. Communication takes two

24. Put away the phone when your partner needs your undivided attention, especially in the bedroom. Don't be intimate, holding your phone, more than you hold your partner

Phone use can affect your relationship/marriage negatively or positively. Be smart as you use your smartphone.

One Minute Please The Longest Minute in Accra

It was a hot Saturday afternoon in Accra. The sun was shining like it had a personal grudge, and the whole town was waiting at the church for one thing Kojo and Akosua’s wedding. The pastor had already wiped his face three times, the choir had run out of songs, and even the flower girls were eating their own petals from boredom.

Meanwhile, back at the house, Akosua was in front of her mirror, applying her 13th layer of makeup. She looked stunning, yes, but time was running like Usain Bolt.

Kojo, her poor groom, was standing by the door sweating in his tuxedo like someone who owed ECG. He looked at the wall clock and shouted,
Akosua We’re late oo! The pastor is threatening to go and do another funeral

Akosua, without blinking, replied in her sweet voice,
One minute please
Then continued carefully brushing her eyelashes like she was painting the Mona Lisa.

Kojo held his head. Ei! One minute in Ghana woman time is one hour in real life

Outside, the best man was pacing, calling every 10 minutes:
Bro, has she finished
Kojo whispered back, She said ‘one minute 45 minutes ago

Back at the church, people started whispering:

Maybe she changed her mind

No oh, maybe she lost her shoe

Or the makeup artist is still contouring her ancestors.

Finally, Akosua appeared at the door like a queen stepping out of a music video. Kojo, half-dead from panic, smiled and said,
Let’s go before you remember you need to fix your necklace too

They arrived at church almost 2 hours late. But when Akosua walked in, the whole church gasped in awe.

Someone in the crowd said,
Ah well, beauty takes time. But next time, marry her in her sleep. That's when she won't delay

In Ghana, when a woman says One minute please, just sit down, drink some sobolo, and wait like you're queuing at DVLA

Dear Parents and Teachers: A Heartfelt Plea on Behalf of Our Daughters…. By Esomnofu Chidiebube Ifechukwu

If you are a parent—especially of a girl child—please, I beg you, take special care. I am not in any way suggesting that boys don’t deserve our attention; they absolutely do. But let’s be honest: female children mature faster—emotionally, physically, and mentally. And because of that, they often face unique vulnerabilities at a much earlier age.

I’ve been teaching for over a decade now, and from my earliest years in the classroom, especially in senior secondary school, I observed something deeply troubling. You walk into a class, full of passion and commitment, ready to teach mathematics or any subject—and then, midway into your explanation on indices or algebra, a hand goes up. But instead of a question related to the topic, you hear:

“Sir, I like your trousers.”
“You look handsome today.”
“Are you married?”
“How old are you?”

These are not academic questions. They are signs. Signs that these children are at a sensitive stage of self-discovery. Their minds are searching for validation, attention, affection—even if they don’t understand it fully. And without the right guidance, they may seek it in the wrong places.

That is why parents must be vigilant—not overbearing, but intentionally present. Don’t just buy clothes, pay fees, and think your job is done. Talk to your daughters. Guide them. Warn them. Watch them. Be their safe space.

And to my fellow male teachers, I speak with a heavy heart: not every compliment is an invitation. Not every glance is a green light. You are not just a teacher of subjects—you are a teacher of values. Be disciplined. Be responsible. These girls are not temptations; they are someone’s daughter, someone’s hope, someone’s entire world. Please, don’t be the one who ruins that world.

If we fail to mentor these girls with integrity, we risk handing them over to a world that will not be as merciful. Let us raise them with wisdom, not leave them to figure life out through regret.

Because when a girl child stumbles—especially due to the silence or failure of the adults around her—the scars often last a lifetime.

Please, let’s do better. For our daughters. For our conscience. For the future.