By Babafemi Ojudu
In the run-up to King Sunny Ade’s 60th birthday—which I had the honour of sponsoring and organizing—I visited him in his hometown of Ondo. Accompanied by Chief Tunde Odunlade the artist and curator as well as Mr Dele Morakinyo , we spent time with him exploring his remarkable collection of musical memorabilia, spanning decades of his legendary career.
As we were leaving that day, I noticed several outshoots of the yellow, foreign lemon tree growing in his compound. I collected a few seedlings along with some fruits and took them back to my country home in Ado Ekiti, where I planted them with hope and expectation.
Years passed. The trees grew tall and green—but never bore fruit. I often wondered what had gone wrong. A friend with some experience in fruit cultivation suggested the trees might not have been genetically engineered to produce fruit. Disappointed, I eventually took a machete to most of them, cutting them down. I left only one standing, just to provide shade—the only value I thought it had left.
Today, nineteen years after I first planted it, I arrived at my country home to find that lone tree bearing fruit for the first time. Lemons—bright, beautiful, and bountiful. As a lover of lemons, the joy it gave me was indescribable.
There’s a powerful lesson here.
Never give up—not on people, not on your dreams. What appears fruitless today may simply need more time, more patience, more nurturing. Sometimes, results take longer than we expect. But if the seed is good and you care for it, growth—and eventually fruit—will come. Be deliberate in your persistence. Be faithful in your hope. Keep showing up, even when it feels pointless. Time has a way of rewarding quiet perseverance.
Next year, when King Sunny Ade turns 80, I plan to harvest these lemons and make a special lemonade in his honour—what a fitting celebration for a man whose music and generosity have nourished so many lives.
Incidentally, I was once a direct beneficiary of that generosity. In 1977, as a final-year secondary school student, I received a scholarship jointly provided by Chief Gani Fawehinmi and King Sunny Ade after a rigorous competition. My tuition then was ₦100, and it was paid through their kindness.
That fruit, too, bore out in its time.
Senator Babafemi Ojudu is former Special Adviser to ex-President Muhammadu Buhari on Political Matters
