The Boy with a Calendar in His Mind: Celebrating Siju Olawepo, Nigeria’s 9-Year-Old Time Genius
In a world brimming with extraordinary talents, some gifts defy logic and elude explanation. Such is the case of Siju Olawepo, a remarkable 9-year-old pupil of Carol School, Agidingbi, Lagos, who possesses a rare and unexplainable genius: the ability to tell the day of the week for any date in history, or the future—within seconds, without ever consulting a calendar.
Meet Nigeria’s very own calendar prodigy, a boy whose brain appears to function like a precision timekeeping device, spanning centuries with effortless ease.
For a long time, Siju’s extraordinary gift went unnoticed. Neither his teachers nor his parents grasped the depth of his talent—until one day, a curious pattern emerged. He was constantly requesting blank sheets, obsessively designing calendars—future calendars. His ICT teacher, Mr. David Ugiomoh, initially dismissed the drawings until he decided to compare one of Siju’s hand-drawn calendars with an actual 2023 calendar. The results were perfect, every single date aligned.
From there, an informal test turned into a series of awe-inspiring moments. Teachers, staff, and even journalists began throwing random dates at him. October 2, 1983? Sunday. January 1, 1990? Monday. December 25, 2030? Wednesday. He answered with speed and accuracy that stunned everyone present.
Siju’s head of school, Mrs. Bola Adeaga, recalled her own disbelief: “He quoted the day of my birthday in 2019 without blinking. We had to sit down and test him thoroughly.”
“I Just Know It”
When asked how he does it, Siju offers a simple but baffling response: “I just know it.” There’s no trick, no formula, no device. He claims it comes to him instinctively, as naturally as breathing. And though neurologists have yet to examine him, his talent borders on what science might call savant syndrome—a rare condition where individuals display profound abilities in specific areas, often with little formal training.
Despite his brilliance, Siju is grounded and full of joy. He draws, sings gospel songs by Tope Alabi, and knows the names of nearly every student and teacher in his school. He walks freely into offices to remind timekeepers to ring the school bell—showing that he not only understands time but also lives by it.
A Gift Almost Missed
One of the most moving aspects of Siju’s story is how close his gift came to being overlooked. His mother, Mrs. Funke Olawepo, shared how she used to collect his calendar sketches and put them aside. “He kept trying to show us what he could do, but we didn’t really look. We just didn’t know what to look for,” she admitted. It wasn’t until the school called that the full picture came into view.
“We owe him an apology,” she said with a smile, “but now, we’re proud and committed to supporting him fully.”
Interestingly, Siju’s dream is not to become a mathematician or a physicist. He wants to be an horticulturist, someone who plants and nurtures flowers. His love for nature reflects the gentleness of his personality: brilliant, vibrant, and ever-blooming.
Siju does not just calculate time, he reminds us that it is time to believe more in the genius that lies within every child.
