See Finish

The Death of Mystery

Photo by Nadine E on Unsplash

There’s something about familiarity that dulls the shine of even the brightest things. The first time you hear a song that moves you, it feels like magic. By the hundredth time, it’s just background noise. That’s see finish in action.

For the uninitiated, see finish is that Nigerian phrase that captures what happens when people, places, or experiences become too familiar—too known. It’s when the mystery dies, the novelty wears off, and what once felt extraordinary now feels ordinary, even unimpressive.

It happens in relationships: the person you once admired deeply is now the person whose messages you sometimes ignore. It happens in friendships: the same ones who hyped you in the beginning now barely clap when you win. It happens in careers: the job that once excited you now feels like a slow death.

See finish is what happens when we stop valuing what was once special. It’s not always because the thing itself has changed—it’s because our perception of it has.

One of the biggest victims of see finish is respect. When we get too used to something, we stop appreciating it. We take it for granted, assuming it will always be there, always be available, always be “fine.” We forget the effort it takes to sustain what once felt magical.

That’s why relationships fall apart. Why friendships fade. Why careers plateau. Why some of the most talented people remain uncelebrated in their own circles. Because when people feel unseen and undervalued, they withdraw—sometimes physically, but most times, emotionally.

So how do we fight see finish? By choosing to see—to actively notice, appreciate, and nurture what we’ve come to take for granted. By resisting the urge to let comfort breed complacency. By treating the people and opportunities in our lives with the same care we did at the beginning.

Because sometimes, the problem isn’t that something has lost its value. It’s that we’ve stopped looking closely enough to see it.