I am a dreamer and relish those rare moments in life when I can drift, like a cloud, to a space of stillness. It’s during this time that I visualize my personal life and that of my people. My thoughts do not always roll steadily off my tongue and I risk seeming like a marijuana infused thinker who magnifies the world in blurs. Pardon my idealist nature, but the optimist within me refuses to die.
I see Africans as capable of being an enterprising people, who embrace life, the past, present and mould the future. I imagine people who make things happen instead of being victims. Drowning in pools of possibility, they navigate life with a positive attitude that nourishes the consciousness of their reality. These are knowledgeable people who pattern their lives in a fulfilling manner. They have a firm grasp on their lives and become family people of value, bringing into the world, children they will model into formidable individuals.
Africans have long been people of many weaknesses because of their self-instilled ignorance and destructiveness. Many Africans nurse an inherent poor self-esteem which limits advancement.
An acquaintance of mine once joked that “Africans exist, go through life paying tax and watching life move before them.” We laughed this off. This statement is pregnant with truth.
I am critical of tradition for the simple reason that is doesn’t accommodate transition and makes little room for enlightment and new knowledge. The conservative, mediocre living in the box it silently propagates isn’t conducive to modern human development. I say this as many African’s thinking patterns are moulded on “traditional” beliefs and ideas.
Many cycles have to be broken, the first being poverty. The friendship Africans have with need and struggle is pathetic. We can work to live comfortable lives. This requires a change of attitude towards us, society, environment and money. Though it does not buy happiness, money gets comfort. I’m thinking pursuing wealth-from our ideas, intellects, investments, viable businesses etc. More Africans can own mines, factories, multi national enterprises. We can do this without carrying out a holocaust against Jews.
Money and self are the two greatest investments. When one is financially, emotionally, physically and spiritually at ease, balance becomes simpler. This allows one to pursue more and find value and fulfillment in life, intensely savouring experience, the environment and anything else the natural world has to offer.
Institutions like the family, school, community, church etc must feed young people knowledge that makes them open-minded individuals. Instead of the morality crumbs and primitive ideologies they are gagged with. Young people can be taught a new way of living. We are in a new-age of living, almost at the peak of civilization. The enterprising Africans must nurture their lives like a plant, from the roots. Africans have to be on par with the continent’s developments and the dreams they have for themselves.
As we work to change our condition, I am reminded of a Malcolm x quote I hold close to my heart, “To help yourself, you must respect, educate, improve and protect yourself. Attachment to alcohol, drugs and sexual promiscuity, material goods and short-term rewards are just a new form of slavery. Liberation comes with health, education, responsibility, financial independence, family stability and community service.”
