BY MUSYOKA NGUI
In today’s world where people are busy with many
things, priorities tell what one values and what they don’t, even if they claim
to.
Sometimes, a funny
joke is told to pass a serious point, although this may be taken out of
context.
Jokes can be very
subjective and cultural sensitivities are required to be observed. Some jokes
are too in-house that what’s funny may be hard to decipher for others.
There is a reason for
all things that happen in this world. Nothing is for nothing.
Vai sere wiserasya.
This Kikamba proverb can be loosely translated to mean every effect has a
cause.
But truth is, with the
dawn of digital technological advancement, people have become mean and
inward-looking.
Often, I bump into old
friends and new acquaintances. We have banter, we laugh, and we share stories.
But days later, months later or even years, they call.
Others complain that I
didn’t call them first. They say, wina namba yakwa na ndwinguniaa simu (You
have my number and never call). But they
also forget they also have my number and do not call me.
So the net effect of
that is that we all got busy with other things and claiming I am the one who
dropped the ball on my side of bargain is very unfair and ill-motivated.
To their credit, we
may have different clocks and may be free when others are busy or we are busy
when others are free.
But understanding that
fact may provoke arguments which have a with-all-due-respect prefix.
In other instances, I
am the one to blame.
I rarely take
prisoners and will be keen on flagging duplicitous conducts that appear
well-meaning but in the broader analysis, they are selfish and
narrow-interested.
This world has becomes
so ingrained in what’s-in-it-for-me perspectives that people don’t care about
others even if they have a history of benefiting from the latter.
Right thing
But still, there are
selfless individuals who don’t do things to be noticed or applauded. That they
are doing the right thing is enough motivation to take hours fixing it.
Owning up one’s
mistake is a great step in having better engagements going forward. Especially
when the error is meant to improve the relations of the parties involved.
Unfortunately, some
puff up and question even the most good faith intentioned gestures.
At all times, it is
great to stand up to bullies and let them know that there are boundaries that
they cannot cross.
People who regard
their own time better than others’ cannot differentiate between public and
private needs. They just want their own interests to override that of the
better good of the communities they are in.
Luckily, with the
advent of mobile apps, these insights can be quantified and qualified in
real-time. Some people reach out when they are in need but won’t help others
who helped them when they were desperate.
What they cannot admit
is that they are enslaved in deep self-pity and self-aggrandizement and they need help to see the bigger picture
and read the wall that big is not always better and small may be subtle,
nuanced but yet pass a point that a big and hollow can’t.
It is worth it. It is
worth helping others and welcoming others to help those in need. Likewise,
never bite the hand that fed you.
