Africans are a very straightforward lot. No matter that we use proverbs that tend to skirt issues on and on before addressing them. We're still very direct and straight to the point. Do you want proof? Consider our dressing before the coming of the Europeans. It wasn't the lack of technology that kept it only devoted to dealing with necessities. No time was wasted on bonnets, tie ups and tie downs. Hidden things were hidden and that was that.
More proof? When was the last time you gave or received a flower as a gift? Maybe it's not been too long ago but that's because you've been an ardent disciple of Hollywood and Disneyland from your days of sojourn in nappies. I forgot to add Nollywood. How creative- an African giving his wife grass for her birthday! What is she supposed to do with them? Cook soup or simply sniff and smell? After perceiving the scent, odor or aroma, what next?
We are a pragmatic lot. But maybe, just maybe, we're too pragmatic. We've relegated, not lost, our sense of wonder and beauty. We think too often in terms of use and monetary value. We hear art and we think of beautiful portraits of famous people. When we see art we wonder aloud why an ordinary drawing should sell for millions of dollars when it's not even fine.
We don't keep things because they are old or have been in the family. We keep things that have value or are useful. Pets are kept to be useful, not for their intrinsic values. We build our houses and structures to be useful. Beauty isn't top on our agenda and wonder is usually absolutely missing from the menu.
While I am neither castigating our culture and value system nor advocating that we throw it away and get another, I still think it's healthy to pause, breathe easy and wonder. I think it's okay to want to create wonders that will appeal to the heart even if they don't appeal to our sense of use. Art must not be fine, literature must not be lyrical, science must not be practical and technology must not be useful. I think it's okay to let ourselves create wonders even when we don't know what they will be used for.
Because of endemic poverty we usually seem primarily concerned with how much money any new venture will generate. Even God has become a tool. It is okay to do things that will stir the heart. The heart is both a better friend and a more useful tool than the pocket. It's okay to love and act because of love, even when the results seem farfetched. We don't need beautiful sunrises and pretty sunsets. The sun need not go out in grand style. You don't need all the stars in the night sky. The twinkling of the stars isn't also a necessity. Too much paint was spent on the skies. Too much time was spent drawing funny and lopsided figures with the clouds. You don't need the beauty of flowers (yes, flowers). The mountains need not be so finely cut and chiseled. God may have taken a degree in fine arts. The leopard could make do with less spots and the time used to paint his spots on would have been used for other things. And then there are the changing pictures in the clouds that look different whenever you look at them. Mountains look like wrestlers and forests look like open chests. There is an enigmatic beauty in creation that doesn't cater to your needs. This beauty does not have much practical use. It just serves to keep your face smiling and your heart mesmerized. That's the word. We tend to forget too quickly how to be mesmerized, just like little kids.
Paint your skies excessively. Slow down, breathe easy and wonder. Then create wonders.
More proof? When was the last time you gave or received a flower as a gift? Maybe it's not been too long ago but that's because you've been an ardent disciple of Hollywood and Disneyland from your days of sojourn in nappies. I forgot to add Nollywood. How creative- an African giving his wife grass for her birthday! What is she supposed to do with them? Cook soup or simply sniff and smell? After perceiving the scent, odor or aroma, what next?
We are a pragmatic lot. But maybe, just maybe, we're too pragmatic. We've relegated, not lost, our sense of wonder and beauty. We think too often in terms of use and monetary value. We hear art and we think of beautiful portraits of famous people. When we see art we wonder aloud why an ordinary drawing should sell for millions of dollars when it's not even fine.
We don't keep things because they are old or have been in the family. We keep things that have value or are useful. Pets are kept to be useful, not for their intrinsic values. We build our houses and structures to be useful. Beauty isn't top on our agenda and wonder is usually absolutely missing from the menu.
While I am neither castigating our culture and value system nor advocating that we throw it away and get another, I still think it's healthy to pause, breathe easy and wonder. I think it's okay to want to create wonders that will appeal to the heart even if they don't appeal to our sense of use. Art must not be fine, literature must not be lyrical, science must not be practical and technology must not be useful. I think it's okay to let ourselves create wonders even when we don't know what they will be used for.
Because of endemic poverty we usually seem primarily concerned with how much money any new venture will generate. Even God has become a tool. It is okay to do things that will stir the heart. The heart is both a better friend and a more useful tool than the pocket. It's okay to love and act because of love, even when the results seem farfetched. We don't need beautiful sunrises and pretty sunsets. The sun need not go out in grand style. You don't need all the stars in the night sky. The twinkling of the stars isn't also a necessity. Too much paint was spent on the skies. Too much time was spent drawing funny and lopsided figures with the clouds. You don't need the beauty of flowers (yes, flowers). The mountains need not be so finely cut and chiseled. God may have taken a degree in fine arts. The leopard could make do with less spots and the time used to paint his spots on would have been used for other things. And then there are the changing pictures in the clouds that look different whenever you look at them. Mountains look like wrestlers and forests look like open chests. There is an enigmatic beauty in creation that doesn't cater to your needs. This beauty does not have much practical use. It just serves to keep your face smiling and your heart mesmerized. That's the word. We tend to forget too quickly how to be mesmerized, just like little kids.
Paint your skies excessively. Slow down, breathe easy and wonder. Then create wonders.
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