By Pearson Mbendera
We see the world the way we want to, no two people see the situation the same way. But just because we see things, doesn’t necessarily mean we see them for what they really are, our perception makes our reality but sometimes, maybe it is the way with see things that hinders our progress.
Things haven’t been working out well in Zimbabwe for quite some time now. But despite all the hardships that the average Zimbabwean is facing or has faced in the past, we have all managed to live our lives as best as we could (given the circumstances) and with time, we have looked back at the hardships we have faced and managed to share a laugh or two with our loved ones. Every time there is a crisis in Zimbabwe, it seems as if it affects us for a little while before we manage to make fun of it, lie about the situation or at times, put everything in the hands of the almighty.
For progress, or rather a positive development or an advance of the human society to take place, people have to move away from the place they are currently stationed at and go to a better place and this movement is usually necessitated by a discomfort derived from staying at the former position. But how can that discomfort be felt when people have blinded themselves with likes, humor and faith.
Lies, humor and faith are just some of the tools people use to cope when things don’t go their way. And at times, these tools deceive the people as they find inner peace in the midst of a chaotic environment like the one Zimbabwe is currently under. It’s all part of our belief system.
The downside of that belief system is that, we do not wait to see things to believe them; we believe them to see them. While this sounds good, it means that we believe in the imaginary over reality, that no matter how bad things may be, we may not see them as our eyes will be blinded by some belief of a better tomorrow, a better tomorrow which will never come unless we work for it.
It’s like kids believing in Santa Claus, while this makes them like the Christmas holiday more, it takes away the real truth behind the presents, which is, mom and dad bought them and they didn’t come from some fat white-bearded guy in a red suit. This Santa Claus belief, however a joyous Christmas invention, is still a lie, and a clear indication that people are more interested in the stories behind and not necessarily in the truth. That believing in something mythical is more important than what things are on the ground.
With lies, humor and faith, we can all endure lives and live to the best of our abilities, but it is in believing the gory details of reality that has seen people develop their lifestyle over the years.
Our eyes have long been opened, and we cannot go back. The moment Adam and Eve realized they were naked, they couldn’t go back to walking around the Garden of Eden naked because of what they knew, and it was because of that discomfort they felt that made them hide and think of making cloths out of tree leaves.
Believing in these things means we have taken our eyes off reality. Let’s stop indulging the fantasies of our lies, let’s see things for what they really are. Good or bad, let’s take it all in, rather than putting on some blinkers, from then on can we pursue the progress that we really need.
But as Ernest Renan, a French philosopher had noted, “What is human life? Is it not a maimed happiness—care and weariness, weariness and care, with the baseless expectation…of a brighter tomorrow?” Should life be simply the BASELESS expectation of a brighter tomorrow? Personally I don’t think so.
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