I can only do this in the way I
know. Blurt it out. I need to find some way to express my frustrations.
I NEED to vent. However, frustrations don’t wear me down. I fly above all
my frustrations without being worn out, so in as much as I am tired…defeated…hopeless…forlorn…despondent-
I have my dreams. My dreams are at times almost all the hope I have. My dreams
are not fairy tales, they are my life, so I can’t be defeated.
It’s summer time, like everyone
else I look forward to each day with great optimism and enthusiasm. I look
forward to having outdoor parties - a braai and barbecue every weekend. I can
eat and enjoy some grilled chicken and roasted ribs.
Anyway that is just in my dream
world. In my real world there are no parties. The closest I come to parties is
the sound of loud music from the nearby drinking hole as MC Wabwino’s ‘Ndeo
yayi’ plays in the distant speakers. In my real world summer becomes too hot to
look forward to. My only consolation in summer is that it is the season I look
forward to enjoying ice cream outings. YES summer is the season for ice cream
and bikinis - the reason so many people look forward to it. Well, maybe not so
much in my world. In my real world right now one man aptly called Wynter isn’t
looking forward to summer.
In my dream world Wynter is the
chief executive of a political party that wins election and forms government
immediately creating huge opportunities for it’s citizens economically. More
jobs are created; more money is earned by the people in their wallets. In my
dream world there is robust lobbying by representative members of parliament
(MP’s) for social, economic and legal equity. In my real world, MP’s seek to
have more money in their own wallets only, by moving parliamentary motions for
their own emoluments. In my real world, all the workers are slapped with a wage
freeze.
In my dream world Wynter is the fifth
most loved political person in Southern Africa just behind Jacob Zuma, King
Mswati, Robert Mugabe and Julius Malema. In the real world, it turns out Wynter
is not even popular in his own party which he has been the political number
three for many years as General Secretary, effectively the party’s Chief Executive.
Upon his dismissal as General Secretary, there were celebrations within the
rank and file of his own party. There were even celebrations on social media by
people from all walks of life.
In my dream world, we only
celebrate people’s great achievements and not their dismissals or any other
failure. In my dream world we stick by our friends and even adversaries in
their moments of need. In all fairness, how will it profit a nation to
celebrate the downfall (dismissal) of one man? Will that bring down the mealie
meal prices, high fuel prices or even excessively high electricity tariffs? Will
that bring about the enactment of the much talked about constitution or
suddenly improves social, legal or economic justice? I doubt that. It will
neither bring more money in our pockets nor any other economic empowerment we
so dearly crave for. Maybe all these can still miraculously happen, unless of
course, I underestimated the power that Wynter wielded in his position(s).
In my dream world, faith
organisations and leaders preach the word of salvation, at the heart of which
lie the great commandment, ‘love your neighbor as you love yourself’. The
commandment that asks of us, to be able to look at other people’s situations as
if it were us in the same situations. In my dream world, nuns show compassion
for people in need, people who are lacking and people who are just going
through rough patches like a financial crisis. But in my real world, if a nun
was your boss and you didn’t get your pay because your employer had mistaken
you for a Ghost worker thus you couldn’t pay your rent on time, the nun would
lock you out of the house.
In my dream world violence is not
tolerated. Any type of violence against children, men, women or even animals is
seen as feudal and attracts punishment should a case of criminal assault be
proved. In my dream world there is neither gender based violence, nor any violence
against those generally classified as feeble. In my real world, men beat their
wives as a sign of love. In my real world a man can attack a defenseless nun in
front of a TV crew. In my real world, those with money and power get away with
assaulting everyone from their wives, workers, journalists etc because they can
and because their wealth can protect them.
In my dream world men and women
in relationships are faithful. In my dream world, marriages last for life. In
my dream world, children are protected from all vices and they do not indulge
in early sex or alcohol drinking until at least when they turn 18. In my real
world, men and women in marriage cheat all the time without any remorse. In my
real world, men and women are too proud thus their egos create constant
conflict to live in harmony together and the easy way out is divorce. In my
real world alcohol and sex is the reserve for all ages. School boys and girls
can organize alcohol and sex parties in broad day light. In my real world,
orgies are the in-thing such that even some pastors do three-some with church
members after sessions of prayers.
In my dream world newspapers, TV
stations and radio stations all give us fair and balanced news. In my dream
world news is meant to inform the public of the happenings of a particular day.
In my dream world, TV stations give the most balanced news, entertainment and
education coverage to all sectors of life. In my dream world, radio stations
play the best music and have not only well spoken, but good looking announcers.
In my real world, news is propaganda.
In my dream world, people are
judged on the content of their character. In my real world, it’s the size of
your wallet and the colour or your skin that gets you recognition. Even the
shade of colour pigmentation depending on how ‘more black or white you are’ is
an issue.
In my dream world, you get
recognition and celebrity status for great ideas that lead to great inventions.
In my dream world, people like professor Samson Tembo the Chief Executive
Officer of Inex Investment and the former engineer of Konkola Copper Mines
(KCM), have celebrity status thus are easily recognizable everywhere because
they are on TV every day and grace newspaper headlines every day. In my dream
world, Samson Tembo is one of the most important and recognizable faces because
his project has the potential to generate revenue in the excess of US$ 3 billion annually by extracting fuel from
plastic and rubber plus anything of fossil fuel nature.
In my real world, the recognizable
faces that appear on TV and newspapers include Sulu, Iris Kaingu, Bobby East
and now Juliet Buumba. Yes in my real world you earn celebrity status for
shooting a sex video. In my real world, Kim Kardashian, Iris Kaingu, Ray J,
Bobby East et al, have been thrust to the celebrity hall of fame (edit to read
shame) after leak of sex videos. I only heard a Bobby East song play on radio
after he made newspaper headlines for the leaked sex video. Add to that, the
fact I am yet to really come across any serious music material Ray J has done
apart from the cameo feature on his more successful sister Brandy’s rendition
of the highly successful another day in paradise by Phil Collins. In my dream
world, fame does not come out of the events done in private and for the benefit
of the private individuals but the public things that benefit the public.
Well, enough about dreams, illusions
and reality. Everything I know including my expectations of how events will
turn out comes from my perception of the world, and reality is really just my
experiences. The outcomes of my perceptions and what is real are different and
can never be the same. My dream world is definitely not a consequence of
illusion but an aftereffect of my experiences and expectations. I love both my
dream world and my real world. I am incomplete without either of the worlds. I
live each day choosing the best of both worlds.
