THE HAVEN
“Whenever you are to do a thing, though it
can never be known but to yourself, ask yourself how you would act were the
whole world looking at you and act accordingly.” LETTER THOMAS JEFFERSON
1785
This is one
of the greatest quote I have come across on motivation and behaviour. The quote
suggests a world where, every one of our actions are driven by an internal
motivation. It outlines the belief that what you do every day is for your good
in the near future. You do all things in the same way as if the whole world is
watching. It also supports an attitude of doing and being good anytime. This
quote reveals a world where individuals are held responsible of their behaviour,
accountable and morally upright. This is the haven we want to live in. A haven
where discrimination (racial, tribal and social), social injustices, bias,
corruption, abortion, mass action, eviction, theft (robbery and vandalism),
domestic violence, inequitable distribution of resources, ignorance, HIV and
AIDS, immorality, idleness, police brutality, taking advantage of others,
selfishness, jealousy, pride, vengeance, condemnation, accidents,
irresponsibility, judgment, greed, fear and suspicion among other words will
not be in the nation’s dictionary.
When all
the vices are dealt with, virtues manifest. This is the haven. Comradeship is
the haven that the world desires. This is a place of mutual agreement. The
haven will only come when all of us take responsibility of human maladies and
stop blaming others. The haven is a world of integrity.
Blamelessness,
innocence, perfect, incorruptible, responsibility and merciful, will form the
vocabularies of the haven.
In regards
to the haven we shall delve into several issues that are to be addressed before
arriving here. These issues include but not limited to:
i.
Promotion of a reading culture - read until you read. I will quote
William Channing on reading and its benefits. “It is chiefly through books that we enjoy intercourse with superior minds…in
the books, great men talk to us, give us their most precious thoughts and pour
their souls in ours. God be thanked for books. They are the voices of the
distant and the dead and make us heirs of the spiritual life of past ages.
Books are true levellers. They give to all, who will faithfully use them, the
society, the spiritual presence of the best and greatest of our race. Reading
activates and exercises the mind. It forces the mind to discriminate. From the
beginning, readers have to recognize letters printed on the page; make into
words, the words into sentences and the sentences into concepts. Reading pushes
us to use our imagination and makes us more creatively inclined. It activates
the mind as muscles are activated by weight lifting. The more active our minds
are, the more agile they become, which results in higher levels of creativity”.
Reading and only reading of relevant materials will free us from the captivity
of poverty. The country must invest purely in sophisticated systems of
information provision and dissemination. Information that is applied becomes
power.
ii.
Promoting a Purpose Driven Living - raising a generation that
understands their place in the development of a nation. Each individual realising
his role and performing it. A talent based academic system will ensure
efficiency and effectiveness in careers and professions. Energy will be channelled
through the right structures thus creating a strong nation. Creativity will be
ensured because everyone seeks to remain in his/her area of calling.
iii.
Promoting Practical Leadership
(Centurion leadership) - leadership by example is a principle that will forever bring people
together. Election of leaders who have in the past made contributions in
boosting community welfare must be enhanced. A record of past victories,
contribution, solutions and development, should be a platform on which leaders
give their promises. This kind of leadership will be an antidote to
selfishness, pride and malice. Leading as an example can only be enhanced by
reprogramming our minds. “Weighing the
promises made versus past development,” should be the philosophy adopted in
order to avoid being cheated and wrongly influenced.
iv.
Raising a Patient Generation - Rome was not built in a day is a
famous English sayings that calls for patience. It takes time to breach the gap
between a chronic problem and providing a lasting solution. Strategies that
fail should be set aside paving way for productive ones. You don’t fight
corruption for example by killing all corrupt individuals; you raise a
generation that upholds integrity. This kind of generation allows everyone to
demonstrate their thoughts. The thoughts are weighed against the desired outcome.
After weighing, logic and practicality of the thought are used as a benchmark.
If it is logical or practical, it is absorbed, if not it is discarded.
Strategic planning will be one of the greatest tools of a firm nation. This
will involve counting all the costs before building. Having a blueprint of the
desired haven.
As children
of God, arriving at the desired haven will take our initiative. A lot of time
spent meditating on comradeship will see us as this haven. We are children of
God. We must remain united, peaceful and loving for us to inherit our Canaan (a
land full of milk and honey). That land is available. If we decide to inherit
it, we have it.
My
conclusion is simple, “You are a social
organism. You cannot do without others.” Imagine this scenario; you wake up one morning
and you find all people gone. How will it be, what will you do?
We are
Children of God, we need each other.
