The Tribune

EDITOR, The Tribune.

If you live long enough, you will have a story to tell.

Life is a mysterious gift to some, an adventure to others, and for many a dismal ride that ends in a series of losses that can seem to be meaningless at times. Many of these experiences are not just the narrow thoughts of those who lived them but are in most cases the unfiltered facts of individual lives that propel some to glory and leave others in the dust.

Several of my fondest memories were those of when I was a child. Back then I knew nothing but that was okay. The only dreams I had were about the kind of games that I would play tomorrow, or which beaches my friends and I would venture on throughout the day. I am thankful that I can reflect on my childhood. Those thoughts still make me smile whenever I need one. I never knew how treasured that phase of my life would become until I grew up and the rainbow-coloured view that I had of this world began to fade.

A wise man said once that with “much knowledge, comes much grief”.

It seems like the further we go into the depths of this reality, the more our eyes begin to open up, and we behold the naked truth about everything that we ever thought we knew.

One year you are on cloud nine and the next year you’re being sucker-punched from every line on the modern compass. Then, if you survived that ride you get to live another year of having to deal with the anxiety of the same things happening all over again. Yippy!

Growing up can mean questioning the validity and intentions of others that you have known all your life. It can also mean having unwarranted reservations for those you’ve just met.

Growing up can mean building a wall around you so high to protect your heart from being broken, that at the same time you become ignorant of the fact that you’re making your own soul a prisoner.

What this year especially has taught us is that most of humanity is truly uncivilized. Some may appear to be civil or in instances collectively show care and concern for others when the occasion calls for it or the cameras are rolling.

However, many have found out this year that whenever the backs of men slip, when the vanity or religion that some hold dear to themselves are threatened, even those who you would assume to but the most humble of our kind can turn into monsters.

It can be a frightening thought to finally realise like many have had to recently that the world is a very scary place; and guess what? You live in it!

It’s what we call life, and whatever our individual experiences or opinions may be; the ultimate goal of each and every one of us is to preserve it; to stay alive.

I remember while lamenting on some heartaches that I was experiencing; a friend of mine told me that if I were to “appreciate and love the sweet things in life, shouldn’t I accept the sour as well?”

His words made me think about my attitude towards what I felt to be the better experiences that life offered me versus the ones that I wished had never happened. I learned that all I had faced up to that point, every high and low; even though very painful at times they all were meaningful events in some way that gave character to my existence.

I later found out that he stole that quote from the book of Job but nevertheless, it changed my view on things and made challenges a lot easier for me to deal with. Though the words of that text may appear to be blunt and insensitive to the plight of an individual, it is a truth that knocks at the core of our purpose for being here.

If you live long enough you will realise that nothing lasts forever. Even the most terrible times will eventually fade away at the same speed as the good times.

The best advice that I can give to anyone who is experiencing a season loss, death, or tragedy is to try to Stay Alive. If you live long enough you will eventually outlast whatever season comes along, including this one.

DELROY MEADOWS

Nassau,

November 28, 2020.