These are hard times; “Times that try men’s souls,” as Thomas Paine
said in ‘The Crisis’. We are working at our jobs harder than ever. Salaries are
being cut or delayed as companies struggle with the economic climate. Parents
are faced with uncertain incomes and increased fees at nurseries to
universities. Bosses, landlords, suppliers, contractors and school proprietors
are less tolerant as they too suffer financial strain. Transport fares are up,
fuel prices are up, fuel supplies are down, debts are piling up and jobs are
disappearing fast in previously top industries. Na wa o!

At times like these, many turn to sources of comfort, inspiration
and spiritual appeasement. I read a passage from a religious inspirational book
called ‘Don’t be sad’. One of the strategies the author proposes to prevent
depression is to accept ourselves wholly as we were, and in our behaviour to be
like ourselves and not someone else. It seems a simple advice. Yet, while
ruminating on it, my mind started exploring diverse paths and directions.

It occurred to me that if you are yourself and you accept your
strengths and limitations, you will not try to “betta pass my neighbour” or
spend unwisely in order to “keep up with the Jones”. If we accept our cuisine
and not try to eat like Westerners, we would only eat freshly made meals, or
proteins preserved by deep frying or salting and drying. We would eat a heavy
meal in the morning if our work involved manual labour, or a heavy meal at
midday for everyone else. And we would eat something light before sunset for
dinner.

We would also almost always eat in company and not in solitary
isolation. We would wait for the ‘food is ready’ sign, indicating freshly
cooked food, at roadside bukkas and not buy ‘food has been ready since last
night’ fast food. We would eat fried chicken but without the artery-clogging
batter that coats so many of them. We would rarely eat rice and cereals,
focusing instead on staples from cassava, yam, millet, and other naturally
occurring roots, tubers, leaves and vegetables. Seasonal fruits and vegetables
would form a regular and desirable part of our diet. Our local cuisine is good,
varied and healthy.

If we do not try to live and work like people from other cultures,
our occupations would reflect roles beneficial to the health and prosperity of
our community.

Everyone would play a role. These days, it is often hard to see the
link between our jobs and quality of life benefits to self, our families and to
our communities. Often, the benefit goes to individuals or organisations
outside the various boundaries of our lives. How does our work touch us, other
than in terms of remuneration? What role do you play in your wider family and
in your community? And in our lives, happiness would be measured by the number
of close and healthy family members, caring friends and cordial relationships a
person has; not by the number of air-conditioners (this is debatable!), cars,
entertainment systems, designer watches, trips abroad, houses, etc.

Giving back

Yes, material possessions provide an environment of ease and an
appearance of success. Yet, even as those things bring us pleasure, they do not
make us happy. The rich tend to be less happy than the poor. There is so much
mental and physical stress, and battling with one’s conscience, associated with
sustaining a high standard of westernised living.

I am sure the abject poor will ask us to taste the mental and
physical stress and battling with one’s conscience associated with the daily
struggle to find a meal, and shelter from the elements to sleep in!
Traditionally, wealth and happiness are measured in the wealth of
relationships, both in number and in quality. In the number of devoted wives (I
don’t agree o!) and obedient children to farm one’s land. Happiness can be
measured in the sight of children making themselves useful by running errands,
and the sound of them playing happily; in the sight of a breadwinner returning
home triumphant after playing his or her role in the community; in the sound of
cooks singing cheerfully around the fire or in the kitchen; in the comfort of
desultory talk or animated debate during a shared meal.

A family friend recently lost her husband, a person dear to us all,
and someone compared the aftermath of the tragedy here to the aftermath in the
western world. The steady stream of family (and old and new friends) coming
through her home, supporting her in day-to-day tasks, providing listening ears,
and shoulders to cry on. For those who seek solace in company, the community
response was humbling and uplifting.

The ‘good old days’ are not generally as good as they are remembered. Yet,
there are many great things about the ‘Way we Were.’ Start patronising local
seasonal fruits today and use that to promote the health and prosperity of
yourself, the farming community and the nation.