‘TOMORROW’ AND OTHER FAIRY TALES
When I was much
younger (some 30+ years ago), I was talking with my (cousin, whose age
difference made me call him) uncle, he asked what I’d want to be by 25. “rich”
was my short but sweet answer. I told him I was gonna be a millionaire by 25.
While I’m very sure Uncle Graham has forgotten this conversation that happened
in our grandma’s living room, it has always stuck with me and acted as a kind
of motivation (and weirdly enough, assurance), convincing me that if by the age
when I didn’t understand the complexities of the world, I had already stated
that I would be a millionaire by 25, then why wouldn’t it happen?
‘Tomorrow’ and other fairy tales.
Some years ago, when
I was crazy in love, overdosed on (pre-cocaine) Bruno Mars and dreaming of
everything I will do for this girl and our unborn children, we often made the
egregious and common error of talking about what we wanted from ‘our’ future.
We promised each other the world, everything
in it and everything out of it (Radimene, you still owe me a daughter). We were
so sure our ‘tomorrow’ would come to fruition and it will bring with it
everything we had promised ourselves.
‘Tomorrow’ and other fairy tales.
“Tomorrow waits for
no man” is one of my father’s favorite quotes, usually followed by “you’re not
proactive”. Coming from a man who basically lives for doing things at the last
moment, it didn’t really sting as much as it should have, but eventually, I got
the message.
James 4:14 sums it up
when it succinctly reads “ye know not what tomorrow will bring”.
“Tomorrow is not
promised”. I grew up Nigerian and Christian, so I have heard a million variants
of those phrases.
Even recently,
amongst friends, when I hear them talk about the future, I always tell them
it’s arrogant talking about ‘tomorrow’ as if we subscribed for life and are
sure of it. As if we were in control. As if we aren’t all just a speck, an
insignificant blip in the run of things. We talk about the future like we
matter. We ‘plan’ and organize like one pandemic can’t shut the whole world
down. We talk about tomorrow like we have a smidgen of control how it pans out.
‘Tomorrow’ and other fairy tales.
If you were to ask me
now what I planned for the future, my honest answer will be finishing from
Bells, going to Europe the earliest opportunity I have and never coming back.
Seems I’m yet to
learn.
‘Tomorrow’ and other fairy tales.
