Ambitions, Aspirations and Wannabeism

"Dad, I want to be a pilot!"

Dad stares at the kid, does a mind-scan and instead of being the dream killer he almost was becoming, says, "Yeah Junior, you're gonna (drive?) the biggest aeroplane on earth!"

Kid smiles back, and goes out to play... Dad remains wondering at how many times he has heard that and always – more or less always - failure hits back at his face with a bang...
On some beaten path somewhere, a daughter with a pink ribbon and a ‘flower’ in her hair, with beautiful bright eyes and with deep dimples smiles at her mother. Her mother tenderly looks back at her and asks inquisitively, "What is it!?" The daughter chimes her lips, and hiding the smile a little, while brittling it with a bit more of enthusiasm in her voice replies, "Mom, [pause], you know um gonna be a great woman one day. And mom, when that time comes, I want to drive a big car; then um wanna [imitating one of her TV show ‘role models’] build you a berra-place-of-stayn with dad, then um gonna get married to a man I love, [pauses again], and give birth to (bouncing?) babies..."

Her mom intensely looks at her with shovelled tenderness, holds her hand, and goes something like, "You know my daughter, life is a long journey in which God is the main determining factor... We are only stewards of what He lends us... may it be as you pray..." And they continue with their journey to wereva... The ‘now’ life has to go on, right?

Realistically, children have a way with wanting ‘futures’ and parents have a way with wishing them on... Two goals in life that intercept at a place called HOPE... Yeah, two dreams in life edging at a place called HOPE... and that is why any parent willing to give an answer on parenthood will tell you, “Parenthood is an oxymoron which only those in it can define the edges therein...”

Parents are small gods, with the ability to see things in a different way... Parents have witnessed the rise and fall of their children's dreams - one day they really are gonna be one thing, and the next day, oooooops! All is down. Pathetic. Parenthood is an oxymoron. Really.  
I don’t remember dreaming of being anything at all “when I grow big” during the days of my childhood. Call me whatever you may, but I am just telling you the truth.

I don’t remember - in the slightest way – me day-dreaming as most kids do today, of one life or another when I grow up. Nope. Maybe I was one lousy fellow who worried more of ‘today’ than of what tomorrow was beholding for me then. Maybe I just wanted to be something I didn’t really know. Maybe I was less interested in being anything at all. I don’t know. Do I have to anyway?

But I still remember, when I was 8 years old, my dad telling a neighbour of ours how I was gonna be a journalist. To say the truth, that sounded cryptic. A journalist? It was a joke to me. I lived wondering what journalism was all about, and why my dad – of all people – had to think that I was fit for such a career. I ‘researched’ (I was 8 years old my friend) and all I came up with was that journalism was all about newspapers, radio, TV... bla bla bla... it sounded like uphill punkiness to me then.

I am not trying to make journalism a lesser career, but that it just didn’t fit in my mind. In fact I think I can do better in journalism than in Science and IT.

My dad (and later within that age bracket, my primary school head teacher) thought that because I was a good ‘reader’, and that I ‘read every little thing I set my eyes on’, it was good enough to make me a ‘news dude’... Maybe they were wrong. Maybe they were not...

In High School, I had several life markers to give me the direction for my career choice, but I still never came up with a good reason to believe in one particular career. Maybe I never had good mentors to point me towards my goal and passion, or it may just be because I never gave it a deep thought – a teenager cares less about the future and he/she would rather die in the present than live in (or imagining) the future. So because I was one, becoming ‘anything’ did it for me.

With a tiny and short stature, I was prone to being ridiculed and left knowing that I could not fit in any career, anywhere in this nation. I thank God that I didn’t have a low self image/esteem even with my sopranoish voice while joining High School... I thank Him that although I didn’t have the urge to become ‘anything’ career wise or generally in life, I somehow had a blurred vision of what HOPE could bring me by... So High School went... And now here I am talking to you about how much you think of your goals, your ambitions and your future. Here I am inspiring you to make the ‘you’ you want for ‘you’ and others. The ‘me’ who knew not what I wanted to become now wants to get you tuned in to your goals... I never had the opportunity to get ‘informed’ by someone (or anyone), but because you have it, I request that you utilize your opportunities well...

Listen...

Everyone of us has potential. We all have the potential to become anything we want to be in life. Anything my friend.  I know it. Everyone has potential to Make it or Make It as Jimmy Gait puts it. Let me help you understand some few things that can help you (and me) Make it or Make it...

Fact Number One – If you can see where you are going, then you are halfway there

Because I could not see where I was going, it made my life harder – searching all over until I now have my feet somewhere in my twenties is not impressive. I was not goal oriented, so I lost a lot of time wandering on the basis of nothing.

A man (and woman) who sees clearly (and we need to do exactly that) obtains courage and might to get to where they are going. Seeing the fruition of your ambition makes you strong enough to bind yourself to it even when all else is not working. Are you gonna be a good friend/husband/wife? See yourself as one, then you’re gonna be one... That is it!

Fact Number Two - God has given us equal chances and opportunities in life

Ecclesiastes 9:11 says, “I have seen something else under the sun: The race is not to the swift or the battle to the strong, nor does food come to the wise or wealth to the brilliant or favor to the learned;

but time and chance happen to them all...” According to God (or if you like, God et al), we need nothing more in order to become all we dream of... Success is not limited to a few. Success before God, is the language and right of all. He has given it all to us: 2 Peter 1:3 says, “His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness...” We may love making excuses about where we came/come from, the ‘links’ we have with influential people, and all that yada yada, but TRUTH has it that we have all we need (by the glory, strength and power of God) in order to prosper. We can make it, and still make it, no matter what...! God’s got it in us!

Fact Number Three – We can’t become what we want to be (or what we are meant to become) unless we believe

Faith in self and faith in God are great driving forces for our goals to become true; or else we will die with ‘goals’ that never became a reality. And that is sad. We will become the tenant in the Bible who hid his talents and waited for his master to come back – never putting them to action or trade – and you know what happened to him... So, are you ‘a make it or make it’ person or a ‘wannabe’? Do you believe in yourself? Do you believe in God?

What fails most of us is the strong urge to become what other people are. We are more of ‘cut-and-paste’ people than we are creative. Imitating our role models is a good thing, but overdoing it makes us lose the sweetness in being your own brand. Fact is that whenever we fear being our own brands, our purpose on earth is tarnished and our ability to accomplish what we were designed for by God dies with us... and stops us from making a difference in the world we live in today...

Fact Number Four - Don’t aspire to become a ‘wannabe’

Don’t be a worshipper of others’ ideas; try to create your own.

Don’t be a shadow of others’ way of doing things; become yourself.

You may not change some parts of your week-to-week interactions with people or community, but aspire to do something different somewhere. Start becoming ‘you’. It may not be easy, but it is always worth it... You will attract more admiration from people by being yourself. So just be yourself because that is who you are and should be!

Fact Number Five – You need people along the way

A partner will need his/her fiancé. He/she will need support and encouragement.

A wife will need her husband and vice versa. A child will need his/her parent/guardian.

A Christian will need brethren. A pastor will need his congregation and leaders.

A student will need his teacher and a teacher his/her students. An employee will need his boss and colleagues. A leader will need his subordinates, and those subordinated will need one another. A businessman will need his/her clients and/or partners. A musician will need his/her team and the team will need each other's contribution. All of us will need family. All of us will someone or some people around us. You will need the right people to link up with. Remember that old saying that ‘birds of the same feather flop together?’, yeah, you need people with the same mind and ideas as your own around you – God will bring them along your way, so use your opportunities well...

You should always know that you can never succeed without people – both critics and your cheering squad. They matter in making the ‘you’ you want to become... Also remember that we are social beings who can only THRIVE in a community (as Pastor Lindah [Mavuno Church] puts it).

As you put the above facts into consideration, say this with me...

I wanna be all things I can be

I wanna be all that God created me to be

I wanna be more than what I wanna be

I wanna be nobility

I wanna be a brand of newness and quality

I wanna walk around, and sing around

Talk around, and pray around

I wanna be one and many things to men

And all that I wanna be before God...

I wanna be because God’s gonna make me be...

God bless you.

Go out there and MAKE IT or MAKE IT my friend!

Morris.

Downtown Devils

She is innocent. She is herself. She is so innocent that her innocence screams all over the place. You can almost touch it. It yells. It yells the moment you see her. The innocence is a font of its own. She can be described well in terms of flowers and calm coast breezes. Her fragility is like the flowers of lilies by the riverside. It is like the breeze I desire in the noonday. Her fingers are small. And thin. And fragile. They are thick-thin. Just a little bit thin, but with tweaks of ladyishness. Her nails have no paint. Not that paint will spoil their natural feel, but that it will tarnish her statement. She has a statement - a statement I can see. A statement I can feel. You can see it in her eyes. In her eyes. Her eyes are tormenting because they remind you of a beauty you don’t often see on this side of the world. They are bright. They remind you of stars. They remind you of when you met Jesus. How He looked straight at you and revealed you. She is plain. You can see it in the way she moves her hands. The language of her body is not deceptive. She is sure of what she says and does. You can be sure of what she says. The movement of her lips reveal meekness. Mildness and meekness. I’m not falling in love. No. I already fell in love with another. I’m just describing her. Her dress says a lot about her mama and her moral code. It says that she only knows two languages: “Mama said” and “Teacher says”. Her weakness is impressive. You will admire her the moment you see her. Even tempted a lil’ bit. You can see her 'cheapness'. A cheapness you can’t buy. You somehow become scared of touching this innocent thing. She has ambitions and goals. She narrates them with passion. They are not all ‘potatoes-soup-and-rice’ thing. They are real stuff, dude/dudette...!
He is confident. He walks in a relaxed way. He doesn’t sway from side to side. He is so sure of himself that he makes you quiver a lil’ bit. He is not that masculine but is promising. He is a lot more than what I commonly see. Perfect. Composed. Well intended. Uncommon. I love uniqueness. And he has it. He is still ‘green’, but not foolish. He is a daddish kind-a guy. He has a heart of a rock. He ain’t a fad. He is real. He is not a freak. Girls can be sure that he keeps his word. He still apologizes when he does wrong. He knows how to control his temper. I tested it. I broke his best gems and voila! He just looked at me, felt like yelling, but later smiled. Cool. I don’t find that everywhere. I can assure you of that. He is principled. Takes good care of himself. Doesn’t move around too much. Dude is cool. Damn coooool. Did I mention he goes to church quite often? Even prays in private and lifts up his hands in Worship? Mhhhhhh...
Just until...
Downtown mania strikes. Until bleakness jumps over the fence and offers a ride. And mummy+teacher-so-and-so is forgotten and becomes trash material. Damped in the bin. Kanjo stuff! Until the rules are changed and tables go upside down. Until I don’t know nothing about anyone anymore. Until words are lost and tempo and pitch are out of control. Until the music loses life and rolls into emptiness. I can’t dance anymore. I can’t dance. I can’t yell to no tune. Life becomes a bad song. A bad core. Volcanoes are better. Life strikes in downtownism like a bug. Dirty, infectious and itchy! Music is sweet when you can get its next chord, but when it flops, it becomes tasteless. It edges into blankness. Even darkness. And dark music is as bad as that porridge I used to drink somewhere. You drink it but without liking...
I don’t know what happened. Or what happens. I don’t know. But I’m trying to. I don’t know what crawls into the innocence and surety. I don’t know. Really. Those fingers just change; and the perfection fades. The fragility is stolen and bitterness engraves a once pure soul. Things do happen, I say. I blame it on devils. Yeah, they should be devils. Downtown devils. They should be devils that creep stealthily in the night seeking for innocent blood. They should be opportunistic devils that grab and transform innocence into a stupor of madness. They should be working underground in some pinky labs. They should be vampires too – which bite and transform... Grrrrrrrr! They should be some ‘Team-Jacob’ or ‘Team-Edward’ kind-of creatures... that silently but steadily haunt these ‘Bellas’ until all they see is “I need to be like Edward”. Grrrrrrr! Again! Downtown devils. I get a paleness of the mind here. One smart creature, normal and thriving gets changed overnight with a flip of the page. I see Bebo Norman’s song ‘A Page Is Turned’ in a different wild perspective here... I don’t know... I think we should kill the devils. Why should they keep tormenting our lives’ layouts? Why should they keep diminishing our hopes and ambitions and keep stealing us? Why should they keep enslaving us? Afterwhile we may dance again to the right tunes... to the tunes of life made in the stars and hanging in beauty, over glory... And watch the flowers blossom... And watch the rocks shine with polishing and not afraid of the sun anymore... And drink the wine of purity and enjoy the moments of surety... I think we should kill the devils... or render them useless...!

So remember...
The world never turns around overnight without us knowing,
Nor do the stars dance in the night when we can’t know,
Life never whizzes songs or tunes we can’t comprehend,
Nor does it offer choices we can’t deal with;
There is always an escape avenue or an entrance to every place in life,
Whence you entered, you can come out,
Whence you sang and danced, you can mourn,
The road is two way – there is going, and coming forth,
Only the going comes forth; and only the coming forth causes meaning...

Sincerely,
Morris.