I’m Alive!
A colleague phoned yesterday freaked out because there is a dead body of a vagabond lying a short distance from their offices somewhere close to the Grain Marketing Board in Eastlea. Today the body is still there and has apparently started to stink and bloat. The police have for some reason been stalling on collecting it. My friend thinks it’s a bad sign for starting the year.
Another phoned to complain that after struggling all of last year to raise enough money to go and pay lobola for his girl, she has suddenly decided she wants a little more time to achieve a few goals before she can commit herself. Another bad sign perhaps?
Having a positive mindset seems to be a crucial ingredient for survival this year. As long as some things remain unchanged, situations promise to get worse. I find that appreciating the little things in life is good place to start, speaking of which, one kind hearted lady, a work colleague’s mum – sent me a bottle of scented anti-bacterial hand cleanser all the way from DC. That little bottle has become one of the most treasured contents in my sports bag in these times of cholera.
This year I don’t know how others are doing it but I just can’t seem to get enough bus fare to take me to and from work by public transport. Everything simply doesn’t make sense and Zim dollar cash is getting more and more slippery. Frustrated, I’ve just taken to walking whichever routes I can and thankfully, my 5km work route is one of them. The walk is not all that pleasant but is made bearable and less lonely by my trusty Ipod mini coupled with the ability to tell myself this is critical exercise. My butt already feels a tad firmer. The only downside so far is that in unfriendly weather, your water-resistant watch succumbs to the rain.
However, listening to music while I walk is like having a conversation with the artists. Some I disagree with while others I believe should stick to the subject of love because they just don’t know what the hell they are talking about. Among some interesting conversations, Bob Marley talks about the ‘Guiltiness’ that characterizes the lives of politicians whom he refers to as the ‘big fish who always try to eat down the small fish.’ He says, ‘Guiltiness rests on their conscience. They live a life of false pretence everyday. Each and everyday. They would do anything to materialize their every wish.’
Almost suddenly, Celine Dion jumps in and screams ‘I’m alive!’ Which I think is the important thing left when there is nothing else much you can do about the situation around you. That is why I’m going to thank God each day I’m alive this year because it’s nothing short of a miracle under the circumstances. In Zimbabwe if you can still enjoy a few pleasures of life, it’s only decent to be thankful and enjoy them to the fullest.