I am my own choices
Welcome to September, the beginning of spring to many. A season characterised by birds chirping, flowers blooming, love sprouting, longer and warmer days/nights. It is a new beginning for many hopefuls and lovers of love and everything beautiful. It is a new beginning for young souls and those young at heart. It is a time where everyone exhibits traits of starting afresh, traces of old flames that were almost obliterated by woes from since the year began getting rekindled. The air is filled with hope, joy, laughter and new beginnings.
Welcome to September, a month most South Africans dedicate to everything cultural and colourful.
We showcase our diverse heritage in many ways. Through our bright colourful attires, to our diverse form of dance and song. Our voices can be heard from many miles away when we are gathered in song and celebration. We give wholeheartedly, love endlessly and unify in song and dance.
I should be more than song and dance. I should be more about celebrations that are more inclined towards achievements beyond my cultural comfort zone. I should be financially stable, I should be financially savvy/educated. I should be educated and speak languages understood by the world. I should be able to communicate business, diversity, progress, connectivity, collaborations, development and investment without having to be shy/turn my back on my cultural upbringing.I should be more than a man.
I should be vocal on matters relating to women abuse, ill-treatment of the elderly, the injustices faced by the defenceless, the young girls and the less educated.I should be all this and more because I believe in the core values passed on to me by my grandfather from his grandfather, who in turn got it from his forefathers.
I should be all this because I understand how creating new cultures without losing track of old ones can help change my world for the better.
I should be all this because I am a young man who believes we need more young&old men who will stand up and be good examples to those who have lost their ways and forgot their ways.Those who have never knew affection, motivation, encouragement and support.
I should be part of a generation that is looking for and implementing solutions that will rid our communities of all that is currently inconveniencing everyone.
I should be all this and more because I too once never had anything. I know the pain of being limited. I know the difficulties of not having that male figure to talk to, guide and look up to. The frustrations of rejection, condemnation, being cast aside or undervalued, I know it all too well and am not afraid to admit the destruction it can cause to a young man trying to make it out of the location/rural area/difficult conditions.
I pray for the day where we will face our challenges head on, without favour or discrimination against each other for all the mistakes we have made and the time we wasted having fun instead of building towards our tomorrows.
I pray for a day where we will create a culture of unity and prosperity. Where friends will advise each other against bad behaviour/habits and the importance of knowing how to save for tomorrow.
There will come a time where we will unit as men and face our shortcomings and help each other see the impact of our destructive ways.
Instead of condoning bad behaviour, we are ought to be encouraging each other to learn from each other's success, no matter how small our victories are. If we create and promote good habits from an early age, we will eventually raise a nation of even greater men, greater leaders, better men.
"We are our own choices"
As a man, you can not dream of a million rand house and not start working towards building it now. You will not wake up to your dreams without putting effort towards making them a reality. Old habits are hard to kill, best you start forming good habits that will see you prosper instead of habits that will tear your future into tatters. We all want a better life, that life begins with:
(1) Accepting your current situation.
(2) Having a drive to change your current situation.
(3) Rekindling your passion for what you are good at.
(4) Asking the right questions, knowing how to adapt and knowing the relevant people who can help you get your life back on track.
(5)Being determined and disciplined to see yourself through. Determination and Discipline are everything.
"We are our own struggles..... A stumble in your path should not be the end of your journey."
