Are you real? Are you what you believe you are?
People say you can’t be a leader. They say you are not wise. Leaders should be wise. You are not influential. Leaders should be influential. You are not famous. Leaders should be famous. You are not creative. Leaders should be creative. You are not humble. Leaders should be humble. You don’t forgive. Leaders should forgive. You don’t understand the needs of the citizens. Leaders should understand the needs of the citizens. You are not social. Leaders should socialize with everyone. You don’t listen to people’s advice. Leaders should listen to people’s advice. You dictate everything. Leaders should not dictate things. You are filled with hatred for other tribes. Leaders should not base their judgements on tribal lines. Who are you? Are you what people say or are you the opposite? If you aren’t what they say then you have my vote for the next election! You know who you really are than anybody else living on earth does.
People say; you can’t make it in school. They say you don’t have a dream. They say you have no plan at all. They say you don’t spend time on your books. You don’t seek knowledge from others. You don’t hustle to finish your studies. You don’t listen to your instructors. You don’t meditate on your learning. You give up so easily. You don’t attend classes. You are indiscipline. You disobey every rule and regulation of the institution. What is the truth? If all those are not the truth about you then ignore them and move on.
Everyone says you don’t appreciate the success of others. You only see yourself as a successful person on Earth. If someone graduates, you hate it so much. Someone is doing very well; you can’t congratulate such a person. They say you work hard to pull people down. You want everyone to fail in life. They speak better English than yours, you hate them. They lead better than you, you hate them. They are more organized than you, you are jealous. Others can do many more great things than you do, that pains you a lot. Instead of trying to reach where they have reached, you just want to bring them down. Are all those sayings about you correct? If they are correct, well and good. You have what to think about? If they are not, then ignore them. What others say about you can never be what you are.
You are spoken about over all the country that you live by revenging. You can’t accept any apology. You call an apology an insult. Someone killed your relative 50 years ago. You want to kill the relative of that person. Someone steps on you; you must step on him/her. Someone break your cup. You must break the cup of that person. Someone has insulted you, you must insult that person. Your friend mistakenly loses your clock. You need a brand new clock. Your needle is lost. You need it back without any further delay. Revenge is evil. They say it is your life. Do you agree or disagree? Think about it. What you think you are is what you really are.
They all say that you steal behind your partner. You are married but you still have secret relationships. You have secret communications that your partner doesn’t know. You have a secret profile that your partner doesn’t know. You have a strong password that your partner can break. You can just disappear and no one knows where you go to. You attend some parties that you don’t inform your partner about. Are you accused? Think about it. What others say which you don’t do doesn’t make you what they think.
This may be a prejudice. I have no idea. But you know it well. They say you are selfish. You can’t share anything with anyone. You can’t give food to those who starve. You are very knowledgeable but you can’t share your knowledge with people. You are skilful, but you keep it for yourself. You forget you are born to serve others. You have good life. But you can’t make others to have good life like you. You hear about an opportunity, you can’t inform the person who needs it. You give scholarships to your relatives alone. There are for trainings and workshops, the information about them must only go to someone of your interest. In your mind, you know whether you are selfish or not. Be real.
They say you love money too much. You can’t sleep without talking about money. You left walking with people because of money. You have left your family just to protect your money. You don’t answer any incoming call from any new number thinking that may be a person asking for money. You can’t take your children to good schools just because you think your money will finish. You cannot eat good food. You cannot buy good clothes. You cannot renovate your old building. You cannot receive visitors. You don’t have so many friends. Your friends are those whom you know can pay you back. You forget that money works well for you when you still live. Money does not bury anyone. Money does not cry for you when you die. Your money won’t attend your funeral. Money is not bad but the blind love of it can bury you alive. People may be accusing you. You know which is which.
All over the place, everyone says you are irresponsible. You have family but you cannot take good care of it. You have a lot of resources but you don’t know how you can manage them. You have a big land but you can’t cultivate it. You have rivers with enough fishing grounds but you can’t fish. You have food on the table, but animals come and eat it before your eyes. Your children are fighting, but you cannot manage to separate them. Your house is dirty but you can’t clean it. Your clothes are very dirty but you want someone to wash for you. Things are getting out of hand in the house, you are just quiet. Your children are not going to school and you treat it as normal. That is what they say about you but what do you say to yourself?
This must not be true! They say you are lazy. Your work is to beg. Every time you need money, you think of approaching a big person in his/her office. It is WFP providing food to your family. You want others to make things work for you. You go from office to office asking for help. You need to pay for your education despite being a person with children you go to someone else to pay. Your excuse is that there is insecurity in the country. If life can’t be safe in your own village, where else can it be safe? If people could still survive during the years of liberation, why can’t people survive today when almost everything is fine? Is this true about you or is it an allegation? You know the right answer.
They whisper among themselves that you are a betrayer. You almost betray everyone you have a deal with. Your sweet words are your bitter words at the end. Your business is selling people to enemies for no reason. Judas Iscariot betrayed his Lord for 30 silver coins. You betray your community for money. You betray your nation to other nations just because of money. Someone is murdered; the report tells you to betray the person. Someone’s money is looted, you must have connected. You don’t sit down with any news; you must take it to the destroyer. That is what they whisper around. What do you say?
They also say that you are against peace living in the country. Your interest is war. You want people to die. You think with war you can easily corrupt. You think with war you can easily become a leader. You don’t think about the lives of the innocent people. You don’t see the drastic effects war has brought into the country. Children go hungry each day. War caused it. Many children don’t go to school. It was war which caused it. Many good citizens are living as refugees in other nations. Without war, they could not be there. There are no many health facilities in the country. All was because of war. There is no development in the country. Don’t you know it is because of war? What should really be pushing you into being against peace prevailing in the nation? I believe what they say is not true, but you know it more than I do. A person with human heart cannot be against peace.
People can speak anything behind your back. The big questions are: What do you say to yourself? Are the people correct? Is it true what they say or is it false?
If you learn that what people say is never what you believe is true about you. Then you are safe! Your next task is how you can respond to what they say. Some of us can take a big gun and start firing at them. No, the solution is to never care about what people say behind your back if you never believe it is true. Be kind to yourself.