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Feb. 8, 2008 I’m relaxed on my comfortable couch. The air-conditioning is working full-tilt, and my sitting-room is chilled to almost arctic proportions. I shiver as the cold starts to get to me, but I’m feeling too lazy to get up and adjust the temperature to a more comfortable degree because, the remote is hanging on the wall, all the way over on the wall, which might as well be the north-pole the way I’m feeling right now. Instead, I burrow into the many throw pillows the couch is festooned with, trying to catch some relief from the relentless cold. I have a bottle of fruit wine open on the snazzy little side-table, some of the content which I have poured into a glass and sip from time to time. My 50 inch plasma TV is on and CNN is showing. I can’t hear anything, it’s on mute but, from what I can see it seems another suicide bomber has struck another middle-eastern target and I wonder when the violence will end, brothers killing brothers. The picture changes and I see from the moving text that this one is about Kenya, more violence as youths brandish matchetes, brothers killing brothers. Upset, I pick up the TV remote, which is conveniently on the snazzy little table, next to the wine glass, and channel-surf till I land on E!entertainment.Ookaay,I think a bit dubiously, the perfect antidote to mindless violence-mindless celebrity worship. I am instantly inundated with a plethora of celebrity trivia .Right now, it seems the subject matter is, “10 most memorable swimsuit moments”, and I watch with a kind of sickened fascination, wondering what any of this has to do with the price of tea in China. I watch ‘celebrities’ flash expensive dental work, some teeth so blindingly white they look unreal, very similar to those always, maniacally, grinning ventriloquist dolls whose excessively white and large teeth take up half their faces. Now, the subject it seems is, “celebrities with the 25 most sexiest bodies”. I watch a parade of in-your-face fake boobs,which despite the best efforts by the best plastic surgeons always manage to look about as real as the rock of Gibraltar. The door opens and my cousin walks in, clutching the evening paper. I ask her to hand me the remote hanging on the wall, and she starts to chuckle as she spies me nestled deep within the sea of throw pillows, shivering. I snatch the remote from her, and put off the air conditioner altogether. Then I grab the paper to see what’s good today. My cousin points to the TV ,and in a frankly disgusted tone asks me what I’m doing watching this drivel, then she sinks into the nearest arm-chair and is soon staring at the TV with a sickened fascination.Now,I’m amused. I open the paper, P.M.NEWS, Tuesday 5, February, 2008.page 10.and instantly, a picture jumps out at me .I read the caption under, it says,” most kids sleep in the open in Lagos, as captured under the bridge in Oshodi” I instantly sober, little boys curled up on the ground, some on tables, and on wooden planks over the gutter, God only knows the kind of mosquitoes feasting on their unprotected bodies, poor kids, Literaly. Two boys in particular grab my attention; they are huddled together for warmth and look so pathetic I’m moved to tears. Suddenly, I’m ashamed. Here I am, in my comfortable home, watching a show dedicated to the elevation of the ridiculous on my 50 inch plasma TV, sipping my wine , and here ,not far away are young children, little boys ,who do not even have a mattress to lay down on, no food ,no one to help, no one who cares. Angrily, I grab the remote and put of the TV. My cousin blinks a couple of times like one coming out of a trance, looks at me and sees that I’m no longer happy. She asks if everything is okay and I point at the picture.Confused, she reads the caption underneath and as she reads I explain to her that I feel guilty that I have so much, yet, these kids have nothing. I want to do something to help them, it would only take a little from me, from her ,from others, which would go a long way to put these children in a home , a stable, healthy environment, a school, give them the sense that someone cares, some hope for a decent future. All it takes is for one person to make up their mind to do something, and then actually start something. I’ve decided to start a charity to help homeless people, especially, young kids. I want to know how it’s done. I really want to make a difference in the world-because I know I can. I want to shine my little light. Anyone who wants to pitch in can contact me. Anyone with any good suggestions can also contact me. All it takes is one person. Already, I feel so much better. Giving back, making a positive difference, this is what really matters in life. ------------ About the author: Akunna Ejim is a writer, a poet, a singer and a motivational speaker. I have book out called ‘Destiny Becomes Me’ available on Amazon .com and Barnes and Noble. It’s an inspirational book of poetry. Email: akunnaya25@yahoo.com Comment on this article here! ------------ All articles are EXCLUSIVE to Useless-Knowledge.com. Please link to this article rather than copying and pasting it onto your site (which would be unauthorized and illegal). |
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