IF humans had the power, they would freeze time as doing so would mean halting aging as well as the vagaries that come with the ticking of time. It would mean those in power could press the pause button and stay in power for eternity.
When humans achieve their summit in this journey called life, they become selfish and yearn for infinite and unmovable moments for themselves. They infuse themselves into the current moment and indulge in its invincibility and eternity. This is because power is sweet and protective. They stop or slow down anything that leads to their aging and demise. They also freeze any external threat and solidify the inner safety in the comfort of power. They create traffic jams.
Power drives the world, but time travels with the earth and its orbit. That is what separates human aspirations from natural modulations. Anything that moves, edges and anything that grows ages into demise. So does anything that lives. That there are ticks of time in our lives despite our reluctance to accept that ours on earth is like a tick of a second in the broad scheme of things which is why it should be important to create a happy environment for everyone.
But then this is the power we are talking about. It is not power if it is centralised. It is not power if it creates an arena of happiness and an ambience of hope. Power must be felt, feared and obeyed. It must stifle, shut all doors of progress and opportunities and blinker the people into its course — courses of control. There should never be doubt on who is in charge and who will be in charge as well as who is being controlled and governed. Doubt is the void that should be prohibited in the spaces of power.
Age and time are the most certain threats to power no matter how much it deceives and stupefies the people. When the gruesome moment of anxiety and demise arrives, it is an irreversible moment into the next door — an unretrievable journey that permits the new generation to step in, occupy its space and open its own chapter in the space of life on earth. Yes, life is about that — we go in to get out and time helps us to create space for the new generation. We start young and end old before we bid farewell to our time.
The last phase of life tends to be replete with regrets of missed opportunities to be happy and to make others happy because of intoxication with power. Unfortunately, when we step into that phase, there is no going back. We can only see the past and drool over it via the mirror of life — that is our memories as regrets about what we did not do right haunts us. That is part of the purpose of memories. To reflect.
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To the generation of today, there is always a chance to learn from the mistakes of the older generation. Life lived together in happiness, is a happy one. Do not be like the past and current crop of this world’s leadership. Their politics was coated with games, interests and power which has scarred the world we are handing over to you.
They have caused many wars today and allowed carbon emissions to cause climate change, both of which are burning this earth. The earth now needs repair and so does the styles of life you will live after we are gone. The forests we found and grew up in are also gone, thanks to the appetite for cash and modernisation. Maybe you can start growing your own.
Perhaps instead of waiting for age to take its toll, you could start moving into your positions and run the world. It is not impatience; it is simply pushing aside an old generation that is torching your future ablaze out of greed. It is your season to launch your revolutions and take over power. Push the old ideas of the past into oblivion and preserve your world. There are enough villages in the world to retire old ideas and their people. Maybe they too can start growing trees in the villages.
Even those of our generation that tried and failed are exhausted of repeated odes of political treachery. We believed, relived but were deceived. Our veins and muscles are drained of the mojo and the oomph to battle. Our toyi toyis did not coy them out of power. We are emotionally exhausted and retracted to the political terraces of subjugation. We traded freedom for safety even when it meant safety in poverty and destitution. We let you down.
Our hope is that at least we get to witness the accomplishment of what we failed to achieve on those who oppressed and impoverished us. Allow us the chance to bask in those moments of change and transformation. Maybe we can die holding on to the feeling of infinite happiness as we prepare to zoom into our own ages of eternity. As you do so, remember time does not stop. You too will be aging and edging out the space called life. Time will continue to tick — ticking you out of the orbit of life.
Tapiwa Gomo is a development consultant based in Pretoria, South Africa. He writes here in his personal capacity.