Monumental Castles In The Air

Memories serve to remind us of past experiences and to warn or caution us on what to look out for or what to avoid in order not to repeat past unpleasant event or to take advantage of opportunities. Sometimes our memories fail us to the extent that we have to go through unnecessary hassle again. At order times, memories serves to the effect that we escape painful repercussion or consequences. Which ever has been the case; lessons are taught and learnt by all for the benefit of mankind. If don’t mind, let us share some of our childhood experiences for a start.
We all run errands for our parents, elders and guardians while young. I was sent on one such errand one day when fortune gave me one vast substantial smile. I was going and playing with a ball of orange when I caught a glimpse of a round shinning metal object on the ground. What could that be on a grass land in a bush path? On the impulse of the moment I dashed back to satisfy my curiosity and … what did I see? Holy Moses!! Dear readers, I found a sparking coin of one shilling, the equivalent of today’s 20 kobo in a world of my own without a soul around to contest it with me. I was beside myself in joy and tucked it right deep down in my knickers inner pocket. I immediately resolved never to disclose my find to anyone. I lost count of how many times I touched or felt my pocket to make sure the coin did not disappear or get missing. You must know the effect of this catch on my psyche, but so you can appreciate it, let us convert this one shilling to its correct purchasing value. One shilling contains twelve pence and one penny was enough to buy one loaf of bread, several balls of beans cake, two sticks of pencil or two pieces of eraser. It was such a large sum of money for a teenager!
At a stage, I was afraid that if I was found with the money, I could be accused of stealing, but I also feared that my guardian will take if from me if I told him. To be on the safe side, I informed a friend of mine with whom I spent the money for a long period of time. My friend was faithful as he too did not let it known to anyone. We had a wonderful time devouring one shilling! Did you call it twenty kobo? I doubt if that denomination is in circulation today and if it is, it cannot buy anything, not even a stick of matches.
Not long after that, my friend and I embarked on a hunting expedition looking for lost coins. We combed all the known bush paths, alleys and crannies without luck, not knowing that punishment awaited us at home. As we got home, we could not account for our absence for such a long time as we refused to disclose our mission surveying the entire village. We were not only beaten, we served all manner of punishment including compulsory fasting as we were denied of food for the whole day. Such is the reward of fortune hunting that proved entirely fruitless and frustrating; who did we have to blame except ourselves! If this experience is our and unpleasant, there was another one with a tinge of sadism to it which we brought on ourselves on one unfortunate day. While still young, I hate to remember that day although I now recall it not only with nostalgia but also for the lesson of life it teaches. On one fateful day, my friend and I were going to school and I said to him that if I should find one pound on our way, I would buy a bicycle and buy trousers and shirts. My friend demanded to know how much I would give him and I replied that since it was my money, I would give him one shilling. He demands for five shillings, as he reasoned, because we would not have to share it with anyone else since we were just two.
I told him the last time I found one shilling, we spent it together and when we both went on hunting binge looking for lost money, we found nothing probably due to his bad luck; therefore, I reserved the right to give him just any amount out of my one pound. He felt insulted that I accused him of bad luck and swore that if I did not give the five shillings he demanded, he would not allow me to spend the money. I felt challenged and wondered how someone would stop me from spending my own money. I replied him that ten of him could not stop me from spending my money. I cannot remember what next he said but we engaged ourselves in a wrestling match in which we floored each other in the mud, rolling in the marsh as if have a rollicking dream on one’s bed.
By the time we were separated, we looked like swine emerging from a marshy swim and it dawned on us that we were supposed to be going to or be at school. Now as dirty as we were, we dared not show up at school, not even when we were too late. To return home was also a big problem as we would have to explain to our parents how and why we got so enmeshed in mud. This mutual dilemma forced us to reason together again to device an alibi or some reasons to account for the humiliating dirty appearance. We were to lie that one of us fell into a pit on our way to school and the other was drawn into the pit by the weight of the one in a rescue attempt. However, the story sounded incredible even to our own ears, not only for the many questions that would throw up, but also for the fact that there is no pit enroute to our school into which anyone could fall. Not being very inventful liars, we ran short of lies and we concluded we had no option than to go home and tell the truth to our parents. Now, several punishments awaited us immediately: one for the fight we fought, two, for our school uniforms which we dirtied, and for our failure to go to school. Again, we would still face the penalty for our absence at school for that day and this by the school authorities, and we did.
To think that we brought this entire ordeal upon ourselves over the sum of one pound (today’s two naira) which was never lost or found is a study in juvenile delinquency and wishful pastime. When my father asked me what I thought would be the feeling of the person who lost the one shilling I found and spent so lavishly, I had no answer. He also asked how I would feel if I lost the one pound over which I was fighting my friend, on the sharing formula, I could not imagine my sense of loss. My dream of buying a bicycle ended in a punch up and a wrestling match that put to shame the Sumo brand of the martial art.
In retrospect, I am happy I was punished both at home by my father and at school by my teacher over a crime which may be described as covetous rascality. Imagine that I spared no thought for the person who lost the one shilling I found or the loss to the person whose one pound would be lost and found, but was already seeing the bicycle I was going to buy with it. If you think all these happened because we were children, then I will tell you that adults also build monumental castles in the air, with more devastating consequences.
In the build up to the just concluded general election, many candidates were upbeat in their hope to win and become senators, governors and president. As aspirants, they were already enjoying the honourary titles of Honourables, Distinguished, His Excellency etc and their top aides were carrying themselves as senior special assistants or ministers. Making promises during campaign runs came easy to them since none of the promises is well thought out and so, need not be fulfilled. Some of them became so arrogant and presumptuous you would think they have been in those offices already. They no longer see themselves as one of us and have translated themselves to a higher world, just by imagination of having won an election that has not been held!
In the aftermath of their dismal failure and electoral misfortunes, they literally get insane with rage and begin to issue libelous press statements full of insinuations, innuendoes and incitement, all of which serves to encourage the ordinary citizens to go on rampage over an election that was never won by their masters. What do we do to a former Head of State, member of the Council of State and a three – time presidential candidate if he is found guilty of inciting his followers to riot? How do we make him pay for the death of hundreds of citizens, billions of property and the general tension and disunity his inordinate ambition has generated? Stripping him of his membership of the Council may not be a sufficient punishment for this heinous crime, especially since he has proved so unrepentant, unremorseful as to be daring the president to arrest him. If he is allowed to go scot free, he will remain with the feeling of being untouchable and may even embark on a more sinister venture in future. Meanwhile, someone should tell him to withdraw those home made bombs with his operatives from our streets as an interim minimum and mandatory requirement, until justice is done!