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Too much of everything
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I was curious when I read in a foreign magazine that great writers are normally smokers. I kept thinking whether that was true of Sikaman writers, because I know quite a good number of brilliant writers in this country who are not locomotives. But I may be wrong. Probably they puff when I am not looking, or only when they are writing. When they stop writing they cease to be smokers.
According to the article in the magazine, the cigarette ‘helps them to think’. It is not because their minds are stimulated by the nicotine, but the fact that just holding the stick between the lips, puffing smoke, exhaling through the nostrils and tapping away the ash just keep them forming ideas
Before long, they would be seen scribbling away as sticks of cigarette get burnt into ashes. And society judges them the best writers. That’s quite interesting, isn’t it? And one writer actually confessed that he couldn’t have been a successful novelist without cigarettes.
Well, that’s the world. What is generally harmful to people is said to be beneficial to others after all. It is just like booze and sex. Alcohol destroys the liver, can damage brain cells, induce hypertension and cause social problems.
But alcohol is such that when a total ban is placed on its production and sale in Sikaman, there is likely to be a coup d’etat within a week. Who doesn’t drink, anyway?
Civil servants imbibe alcohol to cure their financial malaria. A husband will take it if he wants to go and insult his mother-in-law for interfering in his marriage.
People charge their brains with alcohol when they are going to collect debts from stubborn debtors. Students take it when they are going to collect their results slips.
Go to the pastors, catechists and reverends and ask them to confess their alcoholic improprieties. Some of them will be sincere and justify their alcoholic dispositions by quoting direct from the Holy Bible.
Timothy was advised to take a little alcohol for the sake of his stomach. But ‘little’ can always be subjective, and that is the loophole that is normally exploited by resident clergymen.
In any case, they can always give the excuse that they have ‘kooko’ and that a famous herbalist had made some concoction for them.
They’ll tell you that it is unfortunate the herbs can only work in alcohol, and that they can’t help doing with it.
When the evening meal is fufu, the holy-man must increase the dosage for an obvious reason – appetite.
But alcohol is most helpful in some spiritual and charismatic churches, when the Holy Ghost can almost be seen moving among the congregation. During such an occasion, the sermon must be extra-lively and the ‘preacherman’ must ‘charge’ to loosen his tongue, to improve the sweetness and quality of the sermon.
“Begone Satan! Begone! “He’d cry out, probably mistaking Satan for the Holy Spirit. He’d taken a bit too much of the stuff and when that happens, you can be sure of an ecclesiastical disaster.
The theme of the sermon will completely be ignored and the drunken pastor, now extra-lively, will start preaching on how to fight the thief who wants to relieve you of your salary. Too much of everything is bad, is the saying.
SIDE DRUM
Take food for instance. Well-cooked, finely spiced food is always delectable to the human palate. But when you take in an overdose and your stomach becomes like a good side-drum and distended, then you are likely to have a nightmare. You’ll start dreaming about cows chasing you here and there and you’ll jump out of sleep to avoid a cow’s leg crashing into your face.
But too soon, you’ll relapse into sleep and start a new dream; seeing yourself falling into a bottomless pit. You’ll scream and someone sleeping in the same room with you will wake you up.
“What’s happening to you?” he’d ask.
“Oh nothing. Just a dream”.
Anyhow, sooner or later, the real symptoms of over-feeding will start showing. You’ll start passing wind indiscriminately and your room mate will start requesting for oxygen lest he suffocates.
“Did you eat too much last night?”
“Yes, the banku was superb, so I took double-dose”.
“I see!”
Yes, your room mate has truly seen. Henceforth, he’ll start timing you. When he sees that you’ve over-eaten, he’d try to avoid the room and sleep on the veranda. He cannot afford to die young.
Coming back to cigarettes, it is generally acceptable that smoking cigarettes is harmful to health, and the Surgeon General has always confirmed it on cigarette packs. Quite paradoxically, doctors are the most inveterate smokers.
In Sikaman, smoking is a habit to some people, but because of poverty they can’t afford to become chain-smokers.
They can afford at most six sticks a day and that is quite moderate. So in effect poverty is saving them from cancer of the lungs.
The prevalence of lung cancer in the developed countries is due to the fact that chain-smoking is a normal phenomenon.
The more you smoke, the more vulnerable you become to disease. MODERATION is, therefore, the solution because habits cannot easily be done away with altogether.
How dare you tell Kofi Owuo, alias Death By Poverty, that he should go to toilet to off-load without taking along cigarettes.
He once told me, “Although I’ve vowed to be poor all my life, I won’t stop smoking. Jot keeps me going. When I get my favourite brand of cigarette and I don’t even get food, I’m okay”.
Yes, Kofi Owuo, a former classmate of mine, took the Oath Of Poverty several years back. But he can always afford his ‘jot’ because without it, he wouldn’t live long. “If I don’t smoke one day, you’ll see me at the mortuary”, he told me.
Perhaps, it is only when there is a total ban on the cultivation of tobacco, its production and distribution that the world will really know that it cannot do without some vices like smoking.
There will be an immediate uproar. Millions of people in tobacco farming, processing and distribution will lose their jobs. Addicts will go haywire and start a riot. Soldiers will take up arms against incumbent governments
The old men who are addicted to snuff (asra), alias rural cocaine, will embark upon a countrywide demonstration.
The snuff keeps them going. When they take it and sneeze hard, they feel good. They may develop cancer of the nose, but that’s nobody’s business. It is the business of their own noses.
I’ve known people who will vomit if they don’t smoke after eating. Some take cigarettes to release tension and others smoke to keep them happy. So which is which? To stop or not to stop!
Having initiated programs to ensure a foundation of morality, the next step is to have a picture of what success looks like. I keep saying that if you do not have a destination in mind when travelling, you can never arrive.
We therefore as a people, need to set up a development plan which all parties shall ascribe to so that no matter which party is in government, the execution of the plan will not be derailed.
This is the only way that we can make a headway in our developmental agenda. Once we have a plan we are following, it becomes a guiding tool to arrive at the destination we have set for ourselves. It becomes a project that given the necessary key milestones, will help us in monitoring progress.
The next step is to focus on pillars of development i.e. education, health, agriculture and the economy.
The common characteristic of developed countries is the level of education of its citizens.
A highly educated population provides readily available human resource for industrial growth.
A highly qualified population has the potential to innovate, creating value added products for export.
A healthy population is necessary for development. Proactive measures that can prevent epidemics for instance, must be put in place to ensure a healthy populace.
This would require a deliberate investment in health infrastructure as well as training of professionals in the health sector.
Food must be available and must also be affordable and there policies that can ensure the achievement of this objective must be vigorously pursued.
Agro-processing must be prioritised if not completely eliminate post harvest losses and also provide goods for export as part of the effort to stabilize currency.
The power of a nation depends largely on its economic growth. The reason why countries like the US and China wield a lot of influence in the world is because of their wealth.
The way out of poverty as a country, is to industrialise. We need to focus on deliberate effort to promote indigenous control over our natural resources so as to reduce repatriation of huge foreign currency out of the country.
Such initiatives will provide or make available funds for entrepreneurs to access for industrialisation. If we do not prioritise industrialisation, we will permanently not enjoy real independence as a nation because we will have to depend on them to assist in funds for our budget deficit.
Whoever controls how you run your budget literary controls you and therefore the countries who provide budgetary support, controls us. We need to get out of this situation so we can be truly.
The industrialisation cannot be established without companying infrastructure and therefore infrastructure development must be taken seriously into account.
Local expertise must be sought in the infrastructural development. The use of local expertise will help create jobs for the teeming youth the universities churn out every year.
I hope to complete this series next weekend. God bless.
NB: ‘CHANGE KOTOKA INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT TO KOFI BAAKO INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT’
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AS the world becomes increasingly complex, the role of a president has become more demanding than ever.
The pressure to make life-altering decisions, manage crises, and maintain a sense of calm and composure can take a toll on a president’s mental health.
In recent years, innovative approaches like emotional surgery and emotional elysium have gained attention for their potential to support leaders in managing stress and promoting emotional well-being.
Understanding emotional surgery
Emotional surgery is a groundbreaking approach that utilises art to promote relaxation and reduce stress.
This technique involves the use of colors, geometric shapes, and abstract objects to communicate with the brain and induce a state of calmness.
By leveraging the brain’s ability to process visual information, emotional surgery can help individuals manage anxiety and stress, promoting a sense of calmness and well-being.
The benefits of emotional elysium
Emotional elysium refers to practices that promote emotional well-being and resilience.
This approach focuses on cultivating positive emotions such as gratitude, compassion, and love, to improve overall well-being.
For presidents, emotional elysium can be particularly beneficial in managing the stresses of office and promoting emotional balance.
By incorporating emotional elysium practices into their daily routine, presidents can improve their emotional regulation, increase their resilience, and enhance their overall well-being.
The impact on presidential performance
Both emotional surgery and emotional elysium have the potential to significantly impact a president’s performance.
By managing stress and promoting emotional well-being, presidents can:
- Improve decision-making: Emotional surgery and emotional elysium help presidents make more informed, rational decisions, rather than reacting impulsively to stress or emotions.
- Enhance leadership: Leaders who prioritise emotional well-being are better equipped to build strong relationships with their team and the public.
- Increase resilience: Emotional elysium practices, such as mindfulness and meditation, build resilience, enabling presidents to cope better with challenges and setbacks.
Prof. Agyeman Badu Akosa’s endorsement
Prof. Agyeman Badu Akosa, a respected figure in the medical field, has endorsed emotional surgery as a valuable tool for promoting relaxation and reducing stress.
According to him, emotional surgery can reduce anxiety, improve emotional regulation, and enhance overall well-being.
Conclusion
In conclusion, emotional surgery and emotional elysium are two innovative approaches that have the potential to significantly impact a president’s performance.
By prioritising emotional well-being and exploring these approaches, presidents can improve decision-making, enhance leadership, and increase resilience.
As global challenges become more complex, it is essential for presidents to safeguard their mental health — and these techniques offer a promising solution.
Recommendations
- Presidents should prioritise their emotional well-being: Recognising the importance of emotional balance allows leaders to manage stress effectively.
- Emotional surgery and emotional elysium should be considered: These approaches may offer promising solutions for high-end executives whose emotional well-being affects their performance.
By embracing emotional well-being and exploring innovative interventions, presidents can optimise performance, build stronger relationships, and promote overall well-being.
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