The Hidden Beauty in African Legacy

It is often not just a question of two young people wanting to be together. Instead it is a family affair, where future prospects and family backgrounds are investigated. The idea is to attempt to eliminate any future unhappiness or possible divorce. Such things are not unheard of but they are rare.

This of course is very different from our western world where children are often forced to grow up too quickly. Children who are too young to fully understand, find themselves preoccupied with adult themes, including obsession with the opposite sex and all its complications. By the time they reach adulthood their preconceived ideas on relationships, don’t match up to reality. Pain, Confusion and broken homes become an inevitable result and the norm rather than the exception.

There is great respect and affection within the African family unit, especially as there is no social security, or residential homes for the elderly. Everyone looks out for each other. The richness of relationships within the family closes up any gaps, making no room for loneliness or insecurity to creep in. Children learn to be responsible, each family member knowing their role and playing their part well.

African parents instil in their children high values and principles, which they respect and live by for the rest of their lives. Often they haven’t much else to give them. If we could slow down our lives enough, to fit in a periodic quiet time of reflection, perhaps we could learn a thing or two about how short and precious life is. Perhaps we could then learn to prioritise and make the most of the life we have got. Maybe we could learn from the African people, the things that are important to teach our children. Whatever they do they must do well. They must be comfortable with hard work and striving to achieve high goals, hopefully achieving a lot more than we did, without forgetting where they are coming from.

We must prepare our children adequately to cope with hard times ahead, because as things stand now in the twenty first century, we would perhaps do well to ask ourselves some honest questions. Are the African people really a lot worse off than those of us who have everything that money can buy, and yet our hearts often ache for inner strength and peace? Perhaps we should re-focus on how to become better equipped to deal with the harsh realities of life, and gaining a confidence to be able to face it head on?