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A
tale of broken resolutions
By Norah
Spie
It's January again, another year gone. Was it a good one?
Although we all celebrate when the clock hits 0000hrs, deep down there is always a sense of panic.
We tend to think that we have not achieved much in the previous year. How did the whole year pass me by? What did I do in the past 12 month? After asking yourself all these questions, the answer is rather usual: NOTHING.
But is it possible to do absolutely nothing the whole year? What we mean by 'nothing' is simply that we did not achieve our set goals, which in many cases are unrealistic.
Then comes the New Year resolutions which only stay fresh in our minds for the first 2 weeks of January before we get stuck in the usual rote and without sounding the alarm, we are back to our usual old ways and nothing changes and not a thought is given about it until 31st December!
So when a colleague asked me what my New Year’s resolution is, I told him that my new year is in June.
Why June? Because I decided to be Chinese! No, this is because I choose to make my resolutions on my birthday instead of the so-called 'New Year'. Why? Because I can and because I do not usually go with the flow.
A friend in Harare listed her New Year resolutions and emailed them to me, I guess so that I could check up on her during the course of the year. I quickly noticed that they were not specific.
She had things like, 'being a good mom'. What does that mean really? The word 'good' is relative so I told her to be more specific in how she wants to achieve this. Did she want to spend more time with the kids or introduce better disciplinary measures? Then she goes on to say she wants to make money. Okay, don't we all? How are you planning to make the money? What amount are you targeting? Using which methods?
In the western world the most common resolution is to stop smoking and it is the least accomplished. This is partly because it requires a lot of will power and discipline. So be realistic in your resolutions or else come end of year, you will be in the group of people who will say they did not achieve anything.
For those of you
who have made your resolutions this week, all the best and I sincerely
hope you will stick to them.
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Life is a gift from God therefore no man has a right to take it away
from another man. This is why I am opposed to the death sentence even
if it is Saddam Hussein.
Some will argue and say ‘an eye for an eye’. This argument says if he killed other innocent people, then he should be killed. But two wrongs don't make it right. Why does one state have an overall say in what happens in another state? I am opening the Pandora’s Box and I know no-one can ever close it.
My argument here is just purely based on humanitarian grounds. I do not like that fact that some big headed leader in the West sat down and decided the day and time when another human being is going to die. They chose a time that suited them, a busy time when his death would just go with the flow during the festive hype.
They wanted to start their 2007 without Saddam. I will put my hands up and say I have not really gone deeper into the crimes committed by Saddam mainly because I have enough on my plate, you know me being from Zimbabwe! I would rather deal with my own home affairs before I put my nose into the affairs of the Iraqi people.
Having said that, I could not escape the headlines coming out of this rich Gulf state! In fact thinking about it now, Iraq has been a big part of my life in a very indirect way.
I remember in 1990-1991 when Iraq declared war on Kuwait, we had a very big debate in my primary school class. (Yes primary school- I can see some of you calculating my age!).
This debate went on for two years and one girl who was pro-Saddam gained the nick-name 'Saddam' after her passionate defence on his actions.
I'm sure if he had
known that in a far away country in the south of Africa, there was a
small Grade 7 class taking time out to defend him -- he would have died
a happy man!
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Oprah Winfrey, the queen of chat show, has opened a 40-million-dollar
girls' school in Johannesburg. Any improvement to an African country
is welcome but I just could not help wondering if these philanthropic
celebrities have forsaken Zimbabwe (not that they have any obligation
to support us.)
Despite the political unrest in Zimbabwe, there are still millions of people living in poverty and more affected and infected by HIV/Aids. Is it fair to punish these people simply because their government is no longer on the 'favourites' list?
It is true to say the fall of Zimbabwe has benefited other previously unknown countries like Namibia, Malawi, etc. This is going to sound selfish but Zimbabwe is still there -- HELLO!
We have orphanages too -- lots of them. The Victoria Falls is still in Zimbabwe and next time Oprah decides to visit The Smoke that Thunders (mosi-a- tunya), maybe her travel agent should insist on her using the Harare International Airport instead of sneaking directly into Victoria Falls from South Africa -- it's not like she needs a cheap flight!
There is no shame in the world knowing you have been to Zimbabwe -- or is there? Ask the Chinese!
Gone are the days when Hollywood stars like Sharon Stone were filming in Goromonzi, now it's all about Namibia even if they are not using the desert!
Maybe we should invite Sacha Boran Cohen to do a 'Borat' on Zimbabwe because it has done a whole lot of good for Kazakhstan, a previously little known state.
Norah Spie's new weekly column appears here every Wednesday. You can e-mail her at n_spie@hotmail.com. Her new book, Parallel Lines, is available at many good bookshops and you can also order it online from AMAZON
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