I was going to pursue my lambaste of the assumed position of privilege by whites which, I felt, needed to be interrogated. As a mentor at university in a post-graduate post-colonial course labelled it, the “colonial contagion”. I ended last week’s piece with the words, “Watch this space”.
However, I have had five years of writing much of the same old, same old, and I was brought to slow-down mode by a response from a reader who has been following my mental and verbal meanderings for a long time. It affected me enough to construe this week’s contribution.
I consulted my editor and I have his blessing in the discourse that follows. I just need a moment to contextualise my response with two quotes:
Quote One: “There is only one way in which one can endure man’s inhumanity to man and that is to try, in one’s own life, to exemplify man’s humanity to man.” (Author unknown).
Quote Two: “Love is our most unifying and empowering spiritual denominator. The more we ignore its potential to bring greater balance and deeper meaning to human existence, the more likely we are to continue to define history as one long inglorious history record of man’s inhumanity to man.” – Aberjhani, Journey through the Power of the Rainbow.
This reader responded to pieces I penned on June 18, 2019, October 2021, June last year and more recently, last week. That is a faithful readership of roughly five years, which is the length of my “career” as the Literally Yours columnist.
It is a flattering acknowledgement of my frail attempts to start the talk that will bring people together even if they agreed to disagree. I do not know this reader from Adam, and yet his response last week caused me to press the pause button, do some reflection and ask myself a simple question: How much will I achieve cataloguing weekly the many mistakes that we, as humans, make, whatever our race, religion, education or status?
We can fill the newspapers with a rerun of the need for a season like Lent, when we stop the emotional, moral and mental rot that make us look past our own misdeeds by recalling century-old catalogues of human error. In other words, when does the blame game stop?
When do we understand that a large portion of our experiences are rooted in the awful truth that we “allowed” much of it to happen.
This is not a turnaround of my world view, educational trajectory or a calculated attempt to be nice. No. It is merely this reader’s constant responses to my writing that a soft answer turns away wrath. I cannot quote his letter, because I do not have his permission to do so. Nor did I consult him about my topic for this week. I do not seek reward nor accolade or (you wish) a substantial injection into my dwindling fiscal resources.
No, I have slowed down as asked: Can we blame willy-nilly after all the centuries of injustice, inhumanity and naked criminality. Is there no statute of limitations on blame and name-calling?
Is there any point in pointing fingers, when we have been told countless times of fingers that write, the fingers that point back at us when we accuse, and the terrible words on the wall which say we have all been weighed and come short of the glory of God?
Time for us all to slow down and listen to this voice from Tokai.
For five years, he has never lost his conviction that dialogue and reading are the keys. I thank him for his affirmation, valediction and, if that is what it is, fair-mindedness.
He has been consistently encouraging and even-minded. I acknowledge that quality without reservation.
Thank you, Rob Johnston of Tokai.
* Alex Tabisher.
** The views expressed here are not necessarily those of Independent Media.
Do you have something on your mind; or want to comment on the big stories of the day? We would love to hear from you. Please send your letters to [email protected].
All letters to be considered for publication, must contain full names, addresses and contact details (not for publication)