By Debbie Olujobi

The earth will not be destroyed by us or even generations worse than we are. It’s an entity that will survive our greed and plunder. What we should learn from the ice age is that it will purge itself of polluting forces and renew itself with a new generation that will adapt and conquer the elements to survive! I pray that we are able to reduce the pollution and come together to develop a new consciousness that will take from the old and modify with the new. We could easily turn things around if profit was no longer our priority at the expense of our humanity.

The funny thing is that all the wealth becomes meaningless after a while. The fundamental wrong turn we took as a generation is breeding children that are worse than we are. Unlike our parents we are not preparing our children to survive with the tools of discipline and education; we are amassing enough to give them a sheltered life without ever working for it. Children don’t get to earn anything anymore, they are given special treatment and they have come to see themselves as entitled to the finer things of life from their youth.

That’s why they can’t wait to achieve anything; they want the good things of life so they are taking it by any means necessary. That’s the explanation for the violent crimes committed by adults and children alike with impunity. A generation of entitled and self indulgent men and women; not one of us is innocent!

I get so tired at times; I forget the sole purpose why I bother to work as hard as I do. The quality of life my late grandfather had as a headmaster of a primary school is a lot better than mine for all of its trappings! He got up at 5am to meditate, exercise and say his prayers daily, he would have breakfast with his family and go to work, choosing most times to walk even when he could take transportation. Even when he retired, he kept the same routine and he was agile at 86 when he died. His motto was “hard work never killed anyone”.

As much as the holidays we spent with him were almost like being in boot camp; we all enjoyed it. He was not a rich man but he was a great one. The generation before us was full of such men; they were the norm, now they are the exception. I am competitive and ambitious just like the average person in this generation but I pray to God I can make a difference even if it is only in my direct sphere of influence. The joy of achievement is in the process of attainment; without breaking sweat; achievements are hollow and meaningless; somebody needs to tell the youths that.

The richest man alive can’t make himself a pillow of gold to lay his head; it’s just not comfortable. He can build himself a palace with a 1000 rooms but he can only sleep in one at a time, he can have a feast of a thousand cows but he can’t eat more than a small portion.

Eventually we will hopefully survive when we learn to take what we need only and let the earth replenish and sustain itself and us! Then we could become the Generation next; the people who rebuilt the world they almost destroyed! We could unlike Cain choose to become our brothers’ keepers!! I would love to be able to go for long walks that are unhurried without choking on generator fumes, I would like to be able to open my heart without fear and paranoia and just enjoy humanity in all its complexities! Maybe we can turn it around; only God knows for certain.

What is certain is that change is upon us and as I hear news of another Tsunami alert in Japan after another earthquake; I am not certain that the change will be for our good.