RAINING INSIGHT

I was listening to Marvin Sapp’s GLORY from album I WIN this morning and all I could picture is the rain that fell so heavily last night. As the heavy rains hit my ceiling and sounded like heavy weighted cats and dogs falling on it… Gosh! I thought they would come hit me in my room. Although I was alarmed, I loved the feeling… I loved the experience. The thought of water pouring from up without any physical art of work but from a source of divine course was enough to ponder on. I was wondering, if everything God created gives him GLORY, then what was the rain saying about that time;

‘your glory is overflowing in the heavens and pouring hard on your people… Only if they would see beyond seasonal rain and see your glory and worship you as we are…’

OR

‘as we pour on the ground, your Glory fills this place. Not only in the heavens…’

OR

‘as each drop hits the ground, let the sweet sound of your glory be released on your people…’

There is enough about God to ponder about. There’re so much wonderful elements about the Almighty God enough to curve your lips on meditating upon. God is just amazing. His works are just phenomenon. God has and is such an art that never fades and never gets boring.

I don’t know what clouds your mind during everyday. I don’t know what makes you happy or sad. I don’t know what inspires you to make your daily decisions. But I believe that the God I talk about, when I think and meditate on him and his statutes daily, I shall be like a tree planted by the streams of water which yields its fruits in season and whose leaf does not whither and whatever I do will prosper.

I don’t know what you believe in. But I believe in God and I believe God.

INSPIRATION: MARVIN SAPP_GLORY_I WIN [ALBUM]

BLACK HOUSE

He’s been cheating on her, I know it! But look at her… She’s just been so morally obedient and so faithful over the years. At times I wonder if I’d have done same to a man I wake up in bed to, for the past umm… if I’m 28 then uhuh! 30… For the past 30yrs. She calls him ‘DARLING’ and guess what he calls her; by her first name YAA. On several ocassions have I asked why she still called him DARLING and her response, as if rehearsed, “[smiles] To consciously remind him of our vow before God and man… But over the years, my tongue’s stuck with it”. What a life?! And she’s aware of all his affairs over the years. Didnt the same Bible we believe in mention that a wife cannot divorce his husband until he is dead or commits adultery?

“I would’ve left years back if not for you and your siblings. Besides that, if I leave, where do I go?”

“I can take care of you now. I have a decent well paying job in the city… You don’t need to continue living like this! Your sacrifice has grown too big to be unnoticed”

“Take care of me? Sweetheart, what’s left? You need to settle down and start a family of your own”.

Now, that’s where I start getting frustrated. What’s with this marriage thing? Who ever mentioned I’m ready for that anyway? Look at her… See what marriage turned her into. She lost her life for the lives of her children. Well, I’m not self centred or that selfish, but marriage has to be enjoyed by every party involved. I can’t lose my life for my children; I mean… Well, you know what I mean… No way! All these years, watching him come home heavily drunk, ordering us about as if we worked for him, and waking up to dawn fights and… [silence]

[Car parks under the huge mango tree]

Oh there he is [head down… Eyes up, staring with merciless eyes] I wonder why he’s still alive. Oh yea I know why he’s still alive. He needs to see how it all ends… How all this ends.

“hey! What brings you here? Couldnt have called?”

I could’ve strangled him right there! If she wasn’t alive, he would’ve given me the worst upbringing. Even with her present, there are scars unhealed; those nights he hit me and that night he almost raped me, how could I forget that? And he stands before me asking what brings me here? Definitely to see my mother!!

[smiling] “I’m on leave this week so decided to pay you a surprise visit. You know how work gets demanding”

“Good. Good. Very good. It’s good you’re working hard and you think about us. But I’m waiting for that day when you’ll bring a man to this house and… ”

Ah! What man?! If my mother is worried about me not being in a relationship, not my father. Why? He wants me to follow his footsteps? Listen, I have 2 other siblings, a girl and a guy. My sister Akose said she’ll be getting married next year. She will bear them grandchildren. That should satisfy them. I was the one who lived with them more years. I had to send Akose and Kwadwo to live with my aunt in Takoradi for some years. They didn’t know what was going on. I was the one my mom came crying every blessed night to, when she was hit by my father or even felt depressed. I was the one she would talk to since she never really had genuine friends. I was the one who had to take it all in. Now I have to be the one to get into marriage first? What kind of marriage anyway? The one they indirectly taught me? Or that one by which I have to be so conscious about, so much so that it doesn’t end like theirs? Definitely none of the above.

[laughs and follows him into the living room. He sits close to his wife. He ends a short call and in about 15minutes, an unknown face shows up inside]

Ooouu… He’s fine. Real fine. Abeeku. He’s Fante.

“So my daughter, Abeeku here is from the city but also came to see his parents. He’s a friend’s son. A Christian, an entrepreneur, a part-time photographer, travels a lot… [mother interrupts]

“Darling!”

“Yaa, ad£n?”

Oh my! What’s happening here?

“So umm… I just told you very little. I would like you to get to know each other and be coming home quite often, together… And let’s see how things would work out”

Ohh!! You gotta be kidding me!!

Ok this should be enough else I’ll end up killing my father which in the long run would kill my mother; I don’t enjoy killing my characters either. [Flips 2 pages away… Scratches an itch on her head]

Uhuh! This should be it… [starts writing again… Smiling now]

About

About.

SOUND SLEEP

 

Everyone loves to sleep; as much as it’s relieving and peaceful, none wants to be stuck in their sleep. Or maybe you do, because I don’t. Forget about the content of the sleep… The dream… No. I’m talking about sleep itself. If sleep is peaceful, question here is, why don’t we wanna be stuck in a place where we don’t feel the pressure from the world and the whole package of issues of a simply complicated life?

In reality, in the now, you’re aware that another man’s issues are weightier than yours; same as the next weightier than that man’s. Even animals have their own threats. Think of any animal without threats… The elephant in his bigness even has to fight off flies.

Life seems interesting by the day to me; probably you’ve not been observant enough. God surely does have a way of spicing things up with different recipies yet the product always comes out perfect and just beautiful.

After a hard day’s work, everyone wants a peaceful sleep… A sound sleep. It gets really annoying when your dream is a nightmare or involves running when chased by some horrible creatures, or probably being involved in a fight throughout your dream. Instead of waking up refreshened and energetic, you wake up tired and sometimes, angry. That requires putting in more effort in making sure the day goes well at school or at work.

Scientists say your growth hormones work in your sleep. Everyone wants to move. Everyone wants to grow. Here in Africa, specifically Ghana, we’re generally less appreciative of slim indegenous people (especially slim ladies). You see, here in this part of Africa, we appreciate food and sleep, so when you look slim, we have the impression that it’s either you’re starving deliberately in preparing yourself to be a model, or you’re just troubled. You see, you eat as much as you can, but without a sound mind, all the food is useless in aiding your growth.

God knew exactly what we needed when he said in 2nd Timothy 1:7 that he hasn’t given us the spirit of fear but of power, love and a sound mind. You don’t need to have a level of smartness to see that you can’t live without love, power and a sound mind. Take one element out and your life is a total mess.

A friend told me a short story of how he started having sound sleeps, inthat previously, his dreams were disturbing and affected him during the day. A few days later, a dream I understood him better. Cwesi Oteng’s song “GodDey Bless (Speak Those Things)” inspires me greatly. Your tongue is who you are and can be recognized even in the dark. Your tongue is that powerful. Whatever you speak is either life or death; understand that, or forget you just read that.
The interesting thing in speaking positive things is, you’re expectant of a positive result.

To some of us, your wishes at night such as “sweet dreams”, “sleep tight”, “sleep sweet”, doesn’t help in the case where we just want SOUND SLEEP. You see, you don’t know my definition of ‘sweet dreams’, so I’ll prefer you just say “sound sleep”.

To the boy in High School (Boys School) whose sleep is disturbed with wet dreams… SOUND SLEEP.
To the parent who’s hit in the face with all forms of bills and cannot meet standards of the society… SOUND SLEEP.
To the student who’s confused in class yet has a test the day after… SOUND SLEEP.
To you who wakes up at night because you can’t sleep so you log in to facebook to read your timelines or random blogs… SOUND SLEEP.
To you… SOUND SLEEP.

Sleep sound. Sleep like the baby. Peaceful… Thoughtless… Yet not waking up with screams and cries.

INSPIRED BY NII OKAI AND CWESI OTENG