Circumspecte

Source: Komla Dumor's Facebook Page "There's so much more to tell about Africa than the usual stories about war, famine and disease." Komla Dumor. Son, husband, father, Ghana's "Boss Player", Africa's storyteller, BBC World News broadcaster, inspiration - courage personified. If anyone had told me that Komla Dumor's Black Star would burst out into eternity on January 18, 2014, I would have called them a liar and then some. His 41 years of life might seem "short" to many of us, but from all indications, this amazing soul found it more than enough for doing what he set out to do: to be a journalist of the highest order and to contribute towards telling Africa's stories. His awards, accolades and  accomplishments  are well recorded - perhaps more so after his untimely demise yesterday from a cardiac arrest in London - and numerous people are sharing their condolences and tributes on social media with variations of the hash...

Khalil Gibran is one of my favorite poets/writers. I believe his piece "The New Frontier" rings true for Ghana, L'Afrique today. Changes in [ ] are mine: The New Frontier There are in [Ghana/Africa] today two challenging ideas: old and new. The old ideas will vanish because they are weak and exhausted. There is in [Ghana/Africa] an awakening that defies slumber. This awakening will conquer because the sun is its leader and the dawn is its army. In the fields of [Gha na/Africa], which have been a large burial ground, stand the youth of Spring calling the occupants of the sepulchers to rise and march toward the new frontiers. When the Spring sings its hymns the dead of the [harmattan] rise, shed their shrouds and march forward. There is on the horizon of [Ghana/Africa] a new awakening; it is growing and expanding; it is reaching and engulfing all sensitive, intelligent souls; it is penetrating and gaining all the sympathy of noble hearts. [Ghana/Africa] tod...

Dear Fellow African, The hour is nigh, and the trumpet has sounded. After months of dilly-dallying, the levees have broken and Senegal, as we know it, is at a crossroads. It could also very well be the cradle of an African Re-Awakening. Call it the "Africa Spring", a " Renaissance " or a "Revolution", it is here. I'm not going to use ink and paper describing what led this West African "beacon of democracy" down this path . Unfortunately, we know it all too well. Here it is in under 140 characters: It's ironic that the leader in this case is the very one who spent an estimated $27million on a copper statue which he named "La Monument de La Renaissance Africaine." I doubt Senegalese President Abdoulaye Wade ever imagined that those words would be transformed into the energy that is sweeping across Senegal as we speak. The global economic crisis might have wrecked havoc in many-a financial market, but to its cred...

The thing about embarking on a new experience - travel, project, idea, decision, dream, opportunity - is that you always uncover yourself anew. -- "Why don't you write anymore?" That's the question that sent me running back here. The number of false-start posts I've had in the last two months are shameful to say the least You either go all in or it's nothing at all. So what keeps stopping me? Sense of duty Of what I should be doing (studying, reading, problem solving), and when I should be doing it (NOW!). Ironically, that's also what keeps me from starting. Anything. When did the notion of putting thoughts out there seem so scary? The moment certainty walked out the door Of who I am/should be and exactly what I am/should be up to. We all - or I do - like to put things out there that We are - I am - sure about Nobody wants to be accused of plagiarizing, heresay or concocting pure nonsense Unless you're just in the business of plagiariz...

I believe deeply that Ghanaians and Africans can make the necessary changes for development. Yes, there are obstacles. Yes, we have day-to-day responsibilities. Yes, times can be tough. But that's not the entire story. We also have stepping stones, passion, inspiring moments, and above all, we have EACH OTHER. In Ghana's case especially, having each other and keeping the peace is probably the biggest factor in how far we have come so far. Yet, if the events (revolutions) this year are any indication, our peace is not guaranteed , particularly when it is sitting on a minefield of inequalities. Enter Northern Ghana. Northern Ghana has probably been exhausted on here, so I won't take that route. If you want to know what my thoughts are regarding why development in the region is in the best interest of ALL Ghanaians, click here . Instead, I'd like to send you a personal invitation to take a step in helping initiate sustainable change in Northern Ghana for Ghana: BarC...

Ciao people! I'm blogging all the way from Bologna, Italy! Beautiful city, interesting experiences so far. This blog was written a couple of days ago and didn't get posted because I got quite self-conscious about what it was about (definitely NOT my grandest moment). But after some thought I decided to post it. I feel it's important to acknowledge both struggles and triumphs, especially if growth is the bottom line objective, and particularly since life does throw us a curve ball from time to time. Alors...I'd say enjoy...but given the subject matter, maybe "I hope this speaks to you in some way" is more appropriate? Here goes.. --   Unplanned "It isn't what you did in the past that will affect the present. It's what you do in the present that will redeem the past and thereby change the future." - Aleph (Paulo Coelho) Le Due Torri - Symbol of Bologna It’s been a week and a day since I arrived in Bologna land, which coincident...

"When you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you achieve it." - The Alchemist (Paulo Coelho) Finally, after numerous allusions on this site, I get to introduce you to a project I've been personally involved in since returning home to Ghana. As you know, our dear continent (Africa) has undergone many challenges over the years, some of which seem to get worse by the minute. In the midst of all of that however, there has always been the resilience and sheer force of the African spirit that refuses to buckle under all the pressure. Many times I've listened to friends, colleagues, coworkers, family, acquaintainces and even strangers talk about how they would rather NOT be doing what they are doing (I believe the term used is 'day job') and would rather be pursuing something else entirely (their passion/dream). Why DON'T they? Family pressure, financial contraints, fear, unpreparedness, insecurity, time, age, lack of motivation, doubt; the li...

Nor say of anything, "I shall be sure to do so and so tomorrow," without adding, so please Allah!" And call thy Lord to mind when thou forgetest, and say, "I hope that my Lord will guide me ever closer (even) than this to the right road." - Surah 18: 23, Al-Khaf (The Cave) This is undoubtedly one of my favorite chapters in the Holy Qu'ran . It tells the story of some young Muslims and their dog who came upon a cave when fleeing their enemies. Allah caused them to fall into a deep slumber, sealed the cave and saved them from their pursuers. When they awoke they wondered how long they had been asleep, and God commanded them to go into town to find out. They literally woke up in another time/era, the exact of which remains unknown to all but Allah. Why I like it? I can't pinpoint one thing. Maybe it's the comfort of knowing that God protects his own, or that He lovingly guides us to the best path/situation. Perhaps I find it amusing that what seems ...

When it's this quiet, you know someone or some thing is up to no good.  Plotting and scheming and devising plans anew, all for the amusement of what it/they can do to you. It's like an airplane ride.  You get on, make yourself comfortable, listen to the safety instructions – or not - and let your thoughts wonder far beyond the height of clouds upon which you ride. The pilot's voice comes onto the PA system; introduces him/herself as well as his co-fate holders.  You hear it, but you don't really listen, because if anyone ever asked you anew, you'd never even be able to recollect the first letter of his/her first name. And so you begin. Some turbulence here, a couple of cumuli nimbus clouds there, wait is that a bird or a plane gliding next to me? No sir, simply your imagination running wild upon the pasture of sky. Doze in, doze out, icky airplane food, yet you gobble it all down. And the musings. Oh my, those musings. Such injustice they do to the very pl...

"Although the world is full of suffering, it is full also of the overcoming of it" - Helen Keller -- Dear "Discouraged One", Life is hard. There's no two ways about that. Sometimes it gets better, other times, it gets worse. And in those one in a million times, it makes you feel like you'll never make it out alive or the same. And you usually don't. Instead, you come out stronger, with a couple more lessons under your belt, and most importantly, with the feeling of being achingly alive, instead of simply existing. Everyone goes through their trials and tribulations in life, but the key difference between those who overcome and those who crumble under the weight of problems is summed up in two simple words: personal effort . Ever encountered that one individual who seems to have their life all figured out? Who always has the best opportunities, the coolest friends, the brightest smile? That one person who you are convinced was born with a silver s...

This is a piece that found me in the dead of night (3am). Originally typed it on my phone, and wonder of wonders, my screen froze and I lost the original. I have tried my best to recapture what I remember of the original piece, although, knowing what that one was, I doubt this comes close. All the same, enjoy, and do share your thoughts :) -- Atypical Love Affair It starts quite innocently, as most love affairs do. A spoken word here, a stolen glance there, a shiver down the spine. It starts with the simple mention of a name, but it’s the mysterious undertones - the whos, whats, wheres, hows and whys - those are what send you spiraling forth. No turning back, drawn in under the spell, you hold your breath to relive it one more time. Burning desire coursing through your soul, exhale suspended long after the moment unfolds. It awakens, like most love affairs do. A fluttering of lips against skin, eyes locked in duel, palm in hand. Yet even after the winds tamper those imprints,...

"Life is a process of becoming, a combination of states we have to go through. Where people fail is that they wish to elect a state and remain in it. This is a kind of death." - Anais Nin At different points of the earth, there once lived two oysters. Both were oysters, true. Yet one hailed from a small, pond in the middle of a grand forest, while the other rode the waves of the Atlantic. Conspicuously the same, inherently different, it so happened that the currents decided to let chance take course. -- A fisherman, well known for his skill on the high, reined in his net on a particularly promising day. However, try as he might, he caught naught but a single oyster. 'What a curious thing', he thought to himself 'The light is right, the winds on course, the shrimp is particularly fresh, yet the fish resist' Out went the nets again. And a second. And a third. But each time, only the oyster remained embedded in the criss-cross of coiled twines. 'Ver...