Bring Back The Good Ol’ Days!
By Faye-Chantelle Mondesir
I recall as a teenager grooving to hit tracks like “Smooth Operator” by Sade, Milli Vanilli’s “You Know It’s True” and epic songs such as Prince’s “The Most Beautiful Girl In The World,” just a few of the abundance of fantastic music from the 70’s, 80’s and 90’s we cherish up to now.
So much for teenage dances featuring classic oldie goldies which ours and former generations of those eras would rave to till beyond midnight, not to mention family togetherness and community spirit we so valued which existed back in time. I think it’s safe to say we enjoyed the best of the light-hearted and free-spirited energy, where respect and dispute-free fun was the order of the days.
A voir par vous-même as the French would convey or wè pou tèt ou as the Haitians would say culture sadly is what now prominently exists, in which every man and woman is for themselves and ‘checks’ for themselves, a trend which has created a whirlwind of societal issues we really weren’t prepared for. Even families feud for no just or valid reasons, while some members of bloodlines seem to go all out to extremes to ‘fight down’ others seeking to rise among other petty oppressive family-related issues which we have observed becoming more prevalent.
So much for fake friends, but that’s minor matters when relatives take it to a whole other level, with mothers seeking to suppress, rather than support their own daughters because of jealousy, trying hard to prevent them from progressing and achieving beyond what they themselves have managed to gain. It’s crazy right? The reality is that as ridiculous as it may sound, we undeniably hear the horror stories all the time.
Beres rightfully said, “Remember The Days When We Used To Rock Away?” Those WERE the days! The good news is they’re retrievable and it starts with US, it starts TODAY!
What has happened in sweet, sweet Caribbean? Seems while we extend courtesies to foreigners, we’ve somehow managed to forget or overlook our very own. How could this be? No doubt an expert in their field is needed to dissect the matter based on historic and current facts and the answers are bound to come to the fore upon delving deeper into the matter.
Of course, as we do here in the magazine, we will get to it in an upcoming face-to-face interview with a prominent specialist within his niche of Human Behavioral Psychology; he will use a combination of his practical and social knowledge, along with years of experience, having worked with families within his practice to shine light on the situation, taking us one step closer to resolution.
In the mean time, nothing wrong with reminiscing, savoring and reliving fond memories. The responsibility now lies upon our existing generations, both the young and mature to cultivate the society we desire both in the present (dependent on collective input), but certainly feasible for future generations based on the seeds we sow now. Beginning with what already exists and by moulding our youth into becoming the people we want them to be, this is by no means an impossible feat.
Caribbean unity hasn’t gone down the drain, it sits on our tropical sidelines waiting for us to embrace it and say “Welcome back into the 21st century.”
There’s hope for a world of strong men and women who are supportive of each other, yet stand for what they believe in; youth who are ambitious and goal oriented, realising that strength lies within themselves and they need not trample on their neighbour’s feet and step on another’s head to elevate themselves and get ahead in life.
By teaching our own children life, community and personal values, we are sure to nurture that very thing we crave so much and once again we can as early as within the coming years actually begin to truly, once again enjoy ‘those good ol’ days.’
We don’t have to settle for nostalgia as if memories are all we have to hold on to and preserve, let’s effect change and create better situations and brand new memories for our offspring right where we are today. All that’s required are ALTERED MINDSETS, a PLAN WITH ACTION and EVERYONE LIVING OUT THEIR RESPECTIVE ROLES; it’s a very simple formula to execute. The question remains, are we within our individual worlds willing to implement?
The truth is that many humans don’t recognise that THE POWER TO EXPEDITE CHANGE, REARRANGE THINGS and REVAMP UNWANTED TRENDS AND PATTERNS lies directly in our hands as individuals and has always been within self. Human beings aren’t cognizant of our ability to directly transform the world through proper management of our personal lives and individual homes.
The moral fabric of nations is solely and foundationally dependent on the way we first single-handedly and by extension as communities raise our children; it determines the future of the world. Realise that the values, ethics and standards we introduce to and instill in impressionable minds today determines the community spirit we enjoy tomorrow if any at all.
The communities we dream of are one parent/ guardian and child away. Youth are building blocks of societies. We’re the architects of the future. Let’s build wisely!
The point is, good old days we so cherish can be recreated over time, it ALL BEGINS with YOU and ME. What we do within our dwelling places, within our private gates is far more valuable than the societal contributions we make. We do indeed possess the ability to POSITIVELY CHANGE and AFFECT ENVIRONMENTS one second at a time through our own lives and the lives of those around us. Why not implement change today?
Those of us who are parents can CHOOSE to set practical family expectations and raise our children accordingly, while we simultaneously improve ourselves as adults holistically. One thing’s for certain, future depends not on governments of the world, but on US as individual beings. Are you game to assume the challenge?
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