Alcohol Is Back And Don’t You Forget It
Some news is sweeter than a mother’s kiss at bedtime. Some news could cure a manic depressive instantly. Some news is
There was a huge sense of anticipation when it was announced the president would address the nation on Friday. With the calls of unbanning the sale of alcohol having reached a crescendo there was an air of anticipation that The Announcement would be made. On these shores in these times The Announcement is whether the sale of alcohol is banned or not.
BTV became must-watch television on that night and everything in that address seemed like preamble. We were all waiting to hear what the hallowed leader would say regarding the sale of alcohol. BTV viewership started off at 2.5million and immediately after the announcement that alcohol would be dribbling down our throats on Monday was made the viewership dropped to around 30,000.
The 30,000 included kids, teetotalers, priests, broke fellas, people without DSTV subscription, people in love with BTV captions bloops and so on. For some of us we were busy on our phones sharing the good news.
Obviously there will be the expected backlash from the brewers of the infamous Modaefoko – a brew that kept the nation going in very difficult times. Yes, there were casualties. But then every type of holy water has casualties.
The whole country looked forward to Monday – the very Monday which is always accused of being blue, the very Monday which some feel should be removed from the calendar. This one had turned a sunset orange.
We cursed whoever labelled Monday blue. This would be our Monday. This would be the day that the President had made. And oh how we were going to rejoice and be glad in it.
There was the small matter of preparing for Monday. The bootleggers put up the ‘Beer on Sale, 80% off’ signs. There were sporadic ‘Buy one get 4 free’ signs too. For the uninitiated this seemed like Black Friday all over again with a much darker shade. I am thinking of pitch-black as the most appropriate description.
Bootleggers calls were not picked, their adverts not responded to. They had quickly morphed into some kind of devil with 5 horns. They were accused of being unrepentant blood-sucking monopolists. And these were the more civil adjectives.
Preparing for Monday also meant getting all sorts of laxatives to flush out the illegal brews and the illegally-priced alcohol from the system so it is ready to handle lawful, fairly-priced alcohol. Pharmacies struggled to cope and as we all know during such times instant street pharmacies and pharmacists will sprout up all over the place like a bad rash.
The Dibete side road pharmacies also choked under a huge demand from motorists. Four out of every two cars that passed stopped to make a purchase of the maroon-pinkish liquid that can allegedly cure ailments before you even contract them.
The celebrations were about to begin but the weekend rolled through slowly like a herd of turtles stampeding through peanut butter. This is one moment in history where the weekend became an irritant to the people. This weekend took around four days and the Sunday lasted close to 36 hours.
Monday finally came and with that came a whole wave of queues much longer than the covid-19 tests queues. Very patient Batswana lined up to get their supply of alcohol. The patience of people in liquor stores queues is greater than that of those people in testing centres. In fact, the alcohol always runs out before the patience of customers. A very interesting phenomenon!
Abody needs water to function effectively and efficiently. A car engine needs oil to give out a sterling performance while a business needs human capital to be operational and healthy. All the latter are testaments that we need something in order for the other to work aptly. A relationship needs appreciation so that it could mature healthy and profitable to all parties. Appreciation lubricates the relationship and yields a selfless spirit.
Appreciation is when you cherish a person or situation that may either be good or bad. It comes with recognition, acknowledgements, valuing and respecting the people within and outside your social or professional circle. Appreciation is not only ideal when you feel good about the qualities others or your environment has. We are ought to even appreciate the negative or bad qualities we get exposed to as we interact with others and our environment.
Appreciation is a base for accepting events that unfold in our lives. It comes with an element of maturity that positions you to react appropriately towards our social or professional engagements. It takes an objective mindset to be appreciative. This is easy when one has a clear goal they are working towards attaining. You will get to cherish every incident you come across for the mind will believe that everything works together for the good, regardless of whether it is bad or good.
Appreciation unlocks endless possibilities for a relationship. Every individual wants to be recognised and be given the utmost respect. This fulfills their social and security needs. They feel that they are important hence belong to a certain social or professional sphere. When you do not show appreciation to the people within your circle, they will eventually fall off your radar and you end up being a loner. Appreciation makes people to jell well and increase chances of favour in each other’s lives. Every time you show appreciation to someone, you draw them close to you and increase the level of loyalty and trust. Appreciation exposes one to the world of wisdom. Wisdom is the master key that opens every lock type. As we encounter painful experiences and we open our hearts to appreciate them, we will learn, grow and position ourselves to refrain from experiencing the pain again. If you do not adopt to an appreciative spirit, you will end up being frustrated and that hinders you to identify opportunities of growth thus live a life without astuteness.
Appreciation is expressed through a gesture of giving. Giving is not only limited to material goods but rather differing elements like time, positive emotional transactions, for example; love, respect, sympathy and compassion. Appreciation broadens the network one could have and the size of your network determines your level of success. A person who is unappreciative dies in poverty since they grow isolated from their communities and surroundings.
One day, a young man got married to his high school lover. It was a dream come true for the young couple. As they continued with their marital life, the wife, who unfortunately was unemployed, started to scorn the husband for he was not able to meet her needs entirely yet the man worked himself to death. The woman did not appreciate any effort the husband made in order to make her happy.
Someday, just after the sun fell with its golden rays, the husband, frustrated and depressed by his situation at home, got hit by a car and died on the spot. The wife and children had lost a breadwinner and that demanded the wife, who has never been exposed to any career life, to look for a job. She noticed that it was not easy to provide for her family. She started to cry in regrets because should she had been appreciative, the husband could probably be still alive.
Appreciation fertilises the relationship and yield the best out of it. Appreciate both good and bad situations, they will lead you towards greatness due to the knowledge bundled with each experience.
I would like to take an opportunity to appreciate KETHABILE SEMELE for selflessly reading and proofing the Coloring Souls articles before we share them for publishing.
*Kealeboga Ronald Ngwigwa is an Author of a book titled 50 SHOTS OF COLOR (Download e-copy on KINDLE AMAZON), Motivational Speaker, Radio Feature Presenter, Events DC and Humanitarian who believes that there is greatness to be unleashed in all of us. Contact him on kealeboga@coloringsouls. co.bw or call +26773791677 for bookings or What’s App +26771830584. Facebook page: Coloring Souls with Kealeboga Ronald Ngwigwa. LinkedIn: Kealeboga Ronald Ngwigwa. Instagram: #ColoringSouls. Website: www.coloringsouls.co.bw