Red lies after lies

Sir,

My Biology teacher once shared a very demotivating but honest truth. It is now that I have discovered that he was a transparent realist. Our Form V class was congested with pupils who were religiously devoted to humanities. A handful of the class invested their time in sciences. Sadly, we were optimist; some even envisioned themselves as doctors, nurses in spite of the stream.

One defining day, the teacher angrily exclaimed; “I expect no one here to dream of becoming a pilot because there’s no one who is going to be a pilot!” I thought it was a joke but now I can sheepishly affirm that he was sincere in saying those words. We were in the wrong stream and there was no way we would become pilots.

Let me get to the crux of my subject, it’s so sad that sometimes we strongly adhere to imagination more than realism. We are not imagining that the status quo is spiraling to the gutter; that electricity, fuel and food prices increase with each passing day. It’s real! Why are we so doomed to wear imagination skins yet inside we are drenching in a pool of realism.

No wonder people die every day, no wonder there are so many break ups, fake relationships and there is so much anger in the world. The world is cruel; people are fake! Some have gone to the height of impressing other people while forgetting themselves.

Secrecy is a fairytale. The things that were considered as profane and an abomination in the past are now given a cold shoulder. The only thing the world offers is red lies after lies. This is painful!

If we can be realistic, it is when we will soon realise that working hard to get what we don’t have is a fundamental step in life. We would discover hidden talents even ourselves; self-discovery is another spice of life. Let us be realistic to ourselves all the time!

Wakhe Simelane