Currently,
coronavirus has left some of us to reflect on certain issues, mostly affecting
men. I look back and sufficiently realised my father had fulfilled a substantial
role in my life. Simply because he has typically exhibited salient traits of
how dear children should be naturally raised, as much as he is protective.
Heartfelt
thanks to him because I am bold, independent, outspoken, generous, and I am
proud of myself although sometimes mistakes are made, I manage to make sober
decisions that will adversely impact my life positively.
I wonder
where such father figures went to. Although in African homes, there's a
constant reminder that most of the young men leave their parent's house at the
age of 18 to fend for themselves, that's all about responsibility. What about
their emotional font? Have we ever sat down to think of how best these young
men can be mentored into responsible adults? Whereby they can maintain a
certain direction in life and can properly handle their profound emotions,
without falling for peer pressure, the brown bottle or a box of cigarettes as a
form of comfort?
In the
historical past, boys grew up with father figures who carefully guided their
steps and showed them how to properly handle people.
Sadly, in
today's society, some of the fathers/guardians today, have left the boys
seamlessly transitioning to men to be raised by the internet of things,
celebrities, and quite influential media. The cultural tradition is relatively
clear that; only weak men cry; for this reason, they hold in all the
frustrations and anger within, and unfortunately, the emotional baggage lands
in the hands of our children and women who are used as punching bags or weight
lifters of this terrible menace.
From the
multiple sources of local news, there has been an increasing trend of wounded
men. These reflect on their action to kill their partners/family or emotionally
destroy them since that's their sole outlet for anger. This is a worrying trend
that typically demands a lot of considerable attention.
Otherwise,
we are raising a modern generation of feeble men, who lack morals or mutual
respect for people around them. With all this happening, do father figures
still exist? I wonder if they would, how the modern world would be.
I genuinely
believe there is a need to powerfully build or willingly offer safe spaces for
both boys and men, to comfortably reach out for help. Hence curbing the
development of toxic relations and building incredible beneficial relationships
with everyone they come across.