If I diligently crossed all my t’s and meticulously dotted all my i’s, what would be left for proof readers and sub editors. If ifs and ands were pots and pans there would be no works for tinker’s hands. Of course, if I’d the binocular eyes of the owl or the intrepid eyes of the eagle, I could see the tiny ant crawling underneath the Earth’s belly.
Regrettably, I don’t have them because I’m human and I’ve limitations. But my limitations are also my strength. And my strength overwhelmingly defines who I am. They truly define me. And they make me to be me.
Indeed in every profession, there are bound to be mistakes—some of them minor, some of them major and some of them cataclysmic. What I did on Wednesday falls under the latter’s category in my own description. Cataclysmic because it’s the biggest bullet (as we used to say back in college) I’ve ever fired in my careership.
I wrote this: “Does anybody has the video/audio of the Ghanaian women trapped in Saudi Arabia?” Yes I wrote that. I was looking for some information so this message wouldn’t sit aloof. I forwarded it to three WhatsApp platforms. Moments after, I noticed what I’d done. What went through my mind at the time is your best guess.
On two of the platforms, I prompted members about the mistake. Probably, some of them noticed it but didn’t mind. Probably some did not, or they did but overlooked it. Possibly to some that was nothing all they cared for was the nugget. And possibly some did notice it and tickled themselves. Nonetheless, nobody said anything to me.
How could he do that? How couldn’t I, my friend.
Don’t get it all twisted, I know that the infinitive have is always used with do, does and did. On the other hand, has is only used with third person singular. So the above statement ‘Does anybody… ‘You use the infinitive verb have. But it was bound to happen and it happened for a reason.
These are few examples I like to share: Does he swim? Yes he swims.
Another example John has the ball. Does he have it?
I’m not a paragon of the English Language. I make mistakes all the time. Some are typographical mistakes; some are due to android’s predictive act. Sometimes we aren’t ourselves. Something wasn’t right! I noticed that earlier in the day. My pressure was soaring. How high? It was high.
Sometimes the chaffs find themselves in the midst of the refined grains. They slip through the cracks. And even in big establishments such as The Financial Times, The New York Times, The Guardian or The Washington Post these glitches and hitches occur.
But they’re there, some for a reason: A reason sometimes we’ve no knowledge of and cannot control. Be reminded: “Out of bad came something good and out of the rotten came something sweet.” Also out of the ‘unclean’ our Lord was born just remember that. Jesus died for a reason. He’d power to disappear or cause his crucifiers to sink to the bottomless pit. Yet, he succumbed to death so that you and I would have salvation. The greatest news is: He conquered death!
I’m my own editor, my own proof reader and my own sub editor. I write under intense pressure. I steal time to write my write-ups while at work. My day is normally packed with action. I look over my shoulders to get things done –often at a breakneck speed. I felt I was breaking down. I was dog-tired.
‘Slow down buddy, take a rest today and recalibrate yourself,’ the little voice whispered into my ears. Simply put, retreat and reload. I thought that was a smart idea. Indeed the soul was willing but the flesh was super tired!
I’ve good people who yearn for my early breakfast. I’ve readers itching to have my brunch, lunch and supper depending on which part of the planet they live. Thursday found me in great shape. I felt so refreshed so rejuvenated. I was still in bed at 7:00 O’clock in the morning (Pacific Time). I’d the urge to grab my phone and checked what was trending. Sooner than later I came across this on Ghana TC Radio chartroom:
“Missing my morning read! Where is my motivational thought-provoking Gordon?” Gonza queried.
And I responded: ‘I’m sorry I couldn’t serve you breakfast this morning my brother Gonza and all fellas on this august platform. God willing I will be back…”
What does the scripture say? “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me,” John 10:27 (KJV).
I feel indebted to my numerous readers on, Facebook, Ghanaweb.com, modernghana.com, choice FM platform, GT Radio chartroom (via WhatsApp) etc. Folks you’re the reason I keep fighting like a bison almost every day or week by week. You’re the reason my adrenalin gets pumped up to do more and more. Indeed, you’re the reason even when I’m tired I crave to push myself through the cracks and get my head above the chilling waters. That’s the profound satisfaction I get each day I read your inspiring comments.
English dictionary defines the word perseverance as: Persistence in doing something despite difficulty or delay in achieving success. For example medicine is a field which requires dedication and perseverance. .
Perseverance’s twin sister is endurance: Online dictionary defines endurance as: the fact or power of enduring an unpleasant or difficult process or situation without giving away.
Have you ever felt or come close to the limit of these two powerful words?
Or do you have what it takes to withstand wear and tear?
In 2007 around December I’d cortisone shot at ‘Good Sam’. A Samaritan nurse who was with us in the theatre room seemed shocked. And early 2008 I’d two more shots. “This is your last shot you cannot take anymore, “the doctor told me.
In all three shots, I refused to have them numb my body or provide anesthesia to me. Anesthetic is a drug that produces a complete or partial loss of feeling. Or it is temporary induced state with one or more of analgesia (relief from or prevention of pain) paralysis (muscles relaxation).
Later the nurse asked me after my physician Doctor Derick had drilled the long needle inside my low back: “How could you do that without a flinch?”
It’s endurance you’ve to prepare the mind for it, I told her. We all break down sometimes. Sometimes we fall. The wise fall, the rich fall, the poor fall, the great fall. Have you forgotten Samson fell? Who else comes to mind quickly? Oh, King David and his son Solomon –the wisest king.
Its human nature, we’re weak and meek. But at the same time we’re wonderfully and fearfully made to endure, to persevere, to be tenacious and to be bold. Therefore, don’t let your mistakes hold you back or tear you apart, because not everyone sees your mistake as a failure. As matter of fact more than the majority often appreciates what you do and what you bring to the fore.
So, remember what defines you is your ability to horn your talent, to get back on your commanding legs when you hit the rock bottom or when you think you’ve had the biggest fall—the cataclysmic. Talent is innate everyone has it. It’s shaped by mistakes and blunders. It’s shaped by correctness and success.
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