Azuma came in with a corn in hand, whistles, a hen from no where came: kok! kok! kok!, continued dispersing the corn in his possession till they were all consumed by the hen. It stares at him, rubbed it’s long beak on the floor, shook its feathers and flew hoping to get additional food nearby. The actions of the hen lingered long on the mind of Azuma, he shook his head saying, there’s a hen in humanity too.
This is what I observed on a visit I paid to my elder brother’s farm over the weekend. Truly, there’s a hen in us! A hen is a domestic bird which has a small food storage unit, however, it eats from morning till late evening without showing any sign of satisfaction. Linking this analogy to human lifestyle brings to bare the “attitude of ungratefulness”. The gratitude and thankfulness exhibited in the previous generations have all disappeared! Ingratitude is becoming an integral part of our society, making people with generous heart find it difficult to show kindness to their fellows. If you ask most people if they are ungrateful, they will probably reply, “Of course not!” However, this attitude is so ingrained in their lives, they cannot openly admit—or even realize—that they are ungrateful, but unexpressed gratitude is also ingratitude! Feeling gratitude without expressing it is like wrapping a present without presenting it.
A reference from the Christian Biblical perspective in the Gospel according to Luke 17:17(RSV) reads, “…..Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine?” Jesus made this proclamation after healing the ten lepers at Samaria. Clearly, Jesus’ himself inquired for an applause after a good deed, how much more mere mortals? Ghanaian youth, especially those who want admission into the various training and nursing colleges, and graduates who are aiming to get employment always complain about protocols, whom you know, sex for jobs as elements serving as stumbling blocks to their breakthrough. Factually, the root cause of all these is as a result of Ghanaians attitude of ungratefulness.
A typical Ghanaian has a short term memory of remembrance and appreciation in terms of paying back a good deed. No human being is self sufficient, we all need some assistance from the people around us. If so, why are we so ungrateful to those who’ve helped us before? Most people have sacrificed their time, energy and finance to push their fellow brothers, sisters and neighbours to the top of the mountain hoping to get some good returns after they’ve seen the broad daylight. Sadly, they are paid back with a price of ungratefulness. Most Ghanaians are abroad as a result of a support they received from some loyal people, however, instead of paying them back, the story is entirely different. More importantly, most people have been able to achieve academic credentials through the support of generous people who’re not their biological parents, however, the hen in them exploded when it mattered the most to show gratefulness and appreciation.
The Akan’s normally say, “papayε asa”, all because of the ungratefulness exhibited by the multitude of Ghanaians. Nevertheless, there are people out there who have written every small and big kindness received boldly in their hearts and hence they’re willing to recompense their philanthropists both spiritual and physical as a token of their appreciation.
This shows we must not give up in showing kindness no matter our previous experiences. Most people in some families, our communities and our country are finding it extremely difficult to get the needed push in life as a result of what their predecessors did when they had the favour. We’ve become too cynical, caring less about the next generation after we have maneuver our ways to pass through the channel.
There is no doubt that a man must depend on his fellow man for his well-being, but it becomes unfortunate when one intends to ignore the hands that raised him or her from grass to grace. There are occasions when the demonstration by another of a good-will, sympathy, compassion, and the willingness to help a soul can be of a great morale to a person’s attempts to achieve one’s aims. Life in a way is a mutual aid and when one grants you his love, time, resources, only to mention a few, never be ungrateful.
Human life is considered an endless drama of struggles. Life is war! Given the inadequacies of one’s talents, skills, aptitudes and zeal, and the fact that these elements differs in the face of humanity. This endless drama of pain and flaws is conquered with hands, therefore we must not be ungrateful when we are graced by a gilded hands. Sadly, we later ignore such supportive hands and label them as insignificant. According to 2Samuel 9:1(NIV), David asked, “Is there anyone still left of the house of Saul to whom I can show kindness for Jonathan’s sake?” David showed kindness to Mephibosheth as a result of being grateful to the sacrifices Jonathan offered to save his life.
This clearly shows the enormous benefits that can accrue to us and the generation to come when we develop the attitude of gratitude in our various walks of life. No man is an island, because it’s human beings that count in times of need. Your luxuries will never answer you when feeling motionless on your sick bed. Therefore, lets all be grateful to the little kindness that comes our ways in order to pave way to the next generation for gratitude is the best attitude. Let’s kick out the hen in us so that generous people can continue to give alms without regrets.