OUR VALUES

Africa is normally mistaken for a country because of the many things its nations share including values.  Values are what makes us who we are.  Each continent,country,clan, family and individuals have their own values and they should all be respected.  We have two critical problems these days concerning culture and values...either we don't appreciate our own cultures or we force the rest of the world to follow our cultures!   We are very easy to judge and condemn others of their cultures.  You find a Nigerian mother spanking her child then you go around saying she is violating human rights!!  You see a Ugandan paying dowry and say they buy and sell women in Uganda!! You meet an American with a tongue piercing and call her a slut!! It is absurd! Every one should appreciate and uphold their culture and understand and respect that of another person.

You will agree with me that Africa is loosing its values day by day.  Our cultural values are being diluted each day that passes by and we will soon find ourselves with no values or identity at all.  Honestly we have no one to blame but ourselves.  We are loosing  our values because we don't even know what they are.  So, if we don't know then who is to teach our children? who is to pass them to the next generations?  We are raising children who have nothing in their heads concerning their culture and values, and as you know an empty mind is the devil's workshop! anything can be shoved in their heads because they are empty.  These children will grow up to have no direction or identity whatsoever, confused of who they are and what they should uphold.

It is your duty as a parent, as an adult and as an African to pass down our values to the youngsters.  In order to do this, we must first know these values, practice them and internalize  them.  

In the next few weeks we shall have a series focusing on the essential values that African nations share and how we can uphold them or revive them, and suggestions on how best to implant them to our children especially for the Africans in the diaspora.  Comments, suggestions and ideas are all welcome.

Until then, stay blessed.