A Literary Christmas

"So you want a story I will tell you one"

Once upon a time an exhausted young lady wandered into a mall to engage in some retail therapy.As she went about her window shopping she went into a bookstore in pursuit of a classic novel her meagre student allowance could afford and then she saw it. A brand new blue paper back. But what struck her the most were the writings on the cover. 'And The Mountains Echoed, ' by the author of the critically acclaimed novels 'The Kite Runner' and 'A Thousand Splendid Suns.' She smiled. She stared. She sighed. She swore she would marry anyone who bought her that book for her birthday.
So every so often she would pass by the bookshop and dream about the day she would get lost in those four hundred pages.

Long story short, she did. And it was worth the wait. Khaled Hosseini hypnotized her with every carefully chosen word. He has a gift, no wonder she a bit too boldly admits he is her favourite author. (She did this even in front of those bookshop attendants who looked at her like she was from an alien planet.) In the five days it took to finish the book, she was lost. Lost in time, as his story spanned decades. Lost in space,  because this time he didn't limit his setting to Afghanistan. This time, he took her to The Island of Tinos in Greece, San Francisco, Paris, even Kenya.  She didn't just read a best seller this time. No. She read a work of art.  And it was the best Christmas Gift anyone could have given her.

Sadly, I don't switch between first person and third person as gracefully as Khaled does. But I couldn't end this piece without adding a personal touch. I had a lovely Christmas thanks to that book. 
And as I dread the new year and the change it often brings, I am grateful for those things whose beauty remains unchangeable like that feeling you get when you read a great piece of writing. Cheers to all the great writers out there. Thank you for your timeless talent.

And lastly a Happy belated Christmas loved ones and have a beautiful blessed new year.

RIP DEAR MANDELA

 Ever notice how it always rains whenever a great person passes on?

I think that's how you know you lived an extraordinary life: when even nature is aware of your demise.

The first biography I ever read was a simple little book about a man called Nelson Mandela. I read it when I was about ten years old and I loved the story. I fell in love with the dream he had; a South Africa free from racial inequality. And I loved how he did everything he could to see this dream come to pass. As the world celebrates his life and grieves his demise, I too am feeling it. So dear Mandela, R.I.P.
The world shall surely miss you.

From my diary: The Danger of a Single Story

The following is a slightly edited excerpt from one of the few pages of my diary that are public.

Dear Diary,

X is such a bitch. Apparently she did something terrible to Y who is such a sweet person. I mean seriously, she had no right to over react like that.

I remember when Person 1 told me this story at the back of my mind I couldn't help but wonder if I would have done any better. If I was in X's body living her life with her personality would I have acted any differently? The more I think about it, the more I am convinced that there is more to her story and maybe just maybe we are all judging her a little bit too harshly.

Today in class we watched a powerful TED talk delivered by Chimamanda Adichie. It was titled 'The Danger of A Single Story' and in it she goes on about how the west has this skewed perception of Africa because they only hear our story from one negative perspective. To sum it up she states that the single story creates stereotypes and these stereotypes are incomplete because they rob people of their dignity.

After watching that video I became even more convinced of how wrong we are to judge X. Whether in literature or in real life it is wrong to limit our understanding to the knowledge gained from considering only one perspective. So what is her story? Why is she the way she is? Underneath the aggression and drama she is associated with is a beautiful story and I will never get to know it unless I shed  that negative stereotype and I find out more. Not so I can use this knowledge to destroy but so that I am able to see the beauty in her.

So I made 3 resolutions today:
1. I will talk to X. The only way I will understand her is by hearing the story from her perspective.
2. I will drop my earphones and instead listen to the beautiful stories around me. I seek not to be an individual who views the world with the knowledge of one story; one perspective.
3. I will read all of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's books. I'll take her advice. She is a great orator. It's time to see her from another angle.

I do hate how I missed her( Chimamanda's) lecture. But the cost of going all the way to the other side of Uhuru Highway and missing my dear Mr.Z's lecture was too great a sacrifice.

Funny thing is how I don't see myself getting an A in Philosophical Anthropology but the tiny nuggets of random wisdom I gain as I listen to those lectures make it totally worthwhile.

Love,Megan.

PS.
Here is the link to that phenomenal TED talk....

http://blog.ted.com/2009/10/07/the_danger_of_a/

December 3rd 2013.