As old as prostitution

The oldest 'popular' profession. It is the sure sign of civilization
creeping into a town. When I served in my National Service year, I was
posted to a very small, border town called Ikom. I was far from home &
worried about being in a village pretending to be more than it was. So
I sought out the local brothel & found it (not for their services,
which I was assured, was pretty decent. I took their word for it.)
I discovered it & took 2 mental notes.
1. There was development going on, meaning lots of strangers showing
up as labour force, meaning they hadn't been there long enough to
patiently initiate 'romantic' affairs.
2. I would do all in my power to avoid that place. I'm a friendly guy,
the best prostitutes are tough & unforgiving. Best not to discover if
they can or can't take a joke.
Now what is as old as prostitution? Certainly not government, or
money. I think it must be raising a family.
Is that really work? Yes. It is. Ask any young mother. Success will
laud you, failure will haunt you, & there is no inbetween, only
degrees of both.
So in honour of the mothers in our lives, I decided to write this entry.
Very often, a mother is described as a gentle, nurturing agent of God
who is our first & strongest connection to the world. Look, the trust
a child has for its mother can't be quantified. Somewhere, deep in
your sub-conscious, you recall the effort put into your comfort, your
feeding, your safety, your first education, your play...that bearded
guy that smelled funny would often just be that thing called 'daddy'.
His efforts are not always recognised as being important in that
stage. But they are.
Between both of them, you were conceived, brought to full term,
birthed (let nobody deceive you, the hospital bills exist. No one is
really born for free), clothed, fed, groomed, raised, schooled...so
long as they're alive, you're their project.
I brought this up because I realise that I don't give that much credit
to my parents. I talk to them often enough, but to value them more
than I do now? Yeah, there's so much more room for that.
I once made the error of asking a girl to choose me over her dad (I
have knocked my head deeper than any of you ever could, so don't
worry. Lesson learned & will remain unrepeated)
I hadn't respected that bond as much as she did. I was pretty much
incorrigible as a child. I guess the image of a tree of money in the
village changed form in my mind, but its essence still stayed.
What I should have done was to respect her old man more. Don't have to
like him to respect him. If I was to love her as she deserved, I'd
respect him as she did.
Oh well. That's life for ya.

If you have the time, don't wait for father's day, or mother's day to
appreciate them. Just do it.

I hope to be married someday. I know I'll be involved in that
occupation. I know I'll be unappreciated by the kids because I offer
nothing from my paps (an old english word for tits) but my beating
heart underneath them. But that isn't enough to get me down. I'll
appreciate them. I won't wait for children's day to do so.
I'll also appreciate their mother. I won't wait for valentine's day to do so.

So...how about that women's U-20 silver medal, eh? Go falconets.

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