MANDELA: FIVE SENSES OF CITIZENSHIP

A story on active citizenship will never be complete without words on Mandela and his strides as he lived his life here on earth. He is an example to us of what ought to be, how we ought to interact with our environment and how to live and not merely exist. His type of citizenship permeates all five human senses. We will discuss Mandela in Five senses in two series. We hope you find the first interesting.

SIGHT.

Mandela not merely walked with his eyes open but walked with all senses alert while he saw and observed his immediate environment. The goal for every individual in any given environment should as a matter of necessity include paying attention to detail, to see what everyone may or may not see or to see what everyone sees and look beyond what everyone sees with the aim of seeing what everyone cannot see.

This becomes important in the journey towards a sustainable world. That citizens all over the world engage in a fierce fight of living and not just existing. The ability to achieve this lies majorly in our ability to observe situations in our environment  and taking steps to fix same while channeling our talents and abilities.

Mandela was a citizen of South Africa with a vision of a better world. He saw each day as an opportunity to push his world closer to the position that it ought to be.  The importance of vision cannot be underestimated in any human endeavor, thus, our interaction with our environment must be with vision and not mere activities without proper structure or definite goals targeted at ensuring a better and sustainable world.

He saw the white domination, glaring inequalities just as seen by many, but his sight of these was with a difference; he observed with keen interest to identify root causes, areas of intervention and befitting strategies

Our failure to observe will throw the world into darkness, the one that already exists in some facet s of life though our encounters with it are unequal. Darkness that might plague our goals of sustainability; our ability to leave a better world for our children and generations to come.

TOUCH

The story of the lives touched by Mandela will never be forgotten. He touched an entire nation with his bravery and resolve for a better world against all odds. He touched the sacred cows and touched the then vulnerable. He felt pain for himself and on behalf of others and decided that something could be done. He was tapped by life situations and he answered with fierce determination to change the narratives and change the realities of what may be felt for generations to come. He touched the future through his reaction to his realities.

SMELL

Perception plays a key role in our reaction to situations. It is possible for many to identify a problem but our perception of the problem may differ. For Mandela, the black-white binary made no sense and he worked on his perception. He perceived the chaos it portends, the inequality that would unsettle our world, the resistance that may create more problems if not addressed with immediate effect and he worked out his reaction based on calculated strategies.

 

What’s your vision for a better world and what are you doing about it? Think about these before you read our next post and our tips on becoming an active citizen.

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