I have heard people say over and over again that 'life begins at 40' I have unsuccessfully tried to comprehend this saying but I could not until I met a 'wise man' who tried to give meaning. Did I understand the meaning he gave to the saying 15 years ago? Let us read on.
The wise man explained that life is in stages of tens; from 1 to 10, he explained that it makes no sense to expect any meaningful actions from the child. Mothers wash their clothes, bath them and provide everything for their upkeep. From 11 to 20, there is gradual development into adulthood with the last third of the ten years being the most difficult. Difficult because, most children seek independence without significant financial capacity. 21-30 most youth leave school into some form of employment, family establishment and financial capacity development. Between 31-40 it is expected that a person is certain as to what direction they are taking in life.
I have watched, prayed, hustled, pumped, pushed and pulled in life. At 40, it is time to pause and assess myself to be sure if I have a certain direction in life. My direction, depending on my upbringing, experiences and expectations may be different from yours but there must be a converging point if we are all moving in the right direction. Your right direction may end in an abyss or up the sky depending on whether it is controlled well or not.
I can not count my 40 years on earth as a failure nor very successful but I can indicate with confidence that it is on the right track. Born in a village of current population of less than 1500 some 40 years ago, (at a national population growth rate of 2.7%, the population 40 years ago should be below 700) life's opportunities were less, no lights, no potable water, no good roads, no televisions, no quality education then. Modern life was centuries away at the time I was born in my village.
I was not unfortunate though because I was born to a trained teacher (he was one of the most educated in Amanya then). He wanted me to be more educated than himself having traveled to Takoradi for his education; he knew what it meant to be educated in a modern environment with all the goodies available to most villages today. I had a good foundation from home, moved on to Most Holy Heart in Accra, back to Tapa Amanya United Primary; now R. C. School where I started, then to Jasikan Demonstration Primary, Jasikan Junior Secondary, Hohoe E, P, Secondary and ended at Jasikan Training College. All these happened before I turned 21 years. It was good but he was dissatisfied. His usual statement was; 'go as high on the educational ladder as you can and my heart will be satisfied and I can die a happy man'
At 28 years, I took a bold decision to pursue higher education to improve my person, bring happiness to the man who wants his son to climb as high as his ability can carry him in education and to contribute to the development of my community and country. I went to the University of Education, Winneba for my first degree then continued to University of Ghana, Legon for my second degree. At exactly 40 years, the new direction on the educational and professional journey is an admission into the University of Ghana School of Law. It appears unending as friends and family keep saying another 4 years of learning is too much.
There are the family, job, employment, affiliation and relation dimensions to my 40 years of existence. In oder not to bore you, it will be in another part. If you ever called me a role model, ask yourself if you still want to be in school at age 40.
