Human lives have value too

As a man walked his dog along the road in Toronto the other day, I watched. I watched surreptitiously of course because is not yard mi deh where gawking and glaring is common practice. No, this is di people dem good-good foreign where 'it's not polite to stare'. But dem can gwaan talk, mi still screechy and stare. Yeah, mi hide and pree!

So, I watched intently as the little dog dropped generous loads of fresh faeces on to the grassy walkway and wagged her tail happily as the man smiled and said, 'good doggie!' And I continued to watch as the dog then sat back in contented expectation and joined me in watching the nice elderly gentleman as he stooped down with his little 'pooper-scooper' bag, collected the poop, tied it neatly, and then dropped the bag into his jacket pocket.

thinking seriously

I had a number of reactions. There was the involuntary wringing up of my face into a tight knot, shaking my head and exclaiming 'ewww!' That happened while several imagined scenarios flashed through my head, including a scene where an old friend suddenly hugs that man and gets up close and personal with a new cologne called 'crushed K9 number 2'. Eventually though, I got to thinking seriously about how that simple scenario reflected the inequitable balance of our reality, as encapsulated in that old Jamaican saying, 'Jackass say di world nuh level'.

proper facilities

Yeah peeps! Life nuh fair. I couldn't help pondering on the fact that nuff baby boys and girls deh bout who need, but aren't getting that kind of attention. I also started thinking about the idea that we're living in a world where there are still schools and homes in some countries with pit latrines, and there are communities in Jamaica and elsewhere without proper facilities for human beings to tend to their bodily emergencies with a sense of dignity, but here a way is lovingly facilitated for this little doggie to do her business. Strange world, eh?

According to the United Nations refugee agency, at least 880 migrants and refugees died trying to cross the Mediterranean this past week. And no big vigil is held. No strident expressions of sadness is heard. But officials at a zoo in Cincinnati had to make a difficult and painful decision between the life of a small child and a 400 pound primate and everybody up in arms. Yeah, folks, 880 human beings died trying to escape war and poverty and no drum nuh beat or if it beat it the volume low because me nuh hear it. You hear anything? No. But loud weeping, wailing, and gnashing of implants and dentures is currently sweeping the entire world over the death of a gorilla.

Weird, don't it? Look here nuh, talking about weird, I know many unemployed graduates. I'm sure you know a few too. I also know many bright, talented and creative souls who are hungry for some kind of earning opportunity. Nothing is happening for them though. But a recorded voice note of a near-literate person exposing his/her ignorance goes viral, and braps that person is now an entertainer getting paid to do dub plates and specials. Just so.

It's really a strange and far-from-level world, this over-heated, battered blue ball called earth that we humans inhabit. If it coulda just spin likkle slower, I would jump off. How 'bout you?

box-mi-back@hotmail.com.