Maya Angelou: Poet Extraordinaire!

ANYONE who has been inspired, challenged, and sustained by the written word will agree with me that the death of celebrated US author, poet, actress, philanthropist and civil rights activist, Maya Angelou, 86, is a sad development.

Maya Angelou was indeed an epitome of a phenomenal woman. She won three Grammys, spoke six languages and was the second poet in history to recite a poem at a presidential inauguration.

But what really stands out to me most about Maya Angelou is not necessarily what she has done or written or spoken, it’s how she lived her life.

By the time she reached 40 she had been a professional dancer, prostitute, madam, lecturer, activist, singer and editor. She had worked with Martin Luther King and Malcolm X, lived in Ghana and Egypt, toured Europe with a dance troupe and settled in pretty much every region of the United States.

We all can learn a lot from the life of this absolutely wonderful, inspirational woman. She taught self strength, honesty, love, respect, belief and moved through the world with unshakeable calm, confidence and a fierce grace.

Maya was an iconic figure of faith, perseverance, fortitude, and peace. Literary giant. Advocate of women and all equality. Maya is not just the United State's jewel, she is the world's precious soul.

Maya Angelou once wrote, "I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel."

We'll certainly never forget how you made us feel, Maya.

Rest in peace Dr. Maya Angelou. We all know however, that great people don't die. They live through their words from generation to generation.
Sent from my BlackBerry® smartphone provided by Airtel Zambia.

The Amazing Story Of Stephen Sutton

THE name Stephen Sutton may not ring a bell to most fellow citizens.

Stephen was a British blogger and charity activist known for his blog "Stephen's Story" and his Teenage Cancer Trust charity for the aid of teenagers with cancer.

Stephen, from Burntwood in Staffordshire, England, was first diagnosed with bowel cancer aged 15, and was told in December 2012 that his condition was incurable.

Stephen passed away peacefully in his sleep in the early hours of Wednesday May 14, 2014 aged 19.

The most amazing thing about Stephen's story is how this young man courageously faced his illness.

Sutton, who initially set himself a target of trying to raise £10000 for the Teenage Cancer Trust, raised more than £3m for charity after his story was publicised.

Hundreds of thousands of people around the world have supported his fundraising efforts for the Teenage Cancer Trust since he posted a picture of himself in hospital in April with a goodbye message as he thought he was nearing death. Among them was Prime Minister David Cameron.

Stephen did not only manage to inspire a nation to donate to a good cause but also made millions of people around the world to appreciate and make the most of their lives, to be positive and brave in the face of adversity.

This young man also taught the world that life isn't about how long we are here but what we do with the time that we get. Whilst his life was far too short, he achieved some tremendous goals than most of us can achieve in a dozen lifetimes.

What an amazing person this young lad was. He was indeed a true inspiration and if more people had his wonderful attitude to life, then this world would be an infinitely better place.

Stephen has done so much to help with the fight against cancer and to bring to the attention of so many people, young and old that this disease has no respect for age, gender or creed.

His attitude towards his life and his illness has inspired not just me, but many, many people around the world to look at their lives in a different way.

The courage and grace shown by this young man in the face of a battle he knew he was never gonna win is inspiring and should both give hope to those in need and bring shame to those of us who are forever complaining about our lot in life.

To Stephen I say, thank you for making such an impact and for being you. You were, are and will continue to be an inspiration to millions.

You'll always be remembered as a brilliant human being and a complete and utter legend who made a difference.

May Stephen's gentle soul rest in peace and his family be comforted in the knowledge that he has truly made a difference to this world.

To you the reader I say, Stephens race is run but we must continue in the hope that just a little of his strength and generosity rubs off on us all so that we can learn to help others as he has done.

Perhaps then we might all leave behind a small addition to Stephen's wonderful legacy.

Rest in peace Stephen, your legacy will be carried on by those who have been inspired by your story.

End Of An Era

DROPPED jaws and stunned faces characterised the Mercedes-Benz Superdome for WrestleMania XXX when the unthinkable happened on The Grandest Stage of Them All Sunday night: Brock Lesnar attained the Holy Grail of WrestleMania feats and ended The Streak.

I'm quite upset and still in shock. And it's not the fact that The Undertaker lost that upsets most. It's who he lost to.

Brock isn't a wrestler. He is a part timer, and him breaking the streak is a direct disrespect to the likes of Kane, Triple H, Shawn Michaels and CM Punk among others.

And I don't care whether Brock Lesnar is "The Beast Incarnate". To have a once a month wrestling piece of stool like Brock Lesnar defeat The Undertaker was about the most disgraceful way to end the streak.

If that was going to happen then it should have been done by a wrestler who has been there and devoted their time to WWE and who wrestles every week.

The Authority could have got any wrestler and I mean anyone but Lesnar to break the streak!

The streak has been so instrumental in giving WrestleMania that intriguing component that the WWE Universe has been having for this Pay Per View.

This WrestleMania would have gone down in history as the greatest of all time for the fact that Daniel Bryan and The Yes Movement finally had their dream come true.

But no one is going to really remember WrestleMania 30 for Daniel Bryan overcoming the odds and finally having his moment.

People will remember WrestleMania 30 for The Undertakers streak ending and the stunned and shocked looks on everyone's faces as it ended.

I made a promise that if The Authority allow Brock Lesnar defeat The Undertaker at WrestleMania, I quit watching wrestling altogether. I'm not going back on that promise.

Yes, I've been a wrestling fan if not addict since the early 90's. Being a long term wrestling fan and seeing this sport flourish in the 90's and Taker being "The Man", I'll be upset and frustrated for quite some time. I don't think I will enjoy wrestling like I've always done.

I feel WWE should have allowed The Deadman retire a winner. How pathetic of WWE to end an era like that. On Sunday April 6, 2014, WWE screwed WWE Universe. Professional wrestling just died on Sunday night.

And with that said, I have officially resigned from watching WWE.

Long live The Undertaker. Long live Deadman and Rest In Peace WWE!!!

MMD SUFFERS FROM POLITICAL CANCER

THE statement by People’s Democratic Party (PDP) President George Mpombo that no amount of political tinkering will redeem MMD made an interesting read.
It’s just this past Friday when I met Mr Mpombo in person for the first time at Ndola’s Mint Cafe situated at Jacaranda Mall.
A very close friend of mine had sought an audience with Mr Mpombo and asked me to accompany him.
In the 45 minutes my friend and I spent with Mr Mpombo, I remember him saying something to us that made me liken what is happening in the former ruling party to a person who is drowning.
Those who have studied the art of swimming refute the claims that rip-currents pull people under. It’s not the case.
People drown because they panic, become exhausted, and are not a strong enough swimmer to at least tread water.
Panic makes you fight the current and exhaust yourself. In a crisis of any kind, staying calm lets your survival instincts tell you how to survive. On the other hand, panic paralyses the mind and body, often sealing your fate.
This is exactly what is happening in the MMD. The MMD has been in a panic mode even before Rupiah Banda got elected as President of this country.
I am sure we all remember how the MMD prior to the 2008 presidential by-elections hired foreign image-builders for their candidate which we all know never worked.
If MMD managed to win the 2008 presidential by-elections it’s only because they chose to ride on the legacy of the late president Levy Mwanawasa (MHSRIP).
And who has forgotten how in trying to hoodwink the electorate, the Rupiah-led regime embarked on speedy developmental projects just before the September 2011 tripartite elections?
This is the period we saw words like “unprecedented” given a whole new meaning.
MMD as a party has done so much public relations damage it will take a miracle to save them from annihilation.
What amazes me is the stubborn attitude from certain members of this party.
If the MMD have no ears to listen to the cries of those who don’t want to see the MMD go into oblivion, they will be made to listen in some other way.
MMD is suffering from a cancerous tumour that destroys not only itself but also everything else around it.
No amount of cosmetic surgery will help to redeem or beautify MMD’s soiled image and the sooner its leaders realise this better for the party.

What A Gloomy Weekend For Soccer Fans

THIS past weekend, Sunday to be precise, had been a gloomy one for soccer fans and Zambian football in general.

The day started with the news of the untimely death of former Zanaco coach Keegan Mumba and ended on a worst note when our envoys in the CAF Confederation Cup Zesco United Football Club and CAF Champions League representatives, Nkana FC, got eliminated from their respective competitions despite the former defeating Ghana’s Medeama Sporting Club 1 – 0 in the return leg of the second round played at Mwanawasa Stadium.

Nkana on the other hand suffered one of its worst defeats at the hands of Egyptian giants Zamalek in Cairo.

It understandable to lose to a team like Zamalek. But there is losing with dignity and losing 5 - 0 really borders on national embarrassment.

Moreover the Egyptian league was in recess at some point due to political turmoil in that country. Zamalek is not expected to be so high up there to beat Zambia’s champions 5-0. That kind of outclassing is for real amateur opposition. Orlando Pirates beat Zamalek in Egypt so what excuse can our local league champions give?

I personally don't accept that scoreline from the best of our league. It's very embarrassing. I am very disappointed with my team Nkana. The mediocrity they displayed on the pitch on Sunday left me wondering whether  they really know that their bread and butter depend on delivering positive results.

Perhaps it's about time someone reminded our local players that it's not the gate takings in our local league that pay their salaries. They should know that allowances they get come from other people's sweat.

Ours is not the English Premier League where funds are generated from everywhere. Here they have to perform so that they go somewhere and make money for their future.

And now I'm beginning to think Chritopher Katongo was right after all. I think Katongo is now being vindicated.

Our local players lack consistency. They lack the character to fight for the betterment of their future.
Our current crop of players also lack in terms maturity, exposure, mental strength, tenacity, discipline and experience to play at the international level.

And I'm not only directing this at Nkana FC players but every player in any sport in this country.

These things are cardinal and we should trivialize them at our own peril. Yes being young and skillful is an added advantage but it's not enough. Confidence is something that's built over time through properly arranged systems. Players should be well fed to gain proper physical statures.

As a Kalampa fan I can only wonder what my team will do differently when they get a chance to redeem themselves in the Confederation Cup when they go into the knock-out round draws.

And let me send my heartfelt condolences to the family of the late Keegan Mumba and the Zambian soccer community.

Mumba was one of Zambia’s most dynamic coaches and it is a great loss not only to the football fraternity but the country at large. May his soul rest in peace.

I Will Not Wait Until I'm Married

MY good friend and fellow political and social commentator Sishuwa Sishuwa gave me a courtesy call this past week. We had not being in physical contact for over a year so we had a lot of stuff to share and talk about.

We talked about politics, our country's economy, school and for the first in a very long while, we touched the subject of love and relationships. And we didn't just end there. We also explored the reasons why despite couples tying knots every weekend, marriages are getting dissolved in courts nearly every week.

Now, I know someone somewhere might be wondering what two single young adults who have never been married before could possibly know about marriage let alone why some marriages fail.

Well, it seems kind of self-righteous and arrogant to suggest that anyone who isn't married can't understand concepts like commitment, imperfection as a powerful life teacher and the value of personal space in a relationship or marriage if you wish.

I don't think the ability to understand fundamental truths about human connection has anything to do with whether you're married or not. It has to do with the state of your mind, your heart and your emotional investment in relating to yourself and other human beings.

Personally, I'm not going to wait until I'm married to understand what makes a marriage fail. Yes you read it right. I said, what makes a marriage fail.

From what I have observed, a lot of marriages fail to work because people are not really taught what causes marriages to fail in the first place. Society seem to concentrate much on what makes marriage successful.

Perhaps it's because the Originator and Designer of marriage never intended it to end in divorce. And let's face it, I doubt if there's any honest being out there who would get married with divorce in mind. Even those who sign prenuptials still hope their marriage would last forever.

However, inasmuch as it is important to know what makes marriage work, I think it is just as important to know what makes it not to work. I think couples should go through serious and intense counselling before marriage so they understand what to expect, but better yet, what not to expect in marriage.

People need to know about the tell-tale signs of a union doomed for failure. Just because two individuals have agreed to wed doesn't mean they should go ahead and tie the knot.

Most marriages out there are like forced careers. Anyone in formal employment has probably come across a workmate who told them they never liked their job and if it weren't perhaps for their parents or circumstances, they would have gone for a career of their choice.

This is the case with some of the marriages out there. There are people who are in marriages because of pressure from either family or society. People have ended up marrying partners they never truly loved just to appease their families or society.

Such marriages are bound to fail and no amount of teaching from bana chimbusa or alangizi will make it work.

Another thing why most marriages fail is the misconception in our society that marriage is for everyone.

It's only a month ago when I refuted through this paper the remarks by a named PF member of parliament  who claimed that men are useless without women.

People need to understand that marriage is not for everyone. I've met young men and women who want to "get married" and not "be married." And these people don't seem to necessarily understand that distinction.

I feel such people have no business going into marriage because anyone who choose to settle down with someone should be willing to give up some privileges.

Honestly, why should a married man or woman befriend strange people of the opposite sex on social networks like Facebook?

On the other hand, I feel our society hasn't been kind or rather fair to people who choose not to marry if their reasons are anything but religious.

We should accept the reality that there are people out there who just want to lead a footloose and fancy-free type of life.

This reminds me of a sad story that was reported in the media a few years ago. A man in Nakonde killed himself after he failed to reconcile or rather tame his estranged wife. Apparently the two met in a bar and later got married. However, his wife would always go clubbing whenever he was out of town.

Today, the woman who has returned to her home town on the Copperbelt has never remarried but still patronise bars. The bemba say uwakalema takaleka. It's folly for anyone to go into a union with someone who has serious behavioural and social flaws.

I'm aware that nobody is perfect, but it is foolish for a woman to marry a man she knows is a womaniser and expect him to change once they get married.

The other reason I feel divorce cases are quite common nowadays is that there is no stigma associated with divorce like there used to be back in the day. So people don't value marriage as much, in my opinion. It's something fun to be used for awhile and then thrown away when they feel it has stopped working.

The older folks had a lot more respect for the institution of marriage. A ton of middle aged couples today get married and then start divorce proceedings at the first sight of hardship in their marriage.

Furthermore, some people go into marriage expecting perfection and have unrealistic expectations. There are people who think that after 10 plus years, they are gonna have that fuzzy feeling that they had when they first got married. That isn't the reality.

High expectations in marriage only lead to great disappointment,  frustration and disillusionment.

Marriage is not a wedding. It's not sunshine and lollipops. It's not a 50/50 but 100/100 affair.

Marriage is not we watch in Hollywood movies or read about in silly novelettes.

Marriage isn't supposed to be a fairy tale. It's a deeper commitment from "dating". It takes hard work. It's not giving up. It's fixing things when they bend, before they break. It's understanding that people do change but you can change and grow with them.

People need to understand that in marriage there will be days and moments when you will hit the point of not wanting to be around each other. But instead of giving up or resign in frustration, you fight hard to make it work.

Marriage is about understanding, communication, being loyal and loving your spouse and accepting the person they are and not what you think or feel they should be.

Marriage is not about sharing all things in common or having to like all the same things. You can be a book/intellectual geek and your spouse a video game/comic.

And marriage shouldn't be like what my friend Sishuwa referred to as a colony where one partner colonises the other.

And don't get me wrong, I'm not one of those liberals who think a woman can take the role of a man in a holy matrimony. I'm an old-fashioned guy who still believe that a man should be the provider, protector, leader and teacher in a marriage.

However, if there's no room for silliness and being yourself-ness, then something isn't right.

Marriage is not for the faint-hearted or easily offended. As humans, we can't be at our best behaviour all the time. No one is immune from making silly mistakes. But there should always be mutual respect between a man and his wife even in such times.

I remember the days when I was still on facebook reading angry updates from married men and woman that seemed to be targeted at their better half. It's not only inappropriate but quite childish to vent one's marital frustrations on social media. As as the late great PK Chishala nicely put it in his song "Ichupo Ninsansa", marriage is a private affair.

I don't subscribe to the notion that marriage is "shipikisha club" because if you nurture love delicately, through all its faults and rarity, it can be a wonderful experience of your lifetime.

With the right person by your side and someone you truly love, divorce can never be an option .

Love Goes Beyond Valentine's Day

IT has been said that there is hardly any activity, any enterprise, which is started with tremendous hopes and expectations, and yet, which fails so regularly as love.

Pardon my cynical statement on a day like this one but I was reading an article earlier this week on the Internet about a woman in New York who, just in time for Valentine's Day, has put up posters in subway cars looking for a man she fell for while riding the A line toward Brooklyn in November.

According to reports, this lady, who is a performance artist from Chile living in Manhattan, saw this man in the subway and liked him but before she could give him her email address and her art Web page, she lost him when more people got on the subway car.

This story reminds me of an episode of the US sitcom How I Met Your Mother titled "Desperation Day". One of the characters,  Barney, explained the story of Desperation Day, the day before Valentine's Day-that single women find themselves desperate and easy to hook up with on the eve of Valentine's Day.

Now, I will readily admit that I have no experience to assume the role of a life coach here. However, I don't think the ability to understand fundamental truths about human connection has anything to do with whether you're Dr Phil or Sis Dolly.

Being in a relationship is a great way for people to discover new things about themselves and develop better interpersonal skills. But should we rush into a relationship just because we don't want to be left out on Valentine's?

Rushing into anything especially a love relationship is never a good idea, even if it's love at first sight.

Perhaps I'm being old fashioned here but I'm not ashamed to say I still believe in that wonderful art of courting and speaking to somebody and learning to be friends before anything else happens.

With that said, I'm also very much aware of the fact that there are no standards that work with all people, every time, when it comes to love and relationships.

But as one blogger turned hit author Mandy Hale who is affectionately known around the world as “The Single Woman” correctly observed, "until you get comfortable with being alone, you'll never know if you're choosing someone out of love or loneliness."

Of course no one can deny that life is better lived together, but we should enter a relationship being happy and never bestow such huge responsibility on someone else. It is no one's  responsibility to make us happy. Happiness is one door that can only be opened from inside.

Today, many are stuck in un-loving relationships for fear of being alone. You don't have to be in a relationship to be happy. And you don't have to be with someone to enjoy Valentine's Day.  Really, one can be a whole number too. Let us learn to enjoy our company.

And if Valentine's Day is about love, are we not to remind ourselves that love is primarily about giving and not receiving? God reminds us of this cardinal lesson in John 3:16. I don't have to quote that verse as most of us can recite it with ease.

Congratulations to those who will spend today with someone truly special. Also, it should go without saying that the way you and your partner treat each other throughout the year makes difference to your enjoyment of Valentine's Day.

Sending texts, taking strolls, dining together, holding hands, hugging, kissing and sharing gifts should not only be displayed on Valentine's Day.

True love shows up 365 days a year and not just on February 14th.

Wishing a great and happy Valentine's Day to everyone.