The Optimist-3

Nahou wanted to find that one thing that would move the world, which would make him control the world like he’d imaginatively controlled the world with his minds, sending signal of his mind’s presence to every household. He wanted to be one with oxygen, to be inhaled in every breath, but wanted to last only as long as one breathe lasted. Nahou knew his source, he mastered his act; his endeavour was to make sure he got the power to make the world stop for a brief stare on him, just like Ninong-the mad-mad. Just one brief moment, not too much. As he pondered, the optimist listened. Sometimes, he thought as though The Optimist wasn't present. Other times, he felt as though The optimist was a complete nuisance. It was during these moments  he wished he was a cow which uses its tail to send away fleas. He was wishful he’d find a tail to swipe and scare The optimist whom he considered a thoughtful menace. Unfortunately, he felt as though he was a cow without a tail and as the people said, "cow wey e no get tail na God di driveam fly", he thought God would send The Optimist away. 

The Optimist wanted him to understand certain issues and felt obliged to clean the mist that settled on the screen of Nahou's brain.

“The people here are so mad but somehow they feel their madness are all keyed because they aren’t walking away “ntam-ntam ching” (patchy bare) like Ninong. Their madness have been normalised and validated and each time, you sane people go on a mad rampage you all see it as sanity.”

“How so?” Asked Nahou

“So you still haven’t understood me. That you cannot sit around and label someone mad because they run around naked, and because they feel liberated, mindless, harmless, and carefree. Ninong does not need to validate his actions. And that’s why I say, you all  have caged your insanity. For being sane is the ability to live the moment, not to become distracted. Sanity is the ability to think one thing, be involved in the moment of life and be happy in that moment. But oh oh! Sanity is so absent in today’s world. It is a highly distracted world. Those who seek more rubies and cowries have made things even worse...they’ve designed objects that have gripped the core of your daily lives. They've stolen a tremendous amount of the short span you humans have, and you live it day in day out-fidgeting with the gadgets they've created. While they get more rubies and cowries, all you do is improve your insanity. Minutely, daily, and monthly, some humans can't have access to anything else, but these gadgets. They are slaves to the gadgets they spend cowries and rubies to buy, and the masters control their minds, monitor their habits and push them to buy even more.”

“Hey The Optimist, you've gone too far, and I have lost the page we were reading.” Responded Nahou.

"Sorry, I was somewhere more advanced, understanding advanced practices. Maybe, I’ll have to visit there. These people are happy in the ability of not focusing on one thing, of not getting the maximum results out of concentration. Happiness is about scanning through profile pictures, liking, commenting, and laughing whilst in a chat room in those advanced world, it looks like many are caught in the web craze." The Optimist explained. 

 Am I talking too much?” Asked The Optimist.

Just then the mad-man takes off his clothes and Nahou wants to understand why.

Optimist, look, look! Screamed Nahou. “The mad man is shredding his clothes apart; something must have come over him.”

No, Nahou! Nothing has come over him. He is liberating himself-and look, his action of tearing his clothes apart does not take any one unawares. He is used to tearing his clothes. He is used to taking off, but what is most intriguing is the less attention paid to him while he strips off his garments. The people are used to seeing him that way; only that a few men, women and children now and then are looking away as if turning their heads away from seeing his bareness, makes them holier. They do not want to see the nakedness-the truth of what you humans are. What is in his nudity that they have not seen? Why are they turning their heads away? Is it simply because they are not used to seeing peoples’ nudity in the public?”

But you still haven’t told me why he is striping off his garments? Said Nahou.

I will continue The Optimist tomorrow. Don't forget to share your thoughts