GOAT

Consider the goat. Do it soon. People like you, and me, have been under the consideration of the goat for many moons. So: forget what you thought you knew, beware of the myopia of entitlement, and, think how appearances may have deceived you before. And while you do this, again – it cannot be overstated – consider the goat.

History is written by the winners; glib, but true. The cliche comes from the kernel of truth in a phrase. Apart from some, of course. There’s never fire with smoke. People love making smoke. Some are even professionals at making smoke that looks like fire to back up their original smoke.  Wait for the fire, I say. And while you wait – consider the goat. There’s no smoke with goats, no blustering about. If pressed, you will notice there isn’t any fire, either. Goats have dodged the idiom with agility and grace. And, therein, their talent. The losers didn’t make it, and only a handful of winners did; cowering in advisory roles so that they may scribble their account of History. Where are all the survivors, then?  They are outside my tent right now, chewing a handkerchief. They are a little way down the road, eating and sleeping in cement. They are headbutting a greedy pigeon, just because it deserved it. They are those who learned how to dodge the conflict in its entirety, pronking past all skirmishes to a life of mediocrity. They are goats.

Domesticated, owned and kept, yet still free? Why not. We’re all a bit domesticated in these times, behind every boss is another boss and those who think themselves truly free are either wrong, or no-good hippies. The thing that goats have mastered is how to find liberty in shackles. You can tie a goat to the roof of a bus or you can throw one in the hold underneath. The only uncertainty for them: will I be eating chassis or roof-rack.  In both outcomes, fate will decide if your canvas backpack becomes a delicate digestif. Moreover, they are not wasting time in the pursuit of advancement. It is not a priority, for a goat, to ensure it leaves the world a better place for its kids. They’d like to, as much as you and I would like to. But, their pragmatism leads them down a different path. They take hardships on the chin, make something out of nothing and out of a little, make more.

So as they shun idealism and progress with their hoofs firmly on the ground, they free up a few moments to really enjoy things, to really have a look at the world. Instead of mindlessly chomping on whatever their ancestors chomped on, they will try a discarded fan belt. And the calories and minerals from the fan belt allows them enough free time later in the day to lock horns with their friends, or climb a tree or just have a lie down in the shade.

So next time those seemingly vacant eyes roll over you, consider them. Look back with intent. Just stare at one eye, it’s impossible to look into both. And, when you see what looks like your reflection in that unflinching iris, remember that it’s not. It is what you look like in the mind’s eye of that goat. I don’t think there is reason for alarm, but I don’t think it wants to be your friend, either. It’s just a goat, putting off its tomorrows.

Arise, the saviours of Africa.

Observations from an elderly, visiting goat in Ghana

The times they are a-changing…

But, are they? Some Observations of children from the southern tip of Ghana:

At dawn, they are out. Collecting the residue of life. Washed up overnight on a remote beach.

Gathering and counting containers, to be used again in the community.

At sunrise, out fishing, helping with the hand nets in the bay. No school today.

Rich pickings in the ocean require the whole community’s attention.

Anyway, the Cape Three Points school has empty classrooms, no resources and goats in the playground.

What is learning here? The ABC and the abacus in the steamy heat of the morning; are we not imposing our understanding of the acquisition of literacy and numeracy on the rich fabric of both simplicity and strength, of what is still real in village life.

Have the neglected old-school buildings and teachers that come and go, with chalk and chalkboard, changed anything?

Perhaps the children of the dawn and the sunrise already have the elements of self-sufficiency and resilience that we have lost in our frantic obsession to constantly change.

An Afterthought

The Cape Three Points School for goats. 

No resources required. 

Goat Headmistress advises: apply timeously to avoid disappointment.