Terve, hyvät immeiset Varkaudessa! Your humble servant ”Kokonsah” is once
again at your door. This time not angry but mad at one thing he sees it to
be the responsibilities of the youth in Finland. Infact, this issue is
killing me softly, and it is time for me to drop the bombshell before its
send me into my grave. Because, it is better to ward off evil than to cure
it effect.
Peace loving people of Varkaus, why are the streets of Varkaus choked with
older people (Vanhat ihmiset)? What are the youth doing to help comfort
these people? Do they know at all that loneliness kills and one day they
will grow up to be like them?
In fact, as a foreigner in Varkaus, I always feel uncomfortable and it saddens
my heart when I see these “old boys and girls” (Vanhat ihmiset) on the
street and shops looking helplessly and trying to get things for themselves.
And the question, I always ask myself is, is this what Finns called it
self-service system? If this is what they mean, then personally, I don’t buy
the idea because old age shouldn’t be a period of crises in one’s life, but
a period of caring! But what I see in Varkus contradict with this idea of
mine.
Whenever I am on the street, I feel like helping these people but the so call
self service system in Finland always strikes me back for the fear of
rejection!
Honestly, this is not common in Africa. Aged people are not rampantly found on
street, and this has nothing to do with cultural difference. They are been
given special attention, if not the government, their own grandsons and
daughters. But the question is, is this system working in Finland and if I
may continue to ask, are their grandsons and daughters willing to help in
that capacity?!It is the duty of the youth as part of their social service
and not military training as most youth in Finland always opt for.
Does the youth want this people to start committing suicide before they attend
to them? That reminds me of when I met the youth in a local church in
Varkaus with some friends and this issue cropped up! Interestingly, they
were all reluctant to do this kind of job but thank God, these little
children later came back to their senses and saw the need to offer that kind
of help to elderly people.
The youth must arise and volunteer for this service for them to receive favour
from God; else these people will one day commit suicide and become a burden
for the society. In Africa, if a child under school going age refuse to help
an elderly person he knows on the street when carrying things, the only
thing your parent can do in appreciation for you been a recalcitrant, is to
give you twelve lashes at your back. This sound stupid as one Finn guy
termed it but that is how we were brought up.
This doesn’t mean Finns parent should do that cruel thing to their children
but the idea is that , they should encourage and instill that kind of virtue
in them for them to see the need to offer such services to their own grandpa
and grand mum. Because “God didn’t promise days without pain, laughter
without sorrow, sun without rain, but God did promise strength for the day,
comfort for the tears, and light for the ways”.
