There is this particular folk who has always tried everything possible to make everyone around believe he has the best of everything. He has been to “places”, knows all the “big people”, has tasted all the sophisticated foods from the latest restaurant, just name it.
I’m sure you might have come across one or two such roommates, course mates, church members or colleagues. So Mr. Man, whom are you trying to impress? Meanwhile this is somebody I know as well as my palms.
He has virtually NOTHING, has been NOWHERE and knows NO ONE. Is it a crime to be modest? Is it unacceptable to come across as simple? Is he being chased into the territory of complicated talk? And this has being his lifestyle for years but…
A lot of people will live, grow old and probably die before they realize most of the people they were trying so hard to impress were never watching them. Take it from all angles of life and simplicity wins landslide. I am still waiting for that person who would convince me that modesty cannot be situated within the latest trends of anything; fashion, technology, academia, politics, marriage, event organizing, you name it.
Let me just list a few of simplicity’s siblings to get you reflecting better: Straightforwardness, Effortlessness, Easiness, Uncomplicatedness, Minimalism, Plainness etc.
Oh what Peace we often forfeit
Oh what needless pains we bear
All because we do not obey the simple rule, “Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication”.
What heavy a burden we could take off our shoulders if we were to consider being simple in our approach toward life. Historians, Painters and Followers of Architectural developments know of Leonardo da Vinci. He wrote that, “Simple is beautiful. Complex is ugly”. Indeed this man has his name written indelibly in the annals of history as one of the greatest gurus in his area of endeavor (Art and Architecture), and that is the proponent of simplicity!
For the religious folks, I also wrote on the back cover of my book (Seeing through the Clouds) that, “The deep things of God appear so simple that they are easily ignored”. Let’s leave that to the Christians to digest. You could attempt doing so too if you have the grace to.
It is sad, however, to note how people are ready to rubbish stuff that appear too simple for their liking. We don’t want simple food, simple clothing, simple cars, simple houses etc. Not even simple words in our speeches. We are ready to embrace colourful meals that come alongside many complications. No wonder many people are living with lots of medical complications. We could avoid most of such by accepting to eat simple fruits and vegetables which grow around like wild grass in every corner of Africa.
My people, the most beautiful things in life are often very simple. If young men would learn how to wear black shoes and black trousers with which they could wear any colour of shirt, what needless cost they could cut off. If young women would learn to know that our own Shea butter has so much to offer their adorable hair and skin, what great troubles they could save themselves from.
If only people would accept the simplicity of using lime to avoid body odour, what needless troubles we could be saving ourselves from. If only we would accept the simplistic nature of walking briskly for only thirty minutes a day (whether planned or not), what a great deal of help we would be doing ourselves.
If drivers would learn to obey road signs irrespective of how simple they appear… If only we would learn how to cook the foods we like most ourselves… If we would learn the basics as our forefathers left for us… If only we would learn to accept the simple topic in our Life Skills lessons back in the day that taught us that fruits and vegetables are classified as protective foods; providing nutrients that protect our bodies against diseases…
If young people would learn that simple talk is better than tongue-twisting raps which could lead to further complications, what needless trouble we could avoid. If parents would learn to accept simple potential son-in-laws, their daughters would be saved the heartache of jumping into the arms of men who would rent, borrow or steal assets and gadgets just to impress and be accepted as being responsible.
“Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated”, says Confucius. Oh how true, Confucius! Why can’t see life through Confucius’ eyes too?
If a Pastor tells a congregant to simply say a short prayer and say Amen and believe he/she is well, it works no more. Today’s Christian thinks that approach is too simple. There should be some complicated revelations conjured from somewhere, sprinkling of some anointed water/oil/any liquid and something definitely has to be said about someone else “doing him/her”, plus some heavy tongues before a simple prayer for healing could be accepted. Even on top of this, the car the preacher drives, how we dresses all have a bearing on how effective this prayer will be. Ei!
If a Pastor finishes a sermon without some Greek and Hebrew words, he is definitely “not on fire”. An artiste has to exhibit some craze on stage, else his shows won’t be patronized the next time. There should definitely be some complications in haircuts, hairstyles and outfits, else, the word “celebrity” means virtually nothing in the eyes of people. Something complex has to appear on someone’s building to make it the latest talk of town. Where are we heading to?
To attempt the difficult one, what a burden we would be shifting off our shoulders if a minister of state decided to travel with even two 4×4 vehicles only… I am not sure such a lifestyle would demean that ministerial role in any way.
I saw Barack Obama when he visited Ghana in 2009. Simple outfits! Simple choice of words for his address to Parliament! And that is the most powerful gentleman so far, who could have chosen to carry himself otherwise. If only our President would decide to travel with the people who MATTER ONLY… If only he would move around the country with ONLY a sizable number of vehicles… If only! If only!! If only!!!
Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication… this simple statement surfaced as far back as 1977 during the “apple struggling days”. Steve Jobs kept this and actually lived it till he passed on quite recently. If you have followed his story you would have come across something like, Up until the time he died, he lived in a very simple house.
I know the analysts and debaters will start making this a matter of subjectivity. How simple is simple? I choose to adopt a rather sarcastic approach in providing this answer. People, we have made every important issue subjective since Adam and that is what has landed us where we are today. Simple is simple and it is beautiful on any day.
The great Leonardo da Vinci admonishes us to follow these four, and again, simple steps to live simple lives: apply these to every sphere of your life.
1. Collect everything in one place.
2. Choose the essential.
3. Eliminate the rest.
4. Organize the remaining stuff neatly and nicely.
Isn’t it rather interesting that in all these, simplicity is still the ultimate sophistication?
