#AMAKAxAmplifyAfrica
Does culture ever leave us? Is it just within our little continent, or something ingrained in our hearts? If so, why? When does it even get swallowed by us? And why can't we even let it go?
Everywhere has some sort of culture ingrained in it. Culture isn't tribalism; in fact, it is much bigger than that. It is just a way of living. It is what has become systematized from the conscious and unconscious awareness of people and how they act within the space of the earth. We all have some culture, some way in which we live. Africa's culture is different, or at least, how we talk about it is different.
When we think about African culture, we have stopped talking about just a way of living and have moved into something more deliberate. Rather than being unconscious, we move very much to a much more conscious way of seeing the world. We move beyond the natural and merge things into a fitting story. African culture is a story passed down through generations, being molded from the clay of our mouths into the reality of our society.
The stories give us a sense of home and unity. It gives us a reason to celebrate and also something to drive for, giving us meaning out of hopelessness.
But some might say, even dargging us back.
Stories stay, but how long is too long before we should change a story? A lot of things we hold onto today date back to the youth of our older generations and the youth of their older generations. Stories have been told about life and its features. Made to give us a blueprint about how to live in this world, with both animate and inanimate.
Maps serve as direction and a way to see into the unknown. It is a light when things are dark and a compass when roads are destroyed. Like everything, maps need to be updated. The roads change, and the houses do not have the same owners. For a map to work, it had to adapt to the new roads.
Maps are stories, and stories are culture. Culture sings its songs into the morning sun and quenches itself in the set. Living is no longer outside but inside. We find ourselves, not even aware of our ability to think about things any more, but following a pattern set by us in a system no longer akin to the times it was made.
One will think travel and the sight of new life might resonate with the hearts of some, but culture remains strong. Surprisingly, not within the younger dispora but rather in the older ones. It seems to have a lot to do with what has been embedded, rather than something swimming in our blood.
Of course, this makes sense. Those bathed in our ways will still hold onto it, and those who didn't shower with that same water wouldn't understand the practices that we consider "normal."
Cultural differences? The African diaspora finds themselves in first-world countries where a lot of work and research into knowing what and how best to live and strive to do so is a priority.
They also engage themselves in ridding themselves of dangerous ideas that are harmful not only to them but also to society. Regardless of how you want to view them, it is important to note that they are the most forward-moving countries in the world, spiritually, economically, and psychologically. So they have to be getting something right.
Our culture, on the other hand, is different, but we never want to let it go. We fall short on almost everyone of those variables, but we only catch ourselves enforcing them even more. Going a lot more backward. Why do we seem to not want to let go of culture?
I believe the stories have been discussed so much that we almost don't assume that any other story could be told. Over and over again, we have heard the same thing and learned the same learned the same lessons. The same quotes and ideas. Our inspiration always comes from those who spoke before us and never from those with whom we want to create new words.
We have become a culture that holds culture, and it is harming us. It doesn't allow us to see that we are not limited to just one way of life, to the point that even those who go out of here still find it hard to let go.
Change is allowing ourselves to update our map and update what it means to be us, because we shouldn't look to the past but rather start looking forward to tomorrow.