Me dear mam:

De night when de news hit de airwaves roun de world seh Barack Obama win de election. A neva know weh fe do wid me self. Me tun fool wid two phone a me two aise one time! A holler so-so foolishness bout "if" to me sista dem a Jamaica an New Jersey.

"If" fe dem TV have Barack pon it to. Den me tun back sensible. An agree wid dem seh absentee ballot a yard mean seh when yu reach a polling station smady else done vote eena yu name long time. Me spin. "If" dem did a watch me. Suh mek me spin again. Me tun me roll an come back roun an roun. "If" fe dem head feel light or a just fe me alone. An me tun fool again wid de two phone still a me aise. Like me fren Oliver Samuels an de two aise muffin him did tek kibba dung him aise fram outta Norman Manley Airport for a cowl, cowl fareign him did a head fa.

Spectators

But me dear mam, when all was said an done, me seh to meself seh a bet yu seh nuff smady eena de crowd. An in front a dem TV worldwide, watch de election as spectator, talk bout de victory as spectator, g'a dem bed as spectator, an continue fe a live dem life as spectator. For dem neva learn a single lesson fe apply to fe dem owna life fe help dem self. For just like how every good teacha a yard know seh yu cyan teach people pickney widout a lesson plan, Barrack had a plan wid nuff lesson.

Fuss ting. Him is a Christian man. Apart fram God yu can probably mek headway. But yu naw go have true contentment an everything weh yu acquire a go go like butter gainst sun. Second ting. Nuh mek nubaddy tell yu seh yu cyan achieve weh yu set yu mine to. Some people very bad mine. Suh do weh yu haffi do.Yu might nuh get everything weh yu want. But yu wi get some a it.

Third ting. Work hard fe weh yu want. Me dear mam, me cyan begin fe tell yu how, when me dis come a fariegn wid me 96 dallah. An a help me self fe get me lilly masters an doctorate degree. Night after night me siddung up fram eight o clock right back till day light six a clock. A study till me two foot swell like yam.

Yu cyan live stingy

Fourth ting. Yu cyan live stingy. Learn fe give to addas widout looking back fe anything. An learn fe give outta weh yu nuh have. Yu simple surprise fe see how God bless yu. When Barrack was a student, him gi a stranger ooman $100 out a nutten. For she neva hab money fe pay fe har bag go pon de flight. Said way, de Monday after me gi me life to Pupa Jesus. Me had one dallah lef to me name. An a lilly ole man beg me money fe buy bread. Me gi him. By de time me reach a de university, me get a letter wid two hundred dallah inna it. Plus, me end up a get ova US$200,000 inna scholarship weh God provide.

Lass ting. Stop complain. For complain an bad mine a two bredda. Complain come when we believe everybaddy else a prosper except we. Dat mean we yeye deh pon dem an we grudge dem under de quiet. Suh stop complain, mek yu circumstances work fe yu, an nuh fegat weh y'a come fram. A one time eena him life Barrack eva see him pupa. An him nuh shame fe talk. Suh encourage yuself an build from de ground up.

Tek care!

Do, nuh fegat fe sponsor a pickney from dung a Riverton City. Go to www.JASY.info.

Dr Jennifer Keane-Dawes has been appointed Interim Dean of the School of Graduate Studies at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore, a constituent institution of the University of Maryland System. Send your email to: jkd876@yahoo.com.