PERSON WEY DEY PURGE

 

I was thinking this morning… Sometimes, I really don’t understand how little attention we pay to our choice of words. A guy came to me some time ago asking for financial assistance. I understood his challenge and was willing to support him. When I asked how much he needed, his response deflated my spirit. He said, “Only ten thousand naira.”

Really? Only ten thousand naira? If ten thousand naira was only, why didn’t he have it? I wondered. Could our habit of qualifying a sum of money as “only” have come from the days of writing cheques, where we ended every amount in words with “only”? Na wa o!

As I reflected, I recalled the Nigerian proverb that says, “Person wey dey purge no dey select toilet.”

Ehn! Have you ever travelled on a road trip and had the misfortune of developing a running stomach? God help you. After shouting, “Driver, stop, stop!” you dash out of the vehicle to the nearest—and probably only—available toilet. On getting there, you discover it is dirty, maybe just a hole in the ground that you have never used in your life. Do you walk out and ask for another one? Never! You ignore the dirt and immediately squat to relieve yourself. You know why? Person wey dey purge no dey select toilet.

It was this picture I had in mind when my boss told me about a young lady who had done her NYSC with us some time back. After searching unsuccessfully for a job, she approached my boss for help. “Sir, I really need your help with a job o, even if it is a contract job.”

Like, seriously? “Even if?” Person wey dey purge dey select toilet? At this point, she was purging and should not be selective—or definitely not in any position to give conditions.

Sometimes, life puts you in a position where you have no choice but to accept what is available, not what is desirable. At such times, you have to be mindful of how you present your request, because using words like only and even if gives the impression that you still have options.

The oyibo man says a beggar has no choice, but I would rather say: person wey dey purge no dey select toilet. Proverbs 21:23 admonished us to watch our words.

Stay hopeful. God's got our back.

Happy Sunday!

......Just the thoughts of a certain Wey Mey