Sister Sanctimonious

We all know them- the self-righteous individuals who do no wrong.  They are spotless in reputation, free from guile, void of character flaws.
Because they are never wrong, they never need to apologise-even when they have done "less-than good".
These are among the most difficult people to appreciate.  The staunch, unwavering, stubborn approach to life is actually rooted in selfishness and pride-among the most despised vices listed in scripture.
We.are.all.human.  We all make mistakes.  We injure people knowingly and unknowingly.
Taking a childlike approach to living is the antidote.  This approach  is grounded in humility.
These overly spiritual people drive others away with their callousness.
Do you ever wonder how certain people, though linked with spiritual giants, go off to make the worst mistakes?
"A how she breed fi dat deh man deh an har fatha a pasta?"
"So a really batty man him go tun?  Look pon di family 'im come from!"
"What a gyal pickeney love man!  Har madda a praya warriah enuh!!!"

Listen! When yuh too holy-righteous, yuh sen' people inna di wrong direction.  Yuh shoob dem weh from yuh an lan' dem inna di arms of danger-den nuh muss!!! A which smaddy aggo siddung unda abuse day in- day out so.

There is a danger in being spiritual to the neglect of the other aspects of our person-what of the social, mental, and physical?  I believe that being spiritual should translate into balance.  It should soften and sweeten my personality and make me more sensitive to others.  By no means am I suggesting that one should become a walk-over.  I am simply emphasizing the beauty of spirit which should be characteristic of the truly sanctimonious.

Yeah man, just know seh a proud and insensitive spirit is antagonistic to a truly holy character.

A mi seh so!

I am your Jodi.....

Love you guys so much!

The heels are alive with the sound of music

Mi affi tell unoo bout one likkle ting weh mi go pon recently!!!!
Heheyah!
He told me we were going to a concert.  Now, despite di patois, mi is a classical chick-love fine arts and the whole nine yards.
So when mi hear concert, mi tink:

Awrite!!!!Maybe not!!!! BUT! I ascribe a little sophistication, elegance and class to the idea of a concert.   N.B.-He said it was an evening of dance-so nuh fine arts dat inna fi mi classical mind! 

Eh-Eh!

I pulled out an ensemble out of my wardrobe resembling:

Less the clutch, accessories, and sweater.  Insert thick gray and black leggings.  I thought it was cute and appropriate.....UNTIL......

Enter escort:

Awwwww Nawwwwwww!!!!!!! That's not even true! NEXT!

Enter ESCORT:

Insert accessories...and yup!  Can u say DISPARITY!!!!!!!  

It was VERY awkward FOR HIM!

I was being me, he was being him-he's pretty laid back, not fussy at all.

Thing is, the majority of persons in attendance looked like him, whilst a few, looked a little like me. 

I was comfortable in my own skin, but uncomfortable because of how uncomfortable he was.

I was not to be deterred however, I rocked out my high heels to the sound of that music-in a mild-mannered but meaningful way.

I had hoped we would have complemented  each other, but wadever chile! I learnt through that experience to be me-all me, in spite of how everyone looks around me.  Conformity is important yes, but conformity doesn't always translate into uniformity.

Ah well it could have been worse!

You know what?  I'm not gonna murmur nor complain!

I am your incredibly-grateful-my-date-didn't-show-up-in-dem-shorts Jodi!

My yellow bus bigga dan your pretty van

Travelling these Jamaican streets via public transportation has given me unique insight into the dynamics of life in general and has taught important life lessons.

Yellow Bus.  The JUTC services availed by our (gulps hard-hypocrisy alert!) caring, considerate and efficient government(mi feel a strange hellish heat a while ago), provides affordable and relatively safe transportation for commuters. When mi first enter di luxury bus of a vehicle mi was pleasantly surprised-AC, soft seat, tinted glass, good shocks, di ting nice man!  I often times yearn for my own vehicle, just to shut out the world.  When, however, I hand over my JA$80, and find a cozy window seat high above cars, minivans, pick-up trucks and coaster buses, I recline in the liberty of an uncomplicated life of no insurance, no fitness, no police stops, no duco-ing, no cleaning, no maintenance, nothing.  And yet, dis yah available form of transportation is scoffed at by many.
I am not saying that my yellow bus is better than your pretty van because your pretty van nice bad!  In fact, it is very convenient!

I'm simply saying that it is bigger, that is, my mentality appreciates the breadth of a perspective that acknowledges the uncomplicated beauty of a minimalist lifestyle. 

Flash forward to the natural world around us.

Take a look at water.  This free resource has been manipulated by manufacturing giants and then retailed back to us in the form of bottled water, much of which is the same germ-infested, piss-ridden, incorrigible 'stuff' that is present in untreated water sources.  Yuh don't believe me?  In an experiment that tested ten major brands of water the overall quality was shown to be less than was claimed. 

Read di report right yasso: http://www.ewg.org/reports/BottledWater/Bottled-Water-Quality-Investigation Den nuh might as well wi jus dip wi head inna di dutty Ganges dung a India(or Bangladesh-whicheva yuh preffa) an' swalla haad.* Coughs and clears throat*  

 I'm just coming from the country where there were fruits and veg in abundance.  Wha mi seh?  Yuh jus go henka  a di neighba yaad an dem pick up di rake-staat let off dem likkle dis an dem likkle dat.  Come a town-oops- venture into the city, an' is a whole set a tiefin' and extortion.   Hey, farmer barely a mek nuttin enuh, a di higgler dem weh capitalise pon dem a mek di profit(an mi naw bash higgla caw memba seh me is a paat a di association).  Supermarket produce is marketed as the choicest, while the produce directly from farm is poorly regarded.  That's a mentality that's been inherited-uptown is better than downtown and in this particular case, town betta dan country.  Instead of celebrating the differences, we use them to create a caste system.  

The essence of this post is that simple is bigger. The naturally available and abundant resources in its uncultivated, unaffected forms are much more beneficial and accessible than the processed, synthetic and unwholesome byproducts presented to us as the utmost and best. 

Thing is, provision has been made for us all, that is, air, sunlight, trees, sun and moon to which we are all privy-we all have access.  These are the things we cannot live without; they are abundant and unintended for exploitation  however as selfish human beings tending to avarice, we try to capitalise on natural endowments. Who gave us that authority?  Even though we pride ourselves on being stewards of this great world, our manipulation of the natural world can never in any way compare to the large-scale raw materials(which may in and of itself not be raw after all, but highly refined by a Divine order for human use) that was drafted by an infinite intellect.

Why is my yellow bus bigga dan your pretty van?  Because it affords:

• more freedom, 
• an opportunity to socialise with the 'common folk', 
• less responsibility to maintain, 
• a community/organisation whose purpose is to handle all transportation-related grievances, which means that there is an entity to whom I can complain  and whose a$$ I can sue. 

Although the yellow bus bigga, the only drawback that I dislike immensely, is that from this area of elevation there is a  panoramic view of the bike man's(in front of us...shoooo) incredibly deep, dark and dreadful butt crack(which appears to have its own ecosystem-no, not so much a jungle but close....stop pressing for detailed descriptions because I cannot verbalise the spectacle).

I am your blinking-from-that-most-disturbing-sight Jodi