This beautiful Land of Mine

[nigerian_admin]

This beautiful land of mine I am going to make shine, make it shine, make it shine, make it shine.
This wonderful land of ours is the envy of the world. A land, blessed with almost every mineral and natural resources, spared from all natural disasters, with a lovely weather all year to seed and enjoy it all. Why then would our children call other lands, ‘Land of the kings’ and’ God’s own country’?
It is human nature to assume that the grass is greener on the other side of the fence while we take for granted what we have. In many parts of the world including the lands our children call ‘Gods own country’ the weather could be severe and unforgiving. In Canada, for example, the temperature in some parts of the country with the wind factor can be as low as -40ºC (note that the temperature in your freezer is -32°C). In the United States while the temperature is milder and some states have a warmer weather all year, majority of the states have temperatures below -32ºC all winter. We can start to appreciate our weather and our country a little more.
Many countries rich or poor confront the severe and unimaginable natural disasters such as hurricane, tornado, earthquake and tsunami. ‘A hurricane is a tropical storm with winds that have reached a constant speed of 74 miles per hour or more. The eye of a storm is usually 20-30 miles wide and may extend over 400 miles. The dangers of a storm include torrential rains, high winds and storm surges. Following a hurricane, inland streams and rivers can flood and trigger landslides. When a hurricane watch is issued, the best response is to protect your property by boarding up windows, bringing in outside items, and being prepared to evacuate the areas as soon as officials so advise. Hurricane has obliterated many towns it is surely a destructive force. ‘Tornado is a violently rotating column of air extending from a cumulonimbus cloud to the Earth, ranging in width from a few meters to more than a kilometer and whirling at speeds between 64 km (40 mi) and 509 km (316 mi) per hour or higher with comparable updrafts in the center of the vortex. The vortex may contain several smaller vortices rotating within it.’ This destructive force had been known to destroy a whole town and cause billions of dollars in damages. Earthquake is a sudden movement of the Earth's lithosphere. Earthquakes are caused by the release of built-up stress within rocks along geologic faults or by the movement of magma in volcanic areas. They are usually followed by aftershocks. It is an experience that is never forgotten. Tsunamis are vast sea waves caused by the sudden dropping or rising of a section of the sea floor following an earthquake. The waves may be as much as 30 meters high and 200 kilometers long, and may move as fast as 250 kilometers per hour, and continue to occur for as long as a few days. It is even more devastating when the waves recede and takes with it everything in its path. We can further appreciate this wonderful land we have.
In many countries there is no vegetation for six months during the winter months (unless controlled e.g. green house plantation). Most places have only 5 months to plant and sew. Many very colder temperate countries do not have perennial plants such as plantain, banana, oranges, palm tree, guava, pineapple, mango, grapes, pawpaw, etc. Is our country starting to seem blessed?
Surely it is not the land that our children are talking about. They must have been talking about the opportunities available for a better life. Most of these countries that are situated in these difficult weather conditions and confronted with natural disasters have developed ways to manage its effect. For the cold temperature different types of clothing apparel were designed to keep people warm. Houses have heaters, cars have warmers. Seeds are genetically modified to grow quicker to accommodate the short summer season. There are different kinds of monitoring equipment developed for possibilities of these disasters occurring. The citizens are notified most of the time in advance for safety. Insurance policies are available to replace damages and government programs co-ordinate and support in most occasions.
The primary need of every individual in the world is shelter, security, food and water. Today we must add the pursuit of happiness and the environment most conducive to attain it. The opportunity to work harder and smarter to attain ones need with the least interruption. We all seek the community most organized to provide; security, economic, political, and social, structure with the rule of law and trade that will make these needs viable. Our land is already blessed. It is up to all of us to provide the structures that will enable each one of us to attain the primary needs and the pursuit of happiness that we all cherish. Never wait for your government to provide for you what you need. (‘Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country’). Every country deserves the leaders they have because they are the likeness of the average citizens of that nation. Corrupt leaders come from corrupt nations. We all have to be disciplined, participate, and continually engage our elected leaders until we develop the most effective and efficient social, economic, and political structures, which will enable the basic primary needs and the opportunity that enables the pursuits of every one’s personal need.
I assure you. This beautiful land of mine is truly ‘God’s own country’. Join us and let us begin to engage each other and our elected officials.