Men, stop joining your ancestors

For many years, women were held responsible for men not living to ripe old ages. Grieving women were subjected to the most inhuman cultural or traditional widowhood rites which I insist point to the backwardness and wickedness of those who inflict them. I mean, what kind of woman forces a fellow woman who had just lost her husband to drink the water used to bathe a corpse? My friends, if your mother had ever participated in doing this evil to another woman, go and pray, so that God will not ask you to pay for what you did not buy.

Anyway, this is not about widowhood rites. It is about men dying in their prime. It is sad and saddening. All these stories of men slumping and dying suddenly must stop. That there are more widows than widowers is nothing to celebrate. Life is already too hard without a man joining his ancestors prematurely when there is so much work to be done here. I am sure even the ancestors are shocked each time they are forced to welcome their young descendants who themselves have young children.

I will start with the city dwellers. Cities kill. You live in Ikorodu and work in Lekki Phase 1 or worse still, you live in Ogombo and work in Alausa. Old boy, your ancestors are worried. You sat through that demonic traffic daily for 20 years. The World Health Organisation is worried too. We know you have to work and your own home state is underdeveloped, so you have to come to Lagos. But when last did you check your blood pressure, your blood sugar? Too many men are walking corpses, logging around 150/100 BP even as you read this. High blood pressure enjoys promoting itself and it does not do it slowly. Soon, that BP will climb to 200/120 and gbam, oga slumps while watching football.

Do you know you are diabetic? Each Ankara aso ebi and fila you buy is 15 and you have bought four this year but you have no glucometre. You drink beer, eat fufu and eba and you are too busy to exercise or do medical check-up. Only you have both hypertension and diabetes. You are taking roadside herbal concoctions and telling yourself all is well and reciting ‘I shall not die’. Bros, you are dying. Get help. Go get checked. Don’t let another man walk your daughter down the isle. Don’t let another man do unto your wife what you can’t do to her.

TO BE CONTINUED.

READ ALSO: 27-year-old man sentenced to life imprisonment for rape