(A predicament in this Age)

OUR cultural heritage guides us when the concepts that emerged cannot be firmly dated. Most likely the simple experience of a mother and child being attacked by a hungry predator, and the male retaliating, either got lucky or understood the predator’s weaknesses and came out on top. Thus was established a male responsibility
that was inherited by our distant ancestors who sat around the fire contemplating the order of the day to sustain the ability to feed the group, or small tribe, and retain the line of duties.
I can well imagine that the flame must have intimidated the more powerful creatures hiding behind forested areas beholding us as prey.

Without organisation, we would not have survived. Thus, organisation and planning were the guarding traits that enabled us to survive the challenges of the day and the terror by night. What followed as we became more confident as a species, as nature evolved our kind… Hold on a minute! I’m not saying that we were not created from the inception; it’s still a discussion.
What is evident is that we found it necessary to agree to laws, and how to punish those who violate, at times with harsh means, that included death and torture. We also concluded preferable gender responsibilities. But the great divide lay with the matriarchal and patriarchal realms. Among the tribes of men, was the woman an equal? And this is still a debate today.
The predicament of today’s first-born creation, ‘men’, is to navigate his ancient inheritance as guardian, provider and inspiration to the community, towards young men, especially, and custodians of knowledge on some specific subject. The men before me; my Godfather, my father, their friends who passed on and debated what was discussed, arriving at the agreed narrative, upon the details of what I and whoever other youths were there in his workshop, should be taught.

The unique thing about that generation’s school of artisans, was that they read both the non-fiction and fiction of the day. Not much reading is happening today; social media seems to be the ultimate teacher. The art of observation and analysis based on cross-reading has declined; there is a quick embrace of the loudest voice, like the hecklers of old, to lazily determine the outcome of issues before them.
The most important resort is to find clarifications to would-be issues. There are still some second-hand bookshops for older books, and there is an array of books at Austin’s Bookstore and at New Era Bookstore for current international issues, and don’t ignore the few second-hand book stands still around. Take a month to read a book, and you’d have a stage to stand on when you’re finished. Then you can Google for alternative positions. Listen to Tik-Tok views and examine whether the position you have is nearer to what the issue is about. Everyone needs to be informed, but the male in the home is expected to have a profound, guiding, reasonable knowledge of most matters, including health matters.

Recently, in the May 13, 2023 issue of the Guyana Chronicle, PAHO ‘reps’ indicated that 21.5 per cent of our female population lives with hypertension, while 24.5 per cent of the males are in the same fix. That’s nearly half of our population. Not to be confused with the interpretations of hypertension, I consulted an old friend, my admittedly out-of-date 1990 MAYO Clinic Family Health Book, for answers. A paragraph did hit me to the point: “Excessive salt in the diet has been the focus of many studies in recent years. The evidence is convincing; salt causes the body to retain fluids, and thus, in many people, is a factor in causing high blood pressure.”

Recommendations are: “Weight reduction, the excessive weight adds to the strain on your heart. In fact, in some people, weight loss alone is sufficient to avoid the need to take hypertensive drugs.” Alcohol and smoking are habits to kick or seriously be moderate with, in a strange age of obviously less cooking happening at home, and fast foods supplementing home-cooking. With the latter, adjustments can be made. This information should have raised brows. I know that it’s tight with most homes’ budgets, including mine. But ‘knowledge, not machismo’ in this case, must be the driving force. And, again, men are on the losing side.
In conclusion, we stand in an arena of multiple foes, where our allies are the focus of awareness and not easy conclusions. Once more, the gauntlet is cast before our gender to lead or be consumed. It’s not the first time. Thus, we must be what we are, and not be shaped by the Demigods of the global cooperate evolution, and change our statistics.