Structural adjustments (with a human face)... Part 6 of Soul Insurance (see previously)
VI. Excessive Liabilities
The year went on fitfully it seemed,
the
die was cast
Symbolized by the introduction
of the ubiquitous face mask
The claims adjuster had dispatched his tiny vectors
by way of the Mink Quadrant
Plaintive voices were heard throughout the land,
the tribes were discordant
Still, they mostly quibbled about the shape
and size of the relief efforts
Those that were ostensibly best prepared
seemed fully frozen in action
Nyame would be tickled pink at the development,
and find it worthy of applause
That the whole world, as punishment,
would now be subject to
a global pause
Moreover, humanity was unable, or unwilling,
to abide by the intercession
Even given clear opportunities
to show that they had learned their lessons
After the debacle at Chwedru in the east,
the claims adjuster had hit his stride
He had traveled far and wide,
and made the same approach to the other tribes
The Ushers had roundly rejected his approach
with a bravado he found confounding
Supremely confident about the soul insurance they'd purchased,
they were trusting
The claims adjuster was puzzled at the certificates of coverage
they promptly proffered
They really appeared to believe
Mother Nature checked credentials and discriminated
He thought back to the wretched in Agona
in the torrid zone who were beleaguered
These last were well aware that they had no protection,
at least none that mattered
Third Tribe certainties were suspect
and they lacked all necessary infrastructure
Still, to be barely keeping above water
was no excuse in the eyes of the adjuster
Their time was coming, in short order, they'd be
the new epicenter
Lockdown was looming, they'd had fair warning from their tormentor
Still, the folk in Agona were young, and thought the future was theirs
Unlike the Ushers, they didn't behave as if they were royal heirs
Enthusiastic, for sure, but they lacked capacity, and were easily swayed
Swiftly bamboozled, just throw a fig leaf or a few crumbs their way
But they kept clean and, in the majority, had reasonable motives
And, these days, they'd seen how the rest of the world lived
No, they were up-and-coming and could go on to great things,
if they survived, that is
For no one was promised tomorrow,
when the claims adjuster dispensed justice
Because Nyame did want everyone to be taught a lesson
A lasting reminder for all time that
no one is coming
Asase Yaa thought that she should intervene, for it was quite clear
To her eyes at least, that the other gods were being plainly unfair
She made her initial appeal by way of her public agent, Tedros of Who
"
Test, test, test", the message was clear but sadly didn't cut through
If they were wont to pursue structural adjustment
The least they could do was let it be done with a human face
And display a modicum of heavenly discernment
It was going overboard to let humanity lie in this bed of disgrace
The punishment surely didn't fit the crime, and left all and sundry
Stuck in a global torrid zone, home of the
internally displaced
Asase Yaa decided to underwrite an excessive liability policy
Beyond the meager soul insurance some had seemingly purchased
Her only conditions for mankind were a little humility
That they, at least, forgo their keen sense of invincibility
Adhere to the lessons of
the Mosquito Principle and social living
Love for one another, and tolerance, instead of
wishful thinking
She even got that urban griot to put it to a soulful song
Thus sang Burning Spear, "it takes behavior to get along"
She left it out there: think first of
the least of us
Resolve conflicts with conversation and seek consensus
But the Ushers were quite incorrigible and prone to pick fights
They would not embrace restraint contra their insatiable appetites
Their new Okyeames trumped consensus
and preferred transactional conflicts
Their Prime Magician Johnson took on the role of a
reverse ferret
The chief of the Tabom would be given The Full Bolton
but yet he persisted
Even the Macromeister would get a frank taste
of the disease he gaslighted
The social pilgrim's progression through the lands was quite insidious
Exposing at once the cracks in the cement of society and the
huhudious
The Akan proverb out of Agona, widely known in the
torrid zone
Made the stark claim that "Humanity knows no boundary"
This generation at hand was instead keen to stand alone
To prove that it was rather folly that spread widely
Wisdom went in one ear, and out the other, their reputations were sullied
Still, badged with Asase Yaa's protective notions, they were unworried
They believed they could call on the excessive liability policy
It would provide, in extremis, a sort of soul sanctuary
The gods let the game play out, but it was quite disconcerting
To see the same mistakes repeated time and again, all too merrily
Advice from
telemedicine consultations swiftly discarded,
it was hard to understand
They really needed to be taught by example,
that
everything was written in sand
A
soundtrack for this note, it limits the claims of the umbrella policy. (
spotify version)
Soul Insurance (Index)
A covidious folktale
- Ananse and the Chief's Scribe
- Enter the Claims Adjuster
- An Audience with the Linguist
- Pity the Mink
- Short Sale
- Excessive Liabilities
- Premiums Due
- Soul Insurance, a playlist
- Indemnity Provisions
- Full Circle
- Enforcement Actions
- The Die is Cast
This folktale is part of a series: In a covidious time.
Next:
Premiums Due
File under: humour, satire, culture, observation, folktale, Ghana, Africa, storytelling, whimsy, myth, coronavirus, pandemic, Social Living, Things Fall Apart, Observers are worried, Buyer's Remorse, covidious, poetry, toli
Writing log: Part 6 March 26, 2021
