FREEDOM

According to the online philosophy club, Freedom starts with a principle of self-control, also known as self-ownership. In a free society, each and every person has legal control (or "ownership") of their own body and mind.

But Freedom to me is a state of mind an individual can do whatever he or she likes with some restrictions. Without self control you are not really free. One must remember that in life what goes around comes around and everyone is responsible for his or her actions.

For instance in our society, not just Africa, premarital sex is seen as a means of exercising one’s freedom but we forget that this world is not a “free” world this is a world governed by unwritten rules like sowing and reaping, sunrise and sunset, rights and wrongs. The result could be illegitimate children, forced marriages and worse case scenarios, STDs or all of the above.

Aside from the known effects of premarital sex, there is also the issue of stigmatization. Most people don’t know this, but if you have been tagged as a gigolo, slut, player, Casanova, nymphomaniac etc, the result of such “freedom” could be devastating on you in the not so distant future. In Africa, such acts will lead to pressure from our society because among all things we value “marriage”. If one spends his/her life, skipping from one sex partner to another, you are leaving a trail of evidence behind you in the form of nude pictures, videos and most of all you will become a local legend which is not helpful when you are looking for someone who you can spend the rest of your life with. You will be lucky if you can find someone who can overlook your wrongs and start a life with you. Even with that, when a fight starts, the spouse will call you out on your past which will be a serious blow to your person. This happens because we have bought into the illusion of total freedom.

Let’s take a look at one Hollywood actor Edward Furlong. You may know him as John Connor in Terminator 2: Judgement Day. He was one of the most promising actors of the 20^th century. He had money, fame and all the “American Dream” represents. Right now, nobody knows who he is and the last movie I saw him take a lead role was The Crow: Wicked Prayer. This is because he gave in to unrestricted freedom. He spent his money extravagantly, and got involved with drugs. Today he is broke.

Another scenario I want to bring up is a case where someone who has all the opportunities to increase his/her skill set or upgrades his/her present skill set. But refuses to take any advice, go to seminars or if he/she cannot afford to attend one, refuses to go online for books and videos on the subject matter. As I said earlier, we are free to do what we want but if you cannot take the pains to sit down and study to improve yourself, you will not go anywhere.

In conclusion, I want to say that, you have to respect the laws of balance; the bible also says that what a man sows that what he going to reap. Please take the time to sit down and think about each and every action you take and the consequences. Do you think the risk of premarital sex is worth it or do you think you can excel in life without hard work and reading, think again pal. If you are on the right track in life, you will definitely get the right results despite the hurdles you will have to cross. If you take the wrong way just because you have the freedom to do what you want, you will end up feeling sorry for yourself. Please remember, when you are doing the wrong things, you will be hailed as a hero but when it all goes south, you will not be able to stand in front of a mirror ever again why, because you will be disgusted by your image.

Remember we live in a world of rules where every action has its own consequence. Live wisely. Think before you act. 

In other words live a life of balance.