Lord, will the crab mentality ever end in our village?

Dear Father:

You know, the other day I was listening to a friend explaining a conversation he had with an expatriate friend of his.  He said the conversation was centered around our village its underdevelopment and while our village has not been able to have one notable person to celebrate as a hero or heroine.

Father, my friend said as he listens through the exchange, his friend pointed out that the reason our village has not had anyone to celebrate and if I may add is still looking highly forested is because of the crab mentality.

Father, you know those who have been reading your letter will note that this is one thing I have continued to tell you about since 2005-about the crab mentality.

Whenever you put crabs in a bucket as one tries to come out the others will pull it down. Simply put-where are you going all of us should be down here.

For an example Father, if a brother starts something let say a business, instead of celebrating for the giant step he has taken to be able to employ others to help them put food on their tables, the first thing that comes to mind is where did he get the money from?

Father their aim is to destroy that brother and find all the fault in the world against him. The worst part is even those that the brother or sister will bring onboard to work with him are the ones who will even lead the campaign to bring him or her down all because of the crab mentality-if it is not me it can’t be him.

Father, you will see them sitting or standing in corners all over the place chewing that person apart. But what they soon forget is that it is the obedient of that person to start a business that has given them something to do that will put bread on their table. But instead of appreciating and praying for that brother or sister they develop hatred in their hearts and try to pull him or her down.

Now if the person gets angry and gets rid of them he or she becomes the enemy, but their crab mentality would remain hidden.

Same in our politics, we are never satisfy, because it is not us, so we see nothing good in the other person, as a result he or she must be destroyed.

At time, people even go the extra miles just to find means of destroying the person by concocting lies. So how will we celebrate our own?

But let it be a foreigner, they will lick his or her ass. This is why many foreigners come here and enjoy our wealth, while we ravage in poverty-because of that undermining spirit .

Let’s take Church for an example, if a person from our village starts a church and the church is doing well and everybody can see the proof of God’s hands over that person, we will still find fault to pull the person down by equating the work of God to demonic powers.

But let it be a foreigner, we will find all the best adjectives in the world to describe the power of God over his life.

So how can such a nation prosper my son?

That is the same question I keep asking myself everyday Father-because you cannot benefit from a thing  you do not appreciate.

How can you stand in the corner and gossip me all the time and expect to benefit from me-it’s an abomination-because you do not appreciate my effort that makes you to put food on your table today. In the first place you figured out you should have been the one to be occupying that position. But one push you don’t have.

Father that is why there is too much of undermining at our public offices, because people do not celebrate each other in our village.

My friend also narrated a story as to how one of our brothers from here who is currently residing in Uncle Sam’s village has been in the habit of reporting his own brothers from our village to immigration, telling them how his own brothers don’t have correct documents to stay.

According to the story, my friend said on this day the immigration officer asked what was his problem. He said the immigration officer asked whether  people from our village were the only people living in their village illegally.

So do you see how far we can go with our crab mentality? Had it been other foreigners they will see how they can keep their brother or sister there until they can fix their documents. We still have more time to ravage in poverty as long as the crab mentality is with us.