It is said that everything that has a beginning also has an end, and I was reminded forcefully of this saying as I flew back home on Sunday evening after six amazing weeks travelling, catching up with old friends and getting some well-deserved rest.
I cannot remember the last time I took such an extensive break.
As for the financial implications, suffice it to say, ‘you only live once’.
Even though my bank account has been emptied and I am bracing myself to live the life of a pauper over the next few weeks — perhaps months, even — it was worth every penny.
I am still open to the temptation of another expedition next year.
The thing about being away for some time is that certain things that one had become almost immune to prior to the travel suddenly become noticeable upon return – the almost overwhelming heat that greets you upon leaving the terminal building, the maddening, loud traffic, the bad roads and so many others.
But somehow, even in all the mild and not-so-mild chaos, there is some comfort and assurance that one is at home, in the land of one’s ancestors, with which one has irrefutable blood links.
On Monday morning, an early breakfast of ‘waakye’ with all the accoutrements was my soul food to reconnect and dock in. It is good to be back home.
Ghana politics break
Over the past six weeks, I made it a point not to pay much attention to the Ghanaian political and social scene. True, because I am on Facebook, I have not been able to avoid developments.
But most of the time, I just skim through and do not comment much, the only exception being a few paragraphs I posted following the passing of former First Lady Mrs Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings. May her soul find rest in the Lord.
I suppose my decision was informed by the fact that Ghanaian politics and social issues can be rather controversial and draining, so if I was going to take a physical break from the country, it made sense to align my mind in the same manner.
I am glad I made that decision.
Apparently, I did not miss much because it is the same issues recycled over and over again. But something caught my attention that recycled old arguments.
Hairy matters
In 2021, when the issue of Tyson Marghguy blew up in the public square because he refused to cut his hair in order to be admitted to Achimota School as the authorities insisted, in line with Ghana Education Service policy, I strongly defended his stance in this column.
My argument was premised on the sole ground that his position was based on his religious persuasion, and that religious belief is so fundamental to human rights that his needs must be accommodated and respected as an exception.
At the same time, I believed the policy in its general application made sense for practical reasons, especially in our boarding system.
The arguments raged back and forth and the matter landed in court.
We are back again, this time with the story of a young lady who appeared visibly distressed in a photograph of her hair being cut ahead of admission into Yaa Asantewaa Girls SHS that went viral on social media platforms, generating yet another storm around this vexed issue.
I can appreciate the distress she and many other girls in the country who have had to go through the agonising process of losing their long hair that they have groomed over the years.
The emotional relationship between black women in particular and hair is quite a delicate, probably complex one, and in her novel ‘Americanah’, the Nigerian novelist, Chimamanda Ngozi
Adichie, explores this relationship within the context of race and politics.
Indeed, in 1 Corinthians 11:15, the Bible said, "But if a woman has long hair, it is her glory; for her hair is given to her for a covering".
So, I can quite understand the women in particular who protest that this GES rule is an antiquated tool inherited from the British colonialists, meant to control women’s bodies and knock out their confidence and self-worth.
I agree that in the 21st century, a belief that the nature of a woman's or a man’s hair has a relationship with their character or what is in their head is backward, and that should not even be the point or the argument.
Hair does not mould character, as the Education Minister appeared to suggest publicly the other day.
However, as I stated during Tyson’s case, I believe balancing the insistence on short hair in our boarding schools makes practical sense.
Maintaining and plaiting long hair takes quite some time and the last thing we want is young students spending endless hours doing each other’s hair when they should be resting or involved in some other school activities, or taking exeat on a regular basis just to go home to do their hair.
To expect already overburdened teachers in our overcrowded boarding schools to regulate and monitor them to ensure they do not spend inordinate time on their hair is, in my view, wholly unreasonable.
That said, I strongly believe the GES could make an exception for final year female students and entrust them with a certain level of responsibility and maturity as they prepare to step into adulthood by allowing them to grow and plait their hair, subject to conditions, of course.
This would be nothing new. Under the old educational system, sixth formers got certain privileges that were denied to the junior classes, as a way of recognising that they were transitioning into real life even though they were still students.
This included not having to attend prep and not needing an exeat to go into town.
Somehow, I hope we can draw a line in the sand on this hair issue.
There are many more important things for us to worry about than the hair of our students.
Rodney Nkrumah-Boateng.
E-mail: rodboat@yahoo.com
