While driving through the dark cold road leading to my destination that Friday evening, I listened to the shrieking laughter of the presenter on my car transmitter. Through the dark evening, the voices of this presenter and her callers kept me company amidst flashes of lights and huffing of cars passing by.
For me, the journey was about 15 miles away from home, but the journey this radio presenter took her listeners was far behind; it was way back into the past years.
She started the show with talks about her younger days. Talking about the fun she had as a young girl living in the city of London in the late 60s. The experiences she gathered while window shopping on the streets of London, the walk around Oxford Street and the new arrival of big labels that rocked the 60s, 70s and 80s.
The Fun Of Life
It was captivating, the radio Presenter had a way with words. Within a few minutes into the show, her listeners’ calls poured in, each with a different version of their fun stories. There was excitement in the air.
I went on a journey with the show and its audience. My face shone with aspiration, I beamed with smiles. Beyond the words that flooded in, I found a place I belong to.
I was part of the audience, a large number of strangers with the bond of listening to the radio. We all have a huge range of goals, orientations and philosophy about life. However, there was something in the stories told that lit a bulb and brighten our minds.
As I drove, I was mesmerised by the stories of sweet-nothings, fashion, love, of travels, food and of nature. The stories with their personalised uniqueness, yet intriguing.
One of the callers spoke of the fun she had with her group of friends. It was nothing extraordinary. With her words, she painted a picture of herself and her friends sliding down the rail of an escalator looking at their reflections on the mirrored-wall, yelling as they went down. In my mind’s vision, I saw her and her friends in their moments of fun. In her voice was such power-filled electrifying energy with a tune of happiness in all edges.
Something struck me at that moment. Our whole life is made up of a sequence of events. These events are a mixture of experiences and personal inclinations. People we’ve once lived with, our dreams, those we met and left behind. The whole dynamism of our existence in its totality.
My Idea Of Fun
The fun of past years still lives with me. Walking barefooted on the dusty tarred road of Lagos street unaware of the life before me. The friends I made, the laughter, the name-callings and the joy of growing up. Life passed by too quickly in my opinion.
Summer holiday was always something to look forward to. The idea of not thinking of school brought its own kind of fun. Something minute but in narration, it was fun-filled.
I had a close bond with my maternal cousins, people whom I couldn’t recall my childhood without. We were once a bunch, well known for our gait, class and style but as we grew into adulthood, the ocean of life made a huge path between our closeness. We drifted apart, each weaving her life story and choosing her path.
Back then, every activity translated into fun. The drops of rain falling from the sky; there was a pure pleasure watching each drop fell. Thick dark clouds moving across the sky formed another nostalgic fulfilment. The simple competitive nature of growing up.
The joy of moving around the neighbourhood without a care in the world, the fun of it, the silly laughs, the hide and seek and mischievousness in our little plays. The attention we grabbed as teenagers and the knowledge we thought we possessed in our 20s.
It all felt like a breeze, a fleeting moment. I lost the track of fun somewhere in my life. I have tried catching its tail but it’s ever so evasive.
Fun Has A New Name
To many of us, fun isn’t fun anymore. Fun is work, paying bills, sitting in boring meetings, adding numbers and watching the traffic ease. The fun has become the little escape from our boring routines, our short yearly getaways, our gadgets. Within the hollow of our dear hearts, there is a longing for fun (the real fun), for excitement and the adrenaline rush of the past.
As part of the bargain, we read meaning to every stare, gesture and hearsay. Life became a watching game. We watch every move, sneeze and cough. We rewrite our guiding rules and let go of fun.
The fun we knew as kids has suddenly become unrecognisable. Fun isn’t fun anymore. In its place, we have addictions of every kind. We sulk, we hate, we gossip.
I don’t know about you, but I long for the simplicity nature of fun. A holiday in a 7-star hotel with deep body massage sounds good but it doesn’t bring the light back on in my heart. The party of dignitaries with an array of delicious food sure sound classy but it wouldn’t do.
The Kind Of Fun I Long For.
Part of the fun I remember was watching the moon rose and set with an old lost friend. As we talked into the night, the moon and stars brightened; stagging a show. We sat on the edge of a balcony without railings dangling our legs gasping in the beauty before us.
The moon was exceptionally big that night, blinking and nodding in affirmation to our discussion. The silence of the night echoed the cricket’s chirping. I felt free and at one with nature.
I won’t find it offensive if you view my idea of fun as absurd. Though we might be separated in our ideology of fun our view is still the same. At least, can we all agree to a certain degree that fun releases dopamine and endorphins in our brains? The chemicals that make us feel good about ourselves? The fun I crave is that kind of fun.
This Post Has One Comment
"The attention we grabbed as teenagers and the knowledge we thought we possessed in our 20s",- this hit differently.
Indeed, we read meaning to every move, stares and laughter. Where's the fun?
Thank you for this ma'am,
This is it!!!