Garaw-Garawlu...

Once in a while, it is natural to have an overfed estimate of your own worth. My boys call it the “Garaw-Garawlu ” or “Star-Starlu ” tendency. It animates you; drives out every fear you may have in your ability to do what you do best. Once I was watching the Nikita TV series and the tech guy therein (Birkhoff) made a certain discovery using his gadgets, and knowing how amazing it was, he said: “If God is in the detail, then I'm a god.” Unlike folks be yelling "Astaghfirullah," I was like, yeah! That’s what's up genius!

Here that people are happy about each other’s downfall, like we are brought up to hate or pass judgment on everyone else's but ours, waiting for expressed approval of what you do is going to be the biggest disobliging act you will do to yourself, because folks will never have the decency to openly appreciate you. They'll tell you that praising yourself is like boasting, or “sabou dou fott bopam.” In fact, no matter how you try not to draw attention to yourself, you'll be accused of thinking that you're the best thing since ‘Neni Ngunja Ak Mbuss.’

For my part, I think recognising your worth or refusing to be satisfied with mediocrity is a thing of ego, but a constructive one, and constructive ego can lead to gratefulness, and gratefulness to godliness; so go on your ego-trip. Just don’t blow it to the point of creating a sense of division between you and the rest of humankind, because your ownership or tenure of that thing that is motivating your sense of superiority may not last.

Personally, I fly my own kite when it's necessary, but anytime I am afforded to call the shots, and I feel overly obsessed with that (supposed) importance, I know my ego is getting way too huge. So I try to remind myself that no matter what, I will always be Omar, son of Tida Sonko of blessed memory; that wonderful woman of moderate behaviour. And before I know it, that huge opinion that I was almost about to have of myself will sink, and my humility will be restored.