OH, how times have changed! There was a time when the West Indies cricket team was the most-feared in world cricket, but fast-forward to today and we can’t even qualify for international meets. And although there are still some records yet to be broken and some players have earned and profited handsomely from the sport within recent years, it still remains individual achievements, not a collective merit.
In female cricket in the region, the female squad had eighty percent St. Lucian players once, but now we can barely present one.
In every community locally, each and every family could have owned their own house through community support, but now is only rental, or spend your whole life paying back a loan, with no relief in sight.
There was a time when we in these islands were described as living in Paradise, in an almost a crime-free zone, well-fed and a contented people, but fast-forward to today again — our image has been again tarnished.
There are several reasons why we as a people have regressed, but it would take this whole paper to explain, but for sure, selfishness plays a great part too.
Our present outlook seems grim, the quest for better days remains a figment of our imagination and the uncertainty of tomorrow is real.
We are smarter, have become more educated and information of all affairs is at our finger tips, yet we regress rather than progress.
As to what can be done, or what strategy should be applied to reverse that trend, your guess is as good as mine.
As for me, I have no ideas or suggestions, I am just mesmerized by the circumstances.
I still question if we see, understand or care about changing what exists. Or if, like most Christians, we just throw in the towel and consider this is the sign of the times.
It is so sad, so nerve-wracking, so unbelievable, that we could change from being great to being nobodies. The fights of the past for integrity, ensuring that we were counted, or stamped our mark on history, seems to have been all in vain.
We are now subjects without a cause, a people without goals, ambition-free, a dejected people.
We are controlled, manipulated, subject to influence and have little or no direction, nor purpose, as we have allowed ourselves to become victims of all circumstances.
Our leaders are clueless as to what to do, or how to avoid the rut. The many who could help, or should help, are all concerned about self.
We live primarily to be the foot-stool of the developed nations and we have no voice, no backbone, no significance in determining our future, or our political independence.
There is a phrase called ‘being a puppet on a string’ — and we can wear that banner.
History of this era will record our dismal failures, the era of ‘no fight, no bite’, no balls or will or heart.
The rest of the world is heading in a certain direction, while we only toe the line, playing catch up or second fiddle.
We continue to ‘spin top in mud’ and only always ‘follow the leader’ and fade away like a shooting star.
We are now the backyard for disaster, we fight each other without a cause, we destroy with impunity, we blame the world and simply refuse to watch ourselves in the mirror.
Always pointing fingers as the new order of the day and dissatisfaction is our motto as we continue to sail our rudderless ship.