WHAT ARE YOU GUARDING?

It was Thursday evening, 8pm. After a long day at the library, I got on the bus to go home. Two stops later, a bunch of girls, about five of them (between 15-17years) hopped on the bus. Some very noisy kids. All I wanted to do was to scream at them to be quiet because I had a throbbing headache. But this is the UK where everyone minds their business. Young people here are not known to be respectful to elders let alone me who looks like their age mate sef. (too much civilisation I suppose)

But in my tired state I couldn’t help but notice something. They all wore skimpy clothes; bum shorts, crop tops, minis. Everything was just small as though the materials used were borrowed and not enough to make a complete outfit. Lol. This is summer and the heat is a good excuse to go naked here. Honestly, a part of me wished I could be daring enough to do same but I know my mother will see me in her dream 8,000 miles away in Abuja and strangle me if I tried. Lol. But personally it’s not my style.

I noticed another thing. They all had their phones nicely protected in cute cases. And as I watched them, the irony of it hit me. We take out time and money to clothe/protect the things that matter so little but prefer to leave the one thing that needs all the protection exposed. Our bodies.

Isn’t that weird? It seems our gadgets: iphone, ipads,tablets even nokia phones these days get to wear decent clothing more than we ourselves all in the name of fashion. Hey, am not judging them or anyone here, it is just something that got me reflecting that day.

The entertainment industry to me has done more harm than good to our generation in terms creating wrong impressions. The few that seem like they have a message come out with videos littered with scantily clad ladies shaking their “assets” let alone the countless ones that sing (rudely) only of a woman’s body. Even a regular advert of a wrist watch has a semi-nude lady in it. Celebrities that people look up now go nude to events (e.g sister riri) and we think it’s normal. Where has values, modesty and responsibility all gone to?

We may not know, but i believe this has affected the society in more ways than one. It has cheapened women (even those who are decent) generally in the eyes of men so much so that it has made sex an easy commodity. Men as we know are easily moved by what they see, now add supple, fresh flesh to what they are seeing every day and everywhere and we are simply putting “sex” on the front burner of their heads and minds and equally giving the illusion that we are sex objects, diminishing our worth.

It has indirectly affected some of our relationships because if you won’t play ball, another girl will be more than willing to do so. We have made it look like sex is easy to get on the streets with our dressing. Still wondering why rape and assault of women are on the rise? Oh well… The new rave of scanty dressing has also created a false impression that decent is crap and most young girls are falling over themselves to expose more flesh. It has de-emphasised the need for brains added to beauty.

In my opinion, a woman can be fully clothed and still be super SEXY (is that not the aim of a girl going half naked?). A man will see a Muslim woman fully wrapped up in her hijab and still be turned on if he likes/wants you. He doesn’t need to see all that flesh to be. No decent man is or should be genuinely attracted to nakedness in the first place. Those ones are seen as play things by them. (Why then does a girl get upset when a man throws a sexual innuendo at her when her dressing attracted it? The way you are dressed is the way you are addressed! ) Isn’t it best then to leave them to imagine what is beneath than baring it all out for the world to see? Where then is the excitement of discovery for the man if everything you have is on display?

If things are this bad now, I hate to imagine what the generation of our children will do. Ah! I dey fear o. Let’s set our priorities right, become more responsible, place more value on ourselves as women and set the proper standard for our children. We cannot afford to fail them.

Modesty should be the watch word.

Stop guarding your gadgets!

Guard your body.

Love always,

Ella…xxx