The way I see it, people who love what they do will always be high achievers and people who slouch and consistently find excuses to avoid real work, will never come to any good.
I am reminded of a quotation by that distinguished son of St. Kitts’ soil and I assume with Nevisian roots, Mr. Michael Morton, who in a presentation sometime last year said: ‘When you truly enjoy the job that you do, you will never work another day in your life!’
Now think about that and you will recognize that it’s a truly powerful statement.
I am fresh back at my office, just having concluded an interview with another distinguished son of the soil, who goes by the name KEITH LLOYD THOMAS ARTHURTON.
You remember him?
He is one of the seven distinguished men from this small, beautiful rock, called Nevis, who have made it to the West Indies senior Cricket team.
During the interview, ARTIE spoke with pride and passion about his days as a servant of West Indies cricket and noted: ‘I am just doing something that I love, even though I get paid for it.’
Isn’t that amazing?
We live in a world nowadays when VOLUNTEERISM has been virtually thrown out of the window and people make it a habit of asking ‘what is in it for me?’ or ‘how much are you willing to pay?’
Well I newa!
I spoke with equal joy and pride about my days as a videographer and Journalist.
I reminisced on how I invested in purchasing a video camera and naturally ‘cut off’ a number of heads in those early months, but was able to replay the footage (much to the joy of many individuals), via TBN, then.
I started in 1989, around the time of the infamous HUGO and am still going strong by God’s grace.
We reminisced on that regional match, sometime around 1993, when Clifford BOMBO Walwyn made his Leeward Islands debut.
The Leewards were playing in Barbados, versus a hostile pace attack. They were producing bouncers, enough to export and the fearless BROWN HILLIAN, Clifford BOMBO Walwyn, walked to the crease, without helmet or hat, with his shine head, glistening in the sunlight.
‘Oh, this man has gone out there HEADLESS,’ said the commentator.
It seemed a HEADLESS decision, truthfully, but not when you are Clifford Walwyn.
He hooked, pulled and drove, as if he was playing against some small boys in Brown Hill.
I recorded every moment on my camcorder.
But wait. How did I get there? That’s another story in itself.
I went to church one Sabbath, at the Charlestown Seventh Day Adventist church. After church, I saw a gentleman waiting by the gate.
I asked him if I could assist and discovered that he needed a lift to the Four Seasons Resort. I took him there and he gave me his card and said that if ever I got to Barbados, I must call him and he would take care of me.
I thought to myself that I would never go to Barbados and so I put the card some place at home.
About two years later, I was told that I could get a sponsor to give me a ticket to go to Barbados, to record the aforementioned match, but that they could not provide accommodation.
I said I won’t be able to go, as I had no one in Barbados. Then I remembered my friend of two years ago and went searching for the card and found it!
I thought maybe he would say he was unavailable but he seemed to have been waiting for the call.
He gave me a room at his house for the weekend. He took me to the match on Friday, Sunday and Monday and naturally to church on the Sabbath day and fed me well.
He and his entire family took wonderful care of me.
Having recorded the game, I boarded the flight back home, through Antigua and learnt that we arrived too late to make the connection in Antigua.
Dead broke and tired and learning that the next flight would leave 5 am the following day, I opted to do like what I saw some other people doing: Sleep in the terminal!
I put my precious camera in its bag under my head as a pillow. That was the only thing of real value I had on me.
I caught the flight the next day and as soon as I got in town, a fella told me: ‘I hear you went Barbados, I hope you gonna put it on the TV tonight!
He aint even ask me how I was doing?
Well I newa!
But I love what I do and so I no longer work. I get paid for doing the things I love and God will surely bless my efforts.
That’s the way I see it. How do you see it?