Saturday 23 July 2011

Love forgives all sins – the gospel according to Ngozi Onyegbule

by Joachim Ezeji
The fictional novel ‘’Love forgives all sin’’ reflects life and every day love, pains, ambitions, plans, and disappointments that often moves in tandem with it.
In this novel, Ngozi Onyegbule a freelance writer, poet, comedian and author used a combination of African, European and Caribbean Island scenes to espouse the immense effects of and enduring impacts of love, destiny, forgiveness, faith, culture, compassion and tolerance on the human person hence my decision to tag it a ‘’gospel’’ .
In a no-holds bare the story recounts the experiences of Kenneth, a hitherto village school teacher in the hands of Sybil, the girl he had planned to marry. However Kenneth’s ability to quickly rise above that emotional and love gone sour setback; quickly sort himself out and transiting from his humble village teacher station to that of a new life in the UK as a scholar underscores the strength of success as a sure bus stop for hard work, determination, focus and resilience; all being vital and germane basics in shaping robust futures. Ordinarily, weaklings would have mourned for life the jilt by a loved one; but certainly not Kenneth.
Kenneth’s willingness to forgive Sybil and ability to effectively proceed to resuscitate their already comatose wedding plans speaks volume. Going ahead to eventually marrying Sybil underscores true love beyond measure. It is germane to point out that forgiveness is never an easy virtue. People who exude it are not ordinary. In our world there is ubiquity of revenge, violence and hatred. But Kenneth despite his new orientation, contacts and opportunities in the UK espoused this scarce virtue of forgiveness and still extended optimal love – marriage to a woman who ‘dumped’ him when her own ‘’sun shined’’.
Another important point to stress here is the certainty of destiny. This is evident from the web of intrigues that effectively played out in the coming together of these erstwhile lovebirds. Who could have imagined that Kenneth and Sybil would eventually meet several years after in such a strange afar Trinidad, West Indies at an International Christian Convention? The meeting at the Robert Marley Hall that evening was much more than a coincidence, but destiny in action.
Ngozi Onyegbule’s recount of everyday life and nuances in the typical African community where both Kenneth and Sybil originate from espouses the traditionally uncommon African communal nexus that binds people together even in the severest midst of myriad deprivations. In these communities, locals know each other, sympathising and mourning with those who mourn, while rejoicing with those who suffer loses. The story of Kenneth and Sybil encapsulates this and much more. It also throws a challenge of juxtaposing scenarios of yesteryears in those communities with what exists today even with new and so called appropriate technology. Are they still the same or are there surprises?
As with all worthy activity, readers will benefit from reflecting upon the points raised in the story and take a stand as it affects them individually. Every paragraph provides opportunity necessary for such reflection. Readers especially the new generation will certainly relish the story of Kenneth and Sybil, stopping where necessary and considering the relevance of the issues to their own stations and relationships in life. This is a very important message from this fiction which must not be lost. It offers readers a worthy opportunity to pause and consider the implications of the ‘gospel’ in order to facilitate an understanding of the message to their own lives. For squeezing out the time to write in spite of his very ever busy schedules, Ngozi Onyegbule has underscored his fit for structure personality- an all-rounder. This is evident in his foundations in the art of reading, writing and speaking. These streaks shape a full man and remained tools vital for the 21st century voyage and beyond.
I recommend this book to all men and women who desire love in its truest form. Kenneth and Sybil’s story as told by Ngozi Onyegbule ‘’gospel’’ offers emotional grease for those who desire love.

No comments:

Post a Comment

Please you may respond or reply to articles posted here using this form. Alternatively, you can reach the author on: joachimezeji@aol.com