It is a season of detoxing and flushing out the toxins from the body. Don’t be fooled though if you hear this. It is not that people have suddenly become health conscious. It is a financial dictate. The bank balance has gone to Pitsville and the wallet now contains plastic cards and the COVID-19 vaccine card. January is a very tricky month for everyone. Almost every year after being jaded by the month, you swear by all your dead uncles in all cemeteries around the world that the subsequent January you will be ready. But as the next January ambles along, you find yourself in an even more dire financial situation than the previous year.
The irony of January is that it is ushered in amidst a welter of fireworks, festivities and a general gay atmosphere. Ululations too are a part of the whole setup and one would be forgiven for thinking they are part of a whole Miss World ensemble with Palesa right in the middle. The very next day though people will be pondering more serious issues like wondering what happened to their money and how they will get back to their workstations. The contrast is like a Facebook hookup where the prospect outside the glare of Facebook lights and filters looks like a character from Botswana’s Most Wanted List. Most of us are all having an out-of-the-money situation, which is another way of saying we are seriously broke. The former is how you say it to maintain your dignity which will now be teetering on the brink of fake.
