WHEN THE SOCIAL CRAZE SWEEPS

By Kibuuka Peter

When the words “soso”, “socho”, “shosho”, “social......” start rocking the college, then everyone is thrilled, and the lucky ones are overcome with joy and excitement. If you have passed through this disturbed stage, then you know what I am talking about. For the young ones, start praying for a little more days on this crazy planet, and anxiously start counting the years, months, and days in anticipation of your golden chance.

When the days start nearing, tension starts to heighten. For who would not love to look best and smartest on such a day? Your predecessors will tell you how gorgeous and enthrilling the girls were and what can’t you do to impress?

You can not imagine the government beaurocrats who formulate important policies like Universal Primary Education, and those who coined political catchwords like “olubengo”, all went through all this! Yes, all of them were at one time washed off their feet by the social craze.

You are preparing and putting everything in place. But then the biggest problem shows. Surely, where will you get money to the tune of a half a million? You see that the day will not be what it should without the money. Unfortunately, your parents can not afford to give your money, not even anything nearing the astronomical figure that you have asked for.

You want a designer suit, the one you spotted in one of the mushrooming shopping arcades in town, or the one your friend said he had seen in a magazine. But alas! You can not have the suit. So?

You are still plotting the plan, when the soothing words the headmaster once said, come to your mind. They console you and you feel relieved. After all, didn’t the headmaster at one time say that if she likes you for the suit that she knows very well your father bought for you, then you would rather not have her around? You then dismiss those expensive imagination like the proverbial monkey and the sour grapes. For a time being you find solace in your books. After all, you came to read, not so?

But when the real guys increase their pace, you fell a jerk in your side. As they make orders for their designer suits, shoes and matching socks and hankies, the world crumbles on you. The social fever overwhelms your source of solace, then you hate the day you came on to this crazy world.

Competition in this God’s world at whatever level requires a lot of endurance. And the competition, or is it rivalry in the social is no exception. The steering committee starts scouting for the best choices, and the trick behind this is sociability. For this is were the unmaking of our rivals, or is it competitors lies. They will try to show off, and you know what,? That pride will bring them down.

When the D-day finally comes, you will not believe what you see. Believe me or not, you will discover that the boys did not do their shopping in the down town for those second hand clothes. No way. You will bear witness to the fact that the students are the smartest class, and that is when the time comes and they mean it. Unfortunately, they can not sustain their smartness for an extra day.

There is that guy who is really breath-taking. His hair cut will drive him to the next planet. How about the golden necklace? There is the American -collar white shirt, checked jacket, black buggy trousers that would put a giant to shame. What about his Texas high-heeled shoes. Wow! What a sight to behold! This combination will no doubt win him unconditional entry into God’s Kingdom!

Then from a far, you hear the sound of a vehicle. Guess what? They are coming. The partners for the dance are here already. Trust this young and restless generation. If they are left out, they will find something for themselves to do. I mean the ones who are age-barred. They will form an impromptu peeping committee to informally welcome the visitors. And they don’t just sit near the place. They stay at a distance, just in case any bully comes around to ask them a few questions.

In no time, the music is blaring in the main hall, and everything is set. The moods around will tell you what is happening. “Am I smart”, and “yes you are” become the questions and answers of the day, as everyone is complimented and compliments the others.

You know that warm, welcoming and dis-arming smile of your dreams. Yes, the one that sets your heart at rest. That is what you will receive from the dancing partners. If you thought that the smile was genuine, the you are wrong. It is a public relations smile, and it has misled so many innocent souls.

All through the ragga, reggae and lingala beats, the smile of your counterpart is growing wider and wider as the day goes by. Isn’t this the day you have been longing for? You ask yourself, and get more energy to perform the feats that would put the world’s best dancer to shame. The look at her makes your pulse to increase, as you look forward to the afternoon haven of sweetness.

The most intriguing time comes. This is the time when the disc-jockey plays the music that you have been impatiently waiting for. This is what you have been longing for, you remind yourself. It will be the moment that will make or unmake your day. Unfortunately, it is also the most dreaded moment for your partner. How to reconcile this situation, becomes the one million dollar question. If she accepts to dance with you, God bless her. But if she refuses, then ... You don’t even want to think about it. To puzzle it out requires a philosopher of all times, the likes of Socrates and Plato.

Then, you master some courage, the type that is meant for the Dutch, and go to her. The thought of her refusing to dance with you persists in your head, and you can not rub it out. As if she has read your mind, she decides to do exactly what you are thinking about. And alas! Your dreams are shattered right there in front of you, at a time you cherished them most!

Life must go on, so you tell yourself. If this road can not take me home, then the other one surely must. You decide to try your luck on another one, after all , it is no good keeping all your eggs in one basket. As you draw closer to your second chance, her face suddenly changes for the worse, and you wait for those words, that are known to have floored the strongest men. She then tells you that she is tired. You can not swallow this hands down. This time you try to fight for your rights. But you later realise that you can not fight for your right, so you opt to beg for your rights.

Lucky enough, she is a strong believer in the Christian principles of forgiveness and mercy. Out of humanitarian considerations, she tells you that she can dance with you, but that you must meet certain conditions first. You are shocked, but you quickly absorb the shock, and recover from it. You ask her what the terms are, while praying that they are not very stringent.

You must not get very close to her, she tells you. My God! But that is not enough. There is another hurdle to jump. You should not touch her. There you are beaten. But the day is going, and at the end of it, you must have a story to tell to your friends. And it must not be a sad story.

You swallow your pride, and play by her rules. But kind as she is, she later softens her conditions, and for once, you feel your money’s worth. You are sure you will have a story to tell, and a good one at that. As she hums the song blasting away from the giant speakers, you are carried away into another world, and the day is made, after a long struggle.

But inside the dancing hall, not all is honey, for hearts are being broken while others are being mended. Friends are being made and friends are being lost. That is the social, and never miss when the chance knocks on your door. It is something to write home about.

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