Arick D. Scott's Reflection

     At last week’s usual freshman seminar class, we had a new speaker, Dr. Segun Gbadegesin. He lectured the audience on “self-actualization and communal responsibility.” Dr. Gbadegesin presented himself as a dignified man with an easily identifiable African accent. Being from Africa, he decided to discuss African stories, traditions, and morals with us. Dr. Gbadegesin brought his own authentic African drummer with him. The African drum is used for more than a musical instrument. It is a tool for communication and expresses certain ideas through the interpretation of beats for words. Dr. Gbadegesin stated that sometimes the only one that can decipher the drums message is the drummer. He then went on to tell us an African story that, like most African stories, had an underlying message. The story described the relationship between a decorated man and his equally decorated wife. The two seemed to be happy until the wife, Iwa, left the man because of his arrogant incident. The man initially tried to disregard the fact of her absence but it began to haunt his mind and tamper with his sanity. Everything the man valued seemed to fall apart and he had to conduct a full search to find his wife. In this story, the wife represents the man’s character/existence. The moral of the story was to always value your character and never forget your existence. After the African story, Dr. Gbadegesin went on to stress the importance of “self-actualization.” One must know one’s self before thus person can benefit his/her community. A valued person of the community may be referred to as an “Omoluabi,” a child begotten of the chief of Iwa. This individual is respectful, disciplined, self-improving, and complementary. An Omoluabi has been described to have good character and good character is the greatest talisman. Dr. Gbadegesin closes his lecture by finally emphasizing the importance of education, to transmit wisdom and knowledge of the society from one generation to the next. “Education is key!”