THE PROTECTION and development of any civil and progressive society mandate the acceptance, belief and practical expression of certain core values in our daily lives.
These include truth, honesty, loyalty, respect, decency and accountability. Although these uncompromising six may be premier in any moral and caring society, there are other equally important behaviours and actions that must be promoted as defining components of how we want to be seen and remembered as a people.
It may not be a word used in its most expressive way, but the word “maintenance” must be seen as deserving of a place in the pantheon of our defining structures. This is patently important in individual growth, the building of family, aesthetics, modernisation and the glue that ensures the realisation of what we project as the established core values. Maintenance speaks to effort, and success is found not in one action but on a continuum that is reflective of societal growth.
There is nothing more required from the parents of a newborn than maintenance. The challenge is to ensure the health and growth of the child. There must be commitment; there must be sacrifice and there certainly must be dedicated effort. Maintenance here is seen as the provision of love, care, comfort and the fulfilment of the basic needs of food, shelter, clothing and security.
The word maintenance takes on a different meaning when our children head off to school. There are established rules and regulations that must be understood and respected. There are time frames that must be met relative to punctuality and completion of assignments if they are to maintain acceptance and esteem in the eyes of the school. There are levels of conduct to be maintained if respect and commendation are to be earned. There are grade point averages to be maintained if affirmation and promotion are to be realised. That’s the continuous challenge to students that must be met and overcome. Maintenance must be seen in their daily actions.
Failure of maintenance in our general society often tends to be exceptionally costly. We build the most modern and well-equipped schools, hospitals, hotels and highways. These serve us well, but are often ignored when it comes to the necessary and consistent upkeep. Without such maintenance, the aesthetics begin to fade, the technology drifts into obsolescence and expected productivity levels significantly decline. The only appropriate response is a second and even more taxing financial expenditure to overcome our blatant disregard for maintenance.
There are very few things that encourage a rallying cry more than the notion of family. We may speak of brother and sister, mother and father, teammate and colleague and even family of nations. Yet, as the challenges and differences unfold, as they always do, our lack of maintenance is manifest. We often allow our personal views and interests to supersede the collective interests of the family group. Hence, we see things such as divorce, lawsuits, expulsions, embargos, bans and even wars. These are all direct results of a lack of maintenance in securing the family as the prime focus we claim it to be. Nothing worth having comes without respect and sacrifice, the true definition of maintenance.
Mothers are forced daily into a struggle to raise their children all because of a lack of maintenance. Relationships begin and love is projected as the glue that will ensure their survival.
Love results in pregnancies and children are brought into the world. Mom and dad should be the strength providers for these children. Yet, there is a preponderance of mothers who are left to carry the full burden. In these cases, fathers renege on their responsibilities to provide maintenance. Often, these mothers have to lower their self-respect at public court scenes or at family doorsteps to seek maintenance for the good of their children.
We as the moral individuals who seek to promote high values and principles must always remember that without effort and focus, these remain mere words. Loyalty, respect, trust and all of the others can only be realised if they are maintained. We must not only speak them but practise them in our daily lives. This is true maintenance that allows these principles to define us as whom and what we claim and want to be – a moral, caring and sensitive society.
Jeff Broomes is an experienced educator, principal and community organiser who also serves as vice president of the Barbados Cricket Association and director of the West Indies Cricket Board. Email: UncleJeff2@hotmail.com