Last night I had a dream about the Land Of Let’s Not Pretend, so-called because it’s so real, it’s just beyond your imagination.
In that land, there was a state agency called the National Hotbed of Corruption. Many of the good citizens of that fair land suspected that something was amiss, but everyone was flabbergasted at what was finally unveiled.
Many egregious misdeeds were uncovered despite mighty efforts to hide them, and many ignoble characters were unmasked; but three of them were especially despicable: Mister Money, Mister Lies and Don Key (a maths-challenged ignoramus). Their misdeeds were so gross, they set new national records.
A cry rose up across the fair Land Of Let’s Not Pretend: “Lock Dem Up! Lock Dem Up!”
At this point, I suddenly woke up from my nightmare in a cold sweat. Try as I might, I could not get back to sleep, and I couldn’t get this childhood nursery rhyme out of my head:
In the Land Of Let’s Pretend, there lived a kangarooster
Half of him was kangaroo, the other half was rooster
He could jump, and he could crow
Flap his wings and tap his toe
In the Land Of Let’s Pretend, there lived a kangarooster.
Like Pharaoh of old once asked, can anyone tell me the meaning of my dream?
– DAVID BRATHWAITE
