Searching for Meaning in Life and Language Part 1
Volume 1: Birthday Celebrations: Part 1, A Story in Three Languages
One day, a gentleman of genuine intentions and honest beliefs was celebrating his birthday very quietly by way of personal reflections on his past years. His friends and colleagues, as the custom was, sent him very warm birthday wishes, and see how he responded
That the day of death is better than the day of birth. That it is better to go to a house of mourning than to go to a house of feasting, for death is the destiny of everyone; that the living had better take this to heart
Those who knew him quite closely were not surprised, but for the ones who knew him less, he had more surprises for them. Instead of inviting them to eat and drink and make merry, his messages to them were contrary.
Firstly, to tell them that frustration is better than laughter, because a sad face is good for the heart. Secondly, he wished to make it known that the heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, but the heart of fools is in the house of pleasure. Thirdly, it is better to heed the rebuke of a wise person than to listen to the song of fools. Also, that like the crackling of thorns under the pot, so is the laughter of fools
Many took him for an insane man or a deeply depressed thinker, but when they were told later on that those statements he had made, which he firmly believed in, came not from him, but from one of the books in a worldwide highly respected library, simply called The Book, they went on their knees to ask for forgiveness from the Great Author
A few of his friends who cared less about whatever was contained in The Book, said the original writer had drunk too much wine and so was writing utter nonsense. You cannot blame them; even some very well-known contemporary pastors pour a lot of scorn on reverent characters in The Book, just to make their own personal doctrines stand
Finally, he recounted the written words, with all his heart, a promise from the last library book of The Book, on which he had anchored his whole life, in the course of all his daily battles. It runs thus: “And I heard a voice from heaven saying: ‘Write this: Blessed are the dead who from now on die in the Lord.” “Yes”, says the Spirit, “they will rest from their labours, for their deeds follow them.”
No human being ever thinks of working 24 hours a day without going home to rest from the hard day’s work. It is also very doubtful that at the end of a period of great investment in effort and labour, anyone will be expecting to go home without a reward or remuneration.
So then, when the right time comes, why are you so much afraid to go and ‘rest in peace’ from the toils and pains of this world, and secondly, to receive your eternal ‘reward’ for your lifetime labour, if you truly believe you deserve both a rest and a reward?
To follow along with this interesting series, especially in the language you’re most conversant in, whether being Akan or French, I am sharing with you below the relevant free Audiobook, with the transcription available on the last lecture of each of the series.
A LONG STORY ABOUT THE AUTHOR
• EDUCATION
Dr. Emmanuel Kofi Nkansah has a PhD in French Language and Linguistics (NSUK), with specialisation in Linguistics and Translation (French to English) for his PhD Thesis.
He had his formal education at the following indicated periods of his life at the stated institutions: Okuapemman Secondary School, Akropong-Akwapim (1975-1980), Ghana; St. Peter’s Secondary School, Nkwatia-Kwahu (1980-1982), Ghana; University of Ghana, Legon (1982-1987); University of Paris I, Sorbonne, France (July 1988); University of Franche-Comté, Besançon, France (1989-1992), Licence (BA) (1989-1991) and Maîtrise (MA)(1992) in French Language and Linguistics, Title MA Thesis: “Le, La, L’, Les en syntaxe du français: articles ou pronoms?”(Le, La, L’ Les in French Syntax: Articles or Pronouns?) (MA Thesis rated Mention Très Bien (Distinction); Accra Technical Training Centre (ATTC), Ghana (November 1994-April 1996), Diploma in Technical Translation (French to English), and continued to work there as full-time Project Translator till November 1998; Nasarawa State University, Keffi (NSUK), Nigeria (2019-2023), PhD in French Language and Linguistics, Title of PhD Thesis: “Images mentales de ‘titre’ et ‘section’ et leurs équivalences dans le Règlement de la Cour de Justice de la CEDEAO” (Mental pictures of ‘titre’ and ‘section’ and their equivalences in the Rules of Procedure of the ECOWAS Court of Justice) (PhD Degree awarded with CGPA (Cumulative Grade Point Average) of 4.65 out of 5.00, a Distinction or First Class, on 10 January 2024. For the Long Essay of his BA (French with Philosophy) (Second Class Upper Division) (1987) at the University of Ghana, he translated Akan folktales from a collection called Mmrehua into French, Title Long Essay: “Contes akans traduits: leçons morales et problèmes linguistiques” (Akan folktales translated into French: moral lessons and linguistic problems).
• WORK
He taught French and English for his two-year national service in Ghana at Lawra Secondary School (1987-1988) and at Boso Secondary Technical School (1988-1989); was once an Assistant Lecturer in French (French Language and Translation) at the University of Ghana, Legon (April 1993-September 1995), and a French Teacher at Alliance Française d’Accra (2000); during the 1982-83 academic year, in his first year at university, when the University of Ghana was closed down after anti-government demonstrations, he taught final year Form 4 students of Adonkwanta L/A Middle School (near Akim Tafo), Ghana, Mathematics and English Language, using the Akan language as the language of instruction, with outstanding success in the final results of the Middle School Leaving Certificate (MSLC) Examinations for that academic year; was a full-time Professional Translator (French to English), at the ECOWAS Court of Justice, Abuja, Nigeria, from 8 December 2004 to 5 July 2024; sole proprietor of LDLT, a private language and translation consultancy based in Ghana, since November 2024; between November 1994 and November 1998, he translated from French to English, at the ATTC, more than 3,000 pages of A4 French technical notes prepared in France by French academic experts, technicians and engineers on Industrial Pneumatics, Industrial Hydraulics, Industrial Mechanics, Industrial Electricity, Industrial Welding and Industrial Electronics, for practical use by the pioneer Ghanaian instructors who had been trained in France, and for the establishment of the Industrial Maintenance Department of the ATTC, Accra, Ghana, a very important international project focused on European (French) technology transfer and Ghana’s manpower development through technical education, between France Ghana, specifically in the area of industrial maintenance technology. The Industrial Maintenance Department has survived and thrived till today at the ATTC.