Learning From Anis’ Foolish Death: A Review Of The Stumble With Doom

Hitherto, infatuation was treating Anis fairly well until he decided to also fall in love. Amal Khamis was the woman whose love he so greatly desired; however, family rituals wouldn’t permit them to tie the knot. Amal had been betrothed to Bako, a family member, in order to keep their family’s secrets away from the public.

Reading this beautiful story by Kandey Alhassan, here are five timeless lessons I have gleaned, which are essential when applied in day-to-day activities.

Love isn’t by force: Once we profess love, many of us men expect to be loved with the same intensity. Women aren’t like that. While men, like Anis, fall in love because of what they see in women, women, on the other hand, want to be convinced. The story teaches us that love isn’t by force; it’s not written anywhere that once we love someone, she must equally love us. We need to respect people’s choices. Amal said she had been betrothed. Case closed.

Cowardice is part of bravery: To be brave is not always to take up arms and fight or to forcefully go to places you’ve been banned from. It takes cowardice at times to be brave. When you fear, you plan your ways carefully. If not for wanton stupidity, why would Anis disguise himself and go into a house where he had been warned of the dangers he faced? So, once in a while, be a coward; you won’t lose all the time.

Give people benefit of the doubt: It is not always necessary to doubt people. Some things are better left unsaid. Once we learn to give people the benefit of the doubt, we save ourselves from perilous consequences. Amal opened up and told Anis the truth, but he didn’t believe it just because he was met with a veneer of hospitality when he visited the Khamis’ home. He thought he was in heaven. Even if people claim they created heaven and earth, allow them to enjoy their folly; it says a lot about their mental makeup, and that alone should send signals to you.

Suspicion Kills: In today’s world, many of us haven’t mastered the habit of leaving what doesn’t concern us. Thus, we concern ourselves so much with what concerns other people’s lives, even to the extent that we want to know what they do in private. Anis was told blatantly that because of tradition, if he attempted to fall in love, he’d be asked to do a ritual, and with this ritual, he’d lose himself or go mad. He didn’t listen and decided to disguise himself to serve as a guest in a house where guests who discover their secrets don’t see tomorrow. Imagine if he had not attempted to be suspicious, he would have saved his life. This is why it’s said that suspicion is a sin; avoid it.

What you like may not like you: Anis was flirting with women who loved him. To those women, they had gotten their heaven-sent, but to Anis, it was another opportunity to taste what’s between their thighs freely. Sometimes, in life, what we may love isn’t good for us, and what we dislike could be good for us. Anis loved Amal, but it wasn’t good for him. Who might know that among the number of ladies he played, one could have been the love of his life? This is why, when in doubt, we need to refer the matter to the Almighty for redress.

Avoid Unnecessary Questioning: When you dig further, you end up digging deeper into your own grave. Amal was blatant. Let it be. But man is always prone to dispute: we would ask unnecessary questions until the truth is told to us, and we find that we had better not known the truth. Anis looked so petrified after seeing the sexual rituals of the Khamis. Now he hoped he hadn’t been there. But who sent him!?

Thinking of himself as a Superman, Anis defied all the above nuggets and went into the quarters of the Khamis, only to oil himself and sit beside the fire to be eaten alive. A wanton stupidity and consciously foolish death.