There's redempion for Esther

Pardon, madam… when she has obtained your eye, will have your tongue too. This is a creature, would she begin a sect, might quench the zeal of all professors else make proselytes of who she but bid follow- William Shakespeare, Winters Tale.

Beauty might be a virtue but like the poet himself avers, virtue itself escapes not calumnious strokes.

The canker, he says in Hamlet, galls the infants of the spring too often before their buttons are disclosed; “and in the morn and liquid dew of youth, contagious blastments are most imminent.”

Esther’s “blastment” has taken everybody by surprise and sent shockwaves all over. The shock is most registered because going by her unmistakable beauty and constant appearance on TV, most people had formed opinions of her.

The judgment is as expected: mean and harsh as the multitude best delivers them!

No one expected her to pull such a move because her beauty and innocence did not seem to imply anything of the sort. If anything, these two combined with her demeanor and grace sold her out as brainy and non-gullible.

The assumption is that her life was meticulously planned and scattered with prudent moves like the scripts she reads on television. Viewers had therefore set her some standards which as it now appears, were too high.

They ignored that Esther was/is still forming up and is still subject to the “imminent blastments” which affect her lot- youth. She can make mistakes like all of us do and for this, the society should not be very harsh in judging her.

From her behavior during the press conference, it is very clear that she has some growing to do- indeed like most of us have. A fully formed mature person would not reasonably argue that since she’s 30 or thereabout, she can make her own decision about anything and live where she want.

Even people double that age or say octogenarians do not live any way they want because society moderates their lives as it does for everyone.

A fully formed public figure would also not claim that the public has no stake in whoever she dates and expect to remain reasonable at the same time. She would not by accepting to lead a public life, she has exposed her life to public scrutiny. Lawyers and journalists know this better.

And so, the scales upon which Esther is being weighed need be tilted to factor the fact that she is still learning and mistakes are part of this learning. She does not deserve condemnation from the public but acceptance.

This is not to mean the media should go slow on her, hell no. Let is kip spawning every detail it can avail to itself on her because we need to know. That is their role as a media and our role as members of public is to evaluate these.

The society should not behave as though there is no redemption for Esther. She has one hell of bright life staring at her. She only needs to dust herself up and get running again to reclaim her rightful place in the drama of life.

Time is a master redeemer. We only need to throw her into pyre of time and she will be cleansed of these naiveties, inexperience and gullibility. That way she will be a great pillar in future and guard many others from falling her way.

So from here, I say go, go, go Esther, get up, dust yourself up and move on with my good-wishes , God’s blessings and special remembrances.

Musau