In Liberia, we wake up to smiles from Heaven and Mother Earth, smells of fresh air, and the call of nature from miles away.
Children greet their parents with a grateful heart before leaving for school, the sounds of their laughter like the arrival of ‘OLD MAN BIKA’ during the early hours of Christmas morning.
Mothers wake up smiling and singing, thankful for another day to shine their light and impact their children's lives and anyone else they can reach out to.
We greet each other with smiles and glad tidings, happy that it’s another day, another opportunity to be changemakers, development partners, and law-abiding citizens.
In Liberia, taxi drivers don’t curse when a motorcyclist speeds by, ignoring the traffic rules. Instead, they silently pray for that person, asking whatever deity or power they believe in to protect them from untimely death and help them make it in time for whatever they are in a hurry for.
Everyone respects the traffic rules, pedestrians and drivers are friends, and older people never have to cross the street alone since someone will be willing to help them cross.
The traffic police symbolize service and commitment as they help direct traffic and ensure everyone is safe.
These men and women are our sign of hope, standing in their tightly pressed uniforms and brightly polished shoes, reflecting the lives of the many they protect daily.
Bribery is only a vocabulary we learn in school.
The police are and always will be enemies of corruption.
In Liberia, little kids do not have to be afraid of strangers.
We are all children of Mama Liberia, one big family.
The family is the most vital unit of our nation.
Thus, children grow up in homes with the guidance of adults, not in the streets where they can not be protected.
Girls are safe in and outside their homes from all forms of abuse
And when it does happen, they are never blamed for “showing too much.”
We don’t blame or stigmatize victims of situations.
Instead, as a society and their family, we provide the necessary resources to help them heal and move on with their lives.
In Liberia, discrimination is another word we learn in the English vocabulary, and in our local language, it doesn’t exist (or is there a word for discrimination in Koloqua?).
We accept everyone regardless of age, religion, race, sexual identity, gender, or economic background.
People can be themselves, wear what they want, and feel at home.
Poor and underprivileged people get justice
Healthcare is available to all
Gov’t institutions are for the people
And Liberia is indeed the SWEET LAND OF LIBERTY.