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The title of this piece was coined by William Shakespeare. The phrase was spoken by Bassanio in the book, Merchant of Venice, as he gazed at a gold box, when he went to woo Portia, and had to choose one of the three boxes: gold, silver and lead. The book was written in 1596.
He ultimately chose a lead box, after saying these words now etched in the hearts of present day “oldies” raised on the literary works of Shakespeare, Chauser, Chinua Achebe, Cyprian Ekwensi, Wole Soyinka, James Ngugi (Ngugi Wa Thiongo) and several other notable writers. Bassanio said: “Oh thou lead, thy paleness moves me to eloquence.”
When he opened the the lead box, he saw the document that won him the hand of beautiful and rich Portia, who provided the money used to save his friend from the tight, extremely tight pound of flesh demand of Shylock, another character in the book.
The phrase means that not everything that appears valuable or attractive is actually so. The phrase has proven very useful in cautioning people not to judge things solely by their appearance. It is a cautionary brake for people who tend to jump at what seems to be a mouthwatering opportunity. In other words, it is a reminder to look beyond superficial appearances and evaluate the true nature of people, situations, or opportunities. It encourages critical thinking and discernment in decision-making. It also applies to many aspects of life such as a relationship that seems perfect but not genuine, a job that sounds amazing but has a toxic environment, or an investment that looks promising but a big scam.
That something appears shiny or appealing on the surface does not necessarily mean it has real worth or quality. It conveys the idea that appearances can be deceptive, and not everything that looks valuable or attractive is genuinely so.
This brings me to the unfortunate story of Aunty Grace, a successful older sister of one of my good friends. She was a Deputy Director in a blue-chip company. Aunty Grace was a very well educated, sophisticated and accomplished lawyer, who trained in the United Kingdom. She was very proficient in every sense. After retirement, she was introduced by a friend to a Ponzi scheme type of business that sounded real. The names of movers and shakers of the country were deceitfully included to make it look genuine. She was told how stupendously rich she would become as the business would grow within six months. With all the other things she was told, and seeing all the well furnished offices and places she visited, she was convinced. She invested her retirement benefits as a retired deputy director in the business. She sold her only property and gave to the swindlers while waiting for the astounding profit that never came her way. Aunty Grace waited for years without reaping the dividend of the business. Life became hard for her. The thought of her lost millions, and complicated health issues sent her to an early grave.
She never enjoyed her retirement benefits, did not age gracefully until she passed on. She died in pains. The multi-million naira business was a big scam.
In the same vein, two wonderful Catholics, Joseph and Mary, who belonged to various church societies decided to marry. Being strong Catholics who represented the archdioceses, denary in various activities, both respected the rudiments of Catholic principles and operated from afar during their courtship. In all fairness, they looked good together as a couple. In Joseph’s weird nature, he would be the first to get to church, attend morning mass every day and worked very close in the vineyard. Mary was a simple Christian home-made wife. Finally, the wedding was held and all arms of the church celebrated them. One year into their marriage, Mary opened up about her frustration in the marriage. She said: “The worst thing that happened to me was to have married Joseph. A man who is not accountable at home and in the office’ a complete irresponsible husband. His salary never gets home, drinks from the start of the day till the end. He smells of alcohol from as early as the day starts. Completely sexually weak and nothing to write home about; yet he is seen as an upright good Christian. I regret ever marrying him. Now that I know I have a flat mate, I am not guaranteed to live with him forever.”
In the same Christendom, Brother Christian was in the paint blending and supply business. He got a major breakthrough when he won a contract to paint almost 20 branches of a new generation bank. His quotation got management approval and money was paid upfront to him to start off the business. Christian delivered the job very well and got his balance completely paid. To him, the six figures somehow got into his head and he felt he had arrived. Next, he rented a well-furnished office complex at Lekki, employed staff, those needed and not. Marketers were almost 10 for a start. They started business on a wrong note. The first major breakthrough that should have been invested into another business was spent unnecessarily. The financial burden of running a new large-scale office on the island descended heavily on the finances at hand and within three months, payment of staff salaries ran into a hitch. By the fifth month, half of the staff resigned. Their one-year anniversary saw only him and his wife with no staff. By the second year, he could not renew his Lekki office rent and all went down. T the staff who joined his organization, they thought they had hit jackpot with a smooth talker, cozy office environment on the island and first impressive salary.
Social media activist, Vincent Martins Otse, popularly known as Very Dark Man (VDM) was recently seen trying out a new Louis Vuitton monogrammed Leather Workwear blazer which costs US$4,500, approximately N11m. He wore the jacket in an LV store in Paris, took some quick photos and posted online. The same VDM shocked his followers and told them that he never spent such amount of money on just one item. Otherwise, most people would think VDM is now wearing jacket as expensive as that. He displayed the spirit of most ladies who live on borrowed luxury to keep up with the Jones. It has become a common thing for most ladies to live on borrowed items to create a false impression on others. At parties, they are simply noticed as fashionistas, not knowing that what they wear might have been borrowed from a luxury store only to return when the party is over. They wear all these to take photographs at exotic places, post on their social media platforms to attract traffic, and pepper their followers. So many are into “borrow and return,” and thereby living a fake life.
A piece of jewellery could sparkle, yet it is fake. Someone’s assumption based on the sight might be deceitful while someone thinks it is real. In various states of the country, there are many gigantic buildings built by some first ladies with bold inscription “Skill Acquisition Centre’ which are rutting is happening there, yet nothing.
Among the GenZ the adage that some friends are better than siblings is no longer applicable. The same friend will set up his or her friend for ritual killing. There are friends who will usurp the chances of their friends at businesses and offices. Not all friendships are worthy of being sustained.
Dear all, from various accounts, know it that not all good appearance is always nice. Most sparkling things might not also be good. Those things that attract us may not be good for us. Finally, it is advisable to think before taking, buying or saying. It is simple wisdom and better to look before leaping.
