One African proverb that has baffled me for a long time is “Every day for the thief, one day for the owner.” I remember the look of confusion on my face the first time I heard it, wondering what must have inspired such a saying.
Even now, anytime I hear it, the first thought that comes to my mind is: Every day for the thief keh?
I can’t imagine being the rightful owner of something, only to get just one day with it while the thief enjoys it every other day. How does that even make sense?
The proverb is intended to imply that while a thief may seem to get away with wrongdoing for a long time, there will eventually come a day when justice catches up with them, however, I strongly suspect that proverbs like this have, in some way, contributed to the moral decay in our society.
On the surface, an average person might interpret it as an incentive to be the thief—after all, if the thief gets more time with the item than the owner, why not take the risk? It subconsciously tilts the odds in favour of wrongdoing.
Perhaps if we discarded or restructured sayings like this—ones that subtly glorify wrongdoing—we could begin to change the narrative. We live in a time when thieves are not just tolerated but celebrated. They get voted into power, they are hailed as celebrities on social media, they flaunt their ill-gotten wealth with pride, and even go as far as giving motivational speeches as though their success came from honest labor.
Maybe, just maybe, if we start shifting the narrative—one person at a time—we can rebuild a society where integrity is valued over deception, and where honest people are the ones truly honored.
“Better the little that the righteous have than the wealth of many wicked.” – Psalm 37:16
Have an amazing weekend!
