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Have You Got Diamonds In Your Backyard?

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Have you heard the story about how the diamond mine of Golgonda was found? If not, just sit back and relax as you read this wonderful story.

Many of us have diamonds in our back yard, but we do not know this. What a pity to see a thirsty man swallow his spittle, unaware that just behind him is a mighty river!

Let me quickly rehash the story as told by Russell Conwell, in his excellent book “Acres of Diamond”

There once lived not far from the River Indus an ancient Persian by the name of Al Hafed. Al Hafed owned a very large farm with orchards, grain fields and gardens. He was a contented and wealthy man—contented because he was wealthy, and wealthy because he was contented.

One day there visited this old farmer one of those ancient Buddhist priests, and he sat down by Al Hafed’s fire and told that old farmer how this world of ours was made.

He told him lots of wonderful legends about how this earth came to be, but what struck Al Hafed mainly, was when the Budhist told Al Hafed about “Diamonds”.

Said the old priest, “A diamond is a congealed drop of sunlight.” He said something that Al Hafed will never forget; he declared that a diamond is the last and highest of God’s mineral creations, as a woman is the last and highest of God’s animal creations.

And the old priest told Al Hafed that if he had a handful of diamonds he could purchase a whole country, and with a mine of diamonds he could place his children upon thrones through the influence of their great wealth.

Al Hafed heard all about diamonds and how much they were worth, and went to his bed that night a poor man—not that he had lost anything, but poor because he was discontented and discontented because he thought he was poor. He said: “I want a mine of diamonds!” So he lay awake all night, and early in the morning sought out the priest.

He awoke that priest out of his dreams and said to him, “Will you tell me where I can find diamonds?” The priest said, “Diamonds? What do you want with diamonds?”

“I want to be immensely rich,” said Al Hafed, “but I don’t know where to go.” “Well,” said the priest, “if you will find a river that runs over white sand between high mountains, in those sands you will always see diamonds.” “Do you really believe that there is such a river?” “Plenty of them, plenty of them; all you have to do is just go and find them, then you have them.” Al Hafed said, “I will go.” So he sold his farm, collected his money at interest, left his family in charge of a neighbor, and away he went in search of diamonds.

He began very properly, at the Mountains of the Moon. Afterwards he went around into Palestine, then wandered on into Europe, and at last, when his money was all spent, and he was in rags, wretchedness and poverty, he stood on the shore of that bay in Barcelona, Spain, when a tidal wave came rolling in through the Pillars of Hercules, the poor, afflicted, suffering man could not resist the awful temptation to cast himself into that incoming tide, and he sank beneath its foaming crest, never to rise in this life again. Al Hafed died a penniless, suffering and broken man.

Meanwhile, Al Hafed’s successor (The man who bought his farm ) led his camel out into the garden to drink, and as that camel put its nose down into the clear water of the garden brook Al Hafed’s successor noticed a curious flash of light from the sands of the shallow stream, and reaching in he pulled out a black stone having an eye of light that reflected all the colors of the rainbow, and he took that curious pebble into the house and left it on the mantel, then went on his way and forgot all about it.

A few days after that, this same old priest who told Al Hafed how diamonds were made, came in to visit his successor, when he saw that flash of light from the mantel. He rushed up and said, “Here is a diamond—here is a diamond! Has Al Hafed returned?” “No, no; Al Hafed has not returned and that is not a diamond; that is nothing but a stone; we found it right out here in our garden.” “But I know a diamond when I see it,” said he; “that is a diamond!”

Then together they rushed to the garden and stirred up the white sands with their fingers and found other more beautiful, more valuable diamonds than the first, and thus were discovered the diamond mines of Golconda, the most magnificent diamond mines in all the history of mankind, exceeding the Kimberley in its value. The great Kohinoor diamond in England’s crown jewels and the largest crown diamond on earth in Russia’s crown jewels, came from that mine.

This diamond mine was sitting in Al hafed’s background all along, while the owner sold off his big farm, only to wander off to faraway lands in search of diamonds.

Every wise person will begin to see the moral in this story. We are so blessed in Nigeria, but we don’t know it, because we look at America, London, South Africa, Malaysia and other faraway lands.

If you have a relation in diaspora, ask them to tell you the truth, about the life of an average Nigerian in Diaspora. Most Nigerians, sell their land and properties, believing that Nigeria is a hell hole, but unfortunately they only manage to go to foreign lands and meet the devil himself.

If you hear the true story of some Nigerians in diaspora, you will never rush out of Nigeria, unless you are sure of what you are going to do.

But do we have diamonds in Nigeria? By diamonds, I mean Wealth. I think the best way to find out, is to ask foreigners. The biggest supermarket chain in Nigeria, is owned by Shoprite, a south African firm. The biggest telecommunication company is MTN, another South African firm.

The biggest dairy farm in Nigeria is Shonga farm, owned by white farmers, who were chased away from Zimbabwe. Kwara state government gave each of these farmers 1000 hectares of land. Today, they produce 18.25 million litres of raw milk per annum, which they supply to WAMCO (Producers of Peak Milk), 12 million chickens per annum, which they supply to Chicken republic and big retailers. They also supply bananas to shoprite. During harvest season, they employ as much as 4000 people.

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