Once upon a time, in the enchanted forest lived a peacock. He was the king of all the birds, with the most beautiful tail, and this made him very proud.

He passed a law that everyone who wished to address him must start with the expression, “By the abundant beauty of your divine plumage”.

All day, the peacock walked around the forest, receiving compliments from all the other birds. “By the abundant beauty of your divine plumage, Good Morning, Your Majesty”

“By the abundant beauty of your divine plumage, you’re looking very well, Your Majesty”

“By the abundant beauty of your divine plumage, it looks like it might rain, Your Majesty”

This went on for a while, until one afternoon, while the vain little peacock was taking his usual stroll through the forest, a crow landed on the branch of a nearby tree, and started to say something to the Peacock. “You’d better be…”

The peacock couldn’t believe his ears. How dare this common creature address him without observing protocol! He screamed at the top of his voice, “Insolence! You presume to address me without acknowledging my plumage? Apologise at once, you brute”.

The crow was taken aback. “I’m just saying you’d better becareful…”

“It speaks again!” screamed the peacock, livid with indignation. “I have never been so insulted in my life! And by no more than a mere crow! Do you know who I am?”

The crow tried one last time to convey his message. “Look, you’d better be careful, there’s a trap…”

“Sacrilege! The epitome of disrespect! The zenith of blatant disregard! The effrontery of a wretched…” But the proud peacock never finished his sentence. With a loud snap, he stepped into a snare, and a wire cage descended upon his unsuspecting head, rendering him a prisoner of the hungry hunter.

The moral of this story is that however big and important you may think you are, you still don’t know everything. Sometimes, you just have to put your airs and graces aside long enough to receive the wisdom that just might save your life. Or your legacy.

That’s it, that’s my message to you this morning. I have no doubt that those who need it most will understand it perfectly.

My name is Kojo Yankson, and I don’t know everything.

GOOD MORNING, GHANAFO!