I found a shot of this skylight on my digital camera when i arrived in Accra from a trip to the Architects paradise; Dubai , the United Arab Emirates archi-glamorous city. it must have been one of those celestial skylights in one of the huge shopping mall of the Emirates. It certainly is my favorite in my collection and it came to me after one stressful day as i admired the photo that that skylight is a symbol of how the mind of all architects and creative people should be. Open towards Heaven.The days of an architect seeking success in today's credit crunched West Africa can be overwhelming. First, searching for inspiration for new designs in an artistically hostile environment, scribbling, sketching and drawing between power outages, the maze of technical lines and dimensions for artisans and their masters, late working hours and neglected homes all chasing the cost of living which has become a runaway kite. This represents the dark ceiling above us which shades us from the rays of inspiration to create.
Somewhere in the middle of the darkness we should develop a skylight to allow in illumination of our minds and souls so that our creativity and innovative drives will surpass the monotony and agony of every day . Through the skylight to the heavens, rays of inspiration for the generation of ideas we need each day to create comfort,order and beauty in our world.
So i composed a little prayer i say every morning.
Prayer for the Creative Individual
Creator of the Universe, source of all life.
He who does not draw, sketch or write, only by His words life came to be,
By whose mouth the circles of life are drawn from the dawn to the dusk,
Open a skylight on the dome of my mind ,let Your light from Heaven penetrate the shade of disillusionment over my life so that through it i may receive enlightenment, inspiration, encouragement and power to make the world around me
a better place.
Amen
Kojo Derban
