This is an interesting prompt to write about. If I were given the power to bring back something that has gone extinct back to this world, I wouldn't even think of an animal at first, not dreaming of bringing back a dinosaur to this world, because most movies I have seen of these creatures. Dinosaurs always bring destruction to the world, definitely not a product, because there are always better replacements as the world and technology keeps evolving.
I would rather bring a way of life we have lost. We have lost a particular way of life that might be invisible, but the value it adds to our own society is irreplaceable. I would bring back the culture of storytelling and communal living if I had the power to bring back something that has gone extinct back to our current world.
Growing up, I read folklore and mythical stories and for most African tales I read growing up, the setting is always beneath a tree, during the full moon and that's something I haven't experienced, but I know it happened in the past, because many elders have confirmed it. I believe the evenings must have been so fun before everything changed and now we are socially apart.
Beautiful moments where family, neighbors, gathers together as darkness approaches to unite through storytelling.
No smartphone to distract them, there was no television and even social media to distract their attention, just a group of joyful villagers listening to their elders tell a tale.
At those beautiful moments, children from different homes will rush to seat quietly, listening to stories about supernatural things, the tortoise, Animal Kingdom, their ancestral stories and many other stories that are educative and have moral lessons. You see them express emotions due to these stories, some are scared, laughing if it's a funny story and curious to hear more stories before bedtime.
Storytelling was like the formal education they had then. They taught kids good morals, respect, honesty, love, family and community. Values were preserved through word and histories kept passing from one generation to another.
Their stories created bond for them, and that was why communal living wasn't difficult then. They all raised kids together in love, supported struggling family, stood together in danger and celebrated themselves. They stood for each other, neighbors showed up for themselves, they found lost ones together and helped themselves effortlessly.
Now we are no longer socially connected, due to technology. Now we communicate with people far from us, neglecting our neighbors and their welfare.
Children never sit with grandparents to enjoy stories of family, but read novels from iPad and connect with their phone more than those around them.
Inasmuch as I wouldn't want to return to the past, due to the advantages of the modern world, like good healthcare, education, technology and many others, I believe we should also recover and preserve that part of the past that created a physical connection with families, neighbors and the community.
If I had the power to bring anything back, it'd be a beautiful evening of storytelling, the beautiful moments where people know their neighbors beyond greeting them, a time when problems are solved collectively and children are raised by not just their parents, but a community filled with love and understanding.
Bringing back storytelling and communal living back to our current world, would always serve as a reminder that knowledge can also be passed without a book and family goes beyond our homes. I believe the greatest things to bring are connection, our tradition, and a feeling of belonging.
