Staphanie Inakoju: What a Coffin Maker Taught Me About Life

On a particular afternoon, I was passing by a coffin maker’s shop. There were several coffins displayed outside. They were very beautiful pieces of work, and I was pretty sure the designer himself would admire the craftsmanship that went into producing them. Looking at them, I couldn’t help but think about the reality they represented. Although no one wishes to leave this world, we all know that one day we will, whether peacefully, joyfully surrounded by loved ones, or through sadness and pain. It is simply one of the unavoidable truths of life.

As I watched the owner check around his work, inspecting the coffins with care and attention, something came to my mind. It made me realise that we all need each other in one way or another. Every one of us renders a service to someone else. There is a purpose for each person in this world, and within the system we all live in.

The coffin maker depends on people needing his service before he can earn a living. In the same way, a mechanic depends on cars developing faults for customers to come for repairs. A trader depends on people running out of foodstuffs or household items so they can come back to buy more. The cybercafé owner depends on people having documents to print or forms to process. The programmer depends on clients needing websites, applications, or technical solutions.

As I thought about it more, I realised that this pattern exists everywhere around us. The teacher depends on students. The doctor depends on patients. The farmer depends on consumers. The transport driver depends on passengers. The barber depends on people needing haircuts. Everyone is connected to someone else’s needs.

While the mechanic doesn’t hope for accidents in others, nor does the doctor hope for sickness, their professions exist because certain needs…