SCHEMERS

Almost everyone has been in that position where someone subtly tries to condition them into doing things they ordinarily wouldn’t do. Even toddlers do such things to their parents. You see them shed tears to inspire sympathy when chastised; all in a bid to elude discipline. Insincere couples do it to themselves; same as artful lovers, shady siblings, fake friends & acquaintances, ingenuine partners & colleagues, hypocritical leaders, false followers, & even familiar strangers.

You could be a proficient provider of certain services with evidences of your proficiency everywhere. Those evidences attract potential clients & you lit up with boundless excitement over the fact that your efforts are yielding fruits. But right in the middle of that excitement, folks who are undeniably awestricken by your works, outrightly question your proficiency, demanding that you offer free services so they can access & see if your expertise is really worth paying for.

If you take the bait, they tend to be slightly dissatisfied with your output & ask that you do better on the next service you offer, which of course, does not earn you due pay, as you’ll have to cut down on your charge since you’re not that proficient after all. Worse off, the discount they request on further services you offer could be as high as 60% or more. Sadly, out of every 10 client you encounter, this breed could be 8. But we won’t be dissecting COMMERCIAL SCHEMERS.

How about highlighting a thing or two about EMOTIONAL SCHEMERS? You know that scenario where you’re interested in someone who’s not interested in you & you try to back off but they wouldn’t let you? They send some mixed signals that give you the impression that you’re not getting certain things right. So, you stick around in hope of getting everything right someday. But then, no matter how hard you try; you never get to the point of hitting the jackpot.

You learn all the etiquettes, read up all the punchlines, cloth yourself with the right personalities, & even pray to gain favor in the eyes of (wo)men. Lol. But your prayers get no answers & you’re tempted to query the scriptures. Meanwhile, the true state of things is that those you adore do not feel the same way but just want you on queue as one of those trying to court their attention. It’s like a groove for them. The incessant attention boosts their deadened self-esteem.

So, you remain there like the PRINCE CHARMING who never gets to COURT THE PRINCESS’ ATTENTION & win her hand in marriage; or the CINDERELLA who never makes it out of MEDIOCRITY to ROYALTY. You only serve as an object that massages the ego of delusional fellows who take delight in accumulating SUITORS or CONCUBINES while on a lookout for that one person who meets their puffed-up emotional requirements. Ever been there before?

There’s this other scenario where it’s you on the RECEIVING END; more like the PURSUED. But your PURSUER isn’t cool with the idea of being the AGGRESSOR despite nurturing a greater desire for you than you do for them. Hopefully, the desire could level up eventually if the pursuit endures. In other cases, you could be uninterested & you make it as plain as a handwriting on the wall. But your pursuer is neither willing to BACK OFF nor KEEP UP THE CHASE to the end.

So, they initially bombard you with unreserved attention, priceless treats, indulge your cravings, & keep everything so tensed up. The aim is to DRAW YOU IN; & then GIVE YOU SPACE TO FALL by starting to give less of their energy, thus slackening the tension. By this time, you must have gotten so accustomed to all the niceness they showered on you & would do anything to keep it coming. That’s where you become the aggressor (if you take the bait & fall to their antics though).

They suddenly grow bored, seem interested in someone else & you can’t bear the growing emotional gap. You then seek to possess them physically; & little by little, you throw restraint out the window, as you start doing things they used to do to you, in hope of getting them back to how they used to be. But you never get there. The best you get is some sort of forced affection. They want you to keep being the aggressor. They find it enjoyable, so they keep holding back.

The hurtful part is that after investing a lot of time, resources, & passions in that emotional endeavor, you ultimately realize that you’re not in it alone. There are other aggressors like you, all conditioned to PLAY THE CHASE GAME by this same person who does nothing other than indulge different aggressors on different occasions to gain different gratifications like money, nice treats, quality time, gifts, sex, & all manner of narcissistically inspired vanities.

Talking about vanities, there’s no limit to which these SCHEMERS can go to feed theirs, even if it requires making snake moves & pulling rat stunts; not minding the scars that such moves & stunts might inflict on unstable fellows. For them, it’s all about personal gains & satisfactions which surprisingly may not include eminent vanities like the LUST OF THE FLESH/EYES or the PRIDE OF LIFE; but rather, things as petty as mediocre recognition/relevance & stuff like that.

So, you get snitched on by supposed allies who pose as confidants but only covet your shine. You get talked down on/double-crossed by phonies whose only tactic to put their heads up high is by putting yours down low. You get misquoted & indicted by CLOUT CHASERS whose alarming neediness of unmerited attention can push them to ruin your name & image in an instant. You also get the shocker of your life from double-edged/2-faced beings who would gladly offer your head on a platter just to get you out of their way; right after telling you how much they love & care.

While doing all these, what you never cease to get from them is a charming smile & goodly words, such that blind your eyes & deafen your ears to their vicious plots. But one can only be fooled for so long before those smiles & words can’t be trusted anymore. Their rat & snake tendencies become obvious. Upon this discovery, there are several ways forward. 

For me; it’s a total write-off of such fellows. I mean, who harbors injurious rodents/reptiles? But then, your way forward could differ: perhaps to turn the tables & CON THE SCHEMER or pretend to take the bait by falling for their antics; only to end up PLAYING THE PLAYER. Guess what: IT’S ALLOWED, for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he reap.

Jezuzboi©