When school was school

The world has undoubtedly registered huge leaps and advancements not only in the development of basic infrastructure and industries but also technology wise. I remember during those days when owning a cell phone catapulted you to celebrity status and of course one could only marvel at such gadgetry. The story is not the same today, cell phones are almost a basic necessity and I wouldn’t be surprised if the era of disposable communication gadgets rears its head soon. Children have never been this spoilt for entertainment choice; from computer games to audiovisual sources.

These confirm what I have always suspected -am growing old. We didn’t need the internet or TVs to keep us entertained. One was just happy to be in school. If someone stepped on your toes or ratted on you, you didn’t take immediate action but “preserved” him for the closing day where a real duel was to be organized. And believe me when I say the fighters were really motivated. Losing wasn’t an option coz one become the subject of ridicule which only ceased when he redeemed himself in the next fight. If these bouts taught us anything it was to choose our opponents wisely and winning at all costs, lessons that has been really valuable so far.

I should probably not mention the disk part. If your memory serves you correctly you’ll know am not talking about that circular plate we used to serve nyoyo. This was some objects usually unpleasant or with a pungent smell that serious offenders were ordered to carry around to act as deterrent to some boys who might have been thinking of pissing the gods. Noise making and of course mother tongue speaking guaranteed you this honor. Friends and foe alike would trick each other just to make sure the punishment afterwards did not befall them alone. After all nobody likes to die alone. Rumors heard it that some schools used dead cow horns. Grotesque, you might say. 

Even though I caught just a few years of the Nyayo free milk era I still count myself lucky to have been in school during those days that important men went to school. Everything was in limited measures be it books, the milk themselves and most valuable of all-lockers. This was a precious commodity that if you missed you would most likely find yourself in hard logs improvised to keep off the mountain of dust.

Did I mention that ten bob was enough to buy some fair-weather friends at least while it lasted. These were some hard mandazis that were prepared using maize flour. In my school we called them ‘akuon akuon’ .They were so delicious that most friendships were made or broken at this stands. One piece made sure you were indebted and gave the giver a license to any class football team, talent notwithstanding.

School was not this rosy-it wasn’t just about making fighters using clay or eating ‘akuon akuon’. Equally synonymous with school was tears. The teachers believed that truancy could only be gotten rid of by viboko. Inflicting pain they thought guaranteed them reverence. If they were to be feared then the big boys and the prefects were to be dodged at all costs. To be in lower primary was a sin. I remember picking leaves and sweeping every morning under the tightest of supervisions .I wouldn’t talk about the cost of failure in exams because am sure you remember that only too well. There was of course the forbidden topic of girls so I won’t talk about it lest my class teacher hear about it .the letters were intercepted with so much finesse that if the government could just harness this potential maybe ,just maybe al shabaab would have been history.

The silver lining is that however hard life pushed us, we pushed back. However tough the masters were we found away to make ‘gettas’. For those who didn’t go to real schools, gettas were those inner clothing, books that one wore to reduce the pain inflicted on the butt. That we wiped our tears and played football obviously showed our resilience. Am I the only one who is nostalgic about the good primary days, the perseverance, the raw optimism, the unwavering belief that if he can, so can we?

Of course am not saying that we solve all our difference at the boxing arena, to be clear lest Kibunja and co label me a warmonger.

My case for the disgraced deputy CJ

Our television networks having realized that controversy sells have not stopped analyzing the infamous village market incident where the deputy CJ allegedly brandished a gun and harassed a female guard at the shopping mall. They have not just overplayed the incident but also raised the passion of Kenyans by asking questions such as,”was Nancy Baraza right to brandish a gun, or pinch Kerubo (the guard’s name) in the face?” Kenyans have also caught the cue with social media awash with humorous illustrations of the event. My favorite is the picture of the deputy CJ taking the place of Jack Bauer in the hit series 24.

Well, it is not difficult to catch the reason behind the excitement. The deputy chief justice had gotten the job on the platform of change, increased efficiency and adherence to the rule of law. Kenyans had expected a break from the past excesses of the powers that be and with the passing of the new constitution there was indeed real optimism that the dragon of impunity had been slayed for all. The mere manner in which she ascended into office was a real break from the past where cronies were rewarded signaled a new era in Kenya’s judicial dispensation.

But I believe that the media and my fellow Kenyans have got it wrong on this one .wait, am no apologist for Baraza. I am a believer inhuman dignity and respect for all irrespective of social and economic standing .I just do believe that the lynch mob that is baying for her blood are not driven by a honest desire to see justice prevail but by a malicious zeal to see her fall. Kenya’s activists have been largely responsible for the democratic space and freedom that we enjoy in this country and they deserve every ounce of respect. But I feel that they are fast losing the plot. Some in their mistaken belief that they are acting on the interests of mwananchi have taken tough positions on issues that don’t warrant such hard stances. Some use this opportunities to endure themselves to the electorate in readiness for their still born political ambitions.

There are procedures for vetting an errant judge. If we value the law so much then we should also wait for her to behavior to be termed unbecoming by an impartial and objective tribunal and not through the inflamed passions of the public court of opinion. If we are crusaders for human rights as we purport then we ought to realize that part of that is also respecting that a person is innocent until proven guilty. Part of that is accepting that as much as we are qualified judges as to whether food is salty or not, to determine requires a seasoned judge who looks at things not from a moral or religious prism but from a basis of what the law says. Then and only truly then can we pride ourselves of being custodians of the law.

This saga might prolong for sometime but believe you me, it will go away. Then what? The warmongers will simply go to the next victim. They will like a vulture patiently wait for some big shot to slip up and then hound him up like vultures upon a carcass. They see us merely as stooges to their means end. So the next time you have a strong position on something just ask yourself if it really is warranted.

 Unless of course we ni mutu ya Gor Srikal-they are the only ones allowed to stone and cause dismay without a worry in the world.

 

New Year's resolution

It is that time of the year again when the gods of resolution have resurfaced again. The human in me refuses to let the opportunity pass before seizing it…again. But after tinkering with big ideas such as saving the planet and winning prizes no less than the Nobel Prize in my formative years I finally lessened the burden on my shoulders. But even after revising my targets to the bare minimum, I am still finding it tough to be faithful to my dreams; talk of a man cheating on himself. But there is a silver lining in this story-well let’s just say that this year my target is not only simple but seemingly very practical.

Appreciating what one has surely can’t be that hard. There is this saying that has become synonymous with Philippine soaps. It goes something like you can only know the value of what you have till you lose it. Alejandro and the pretty young lady by his side live happily thereafter but only after some time of separation. it’s not difficult to get the logic here in that, sometimes you are not sure just how much you value something, or someone in this case till they grow wings and fly away. But do we really have to push people away before we realize just to what extent our worlds would be gloomier without them.

You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to know that it’s only the things that you take special attention to that’s serves you longest. A mere word of ‘thank you’ goes a long way to assure the person in question that their input is appreciated. It just doesn’t stop there; it motivates them to work harder to catch your eye. That is on top of my new resolution this year-to let the people who matters in my life know that they matter. But even this seemingly easy stunt is proving a herculean task.

One interesting thing I have realized is that we don’t take notice when everything is okay. Trust me though a little discomfort will surely catch our attention. It is very likely that we notice when we catch colds but if we are alive and healthy we’ll simply presume that as normal. Appreciating God for the life and grace that he has given us freely is in my list. It won’t cause us much to let our mothers and fathers know just how much they mean to us. Our friends will be equally smitten if we appreciate the role they play in our lives besides just noticing their excesses. And of course if I were to make an honorary list she would surely make it.

That is my target this year; may as many as with similar prayer say Amen.

just why my relationship with santa is not changing soon

If there was anything that was looked forward to with so much appetite then nothing came closer to the end of year parties-Christmas and New Year celebrations .I get so nostalgic when I remember this fetes especially the former. But it has recently joined the world of the leaving dead. Against the backdrop of the global economic meltdown it has become not only overburdening but also impractical to engage in such indulgences.

Christmas was that time of the year that we could ask for things and they be handed over on a silver platter. Not that the other times didn’t yield results but unlike those other times the responses were immediate. Christmas as we remember it was some day when foods that were not so common were assembled together by our mothers to prepare a meal of a lifetime. Even foods that we prepared everyday such as rice and chapatis tasted differently never mind that the recipes were written by the same authors.

During those days Santa was real and not just some African man adorning red costume and dishing out some candy. Fast forward to today, Santa still exists but without his supernatural powers-that’s if he had any in the first place. He exists but to beautify buildings and make them attractive for potential consumers, lure small children and thus their parents and most importantly to perpetuate a mood and be in sync with the rest of the world. Don’t get me wrong, am no cynic, neither am I disgruntle man taking his frustrations on one of the world’s oldest establishments.

Christmas I agree is just as important on the social front as it is on the religious end. It enables and friends to bond over roasted goats and get to catch up. It’s a time for relatives who have not seen each other for a long time to fake affection over free food. Christmas I believe is a day that’s has lost its path even in the religious front. I wasn’t there when the son of man was born so I wouldn’t contest the date. However, biblical evidence doesn’t point that way either. For all we know Christmas could have been on the 4^th of march-not that I am to be taken seriously either.

Least I be stoned, I do believe in the good tat Christmas does, I just dot believe in the day. I do believe that people should have a good time sometime least they succumb to the daily pressures; I just don’t think that day has to be 25^th December. If we are truly celebrating the birth of the man who taught love then each day should be a day to share with our friends and enemies alike.

See you later-I got a Christmas invitation to honor-surprised? Well, let’s just say that I didn’t castigate free foods and drinks!

Mzee Varaq