LOVE

Love is a beautiful thing that brings together people of every generation
Love can heal the pain of a broken world
It's got to start with us
And all it takes is love.(group 1 crew)

One of God’s greatest commandments expects us to love our neighbors just as we love ourselves. We are leaving in a world where people come from different backgrounds and cultures. The only way this gap can be bridged is through having love for one another which helps us get to appreciate the different cultures rather than criticize them.

child mourns as dead bodies are scattered everywhere

We may not have racism here in Africa but there are forms of racism expressed mainly through tribalism which if it wasn’t in existence, I believe we as Africans would be far by now, I mean take a look at the 1994 genocide in Rwanda and the 2007 post election violence in Kenya. What effects did these have on these countries during that time? Just negative, but the lesson has been learnt, right? And now Rwanda is currently going places in terms of development.

I don’t know what effects the elections soon taking place here in Kenya will leave behind but if the lesson wasn't learnt in 2007, then its only God who knows and leaves us, the foreigners and the Kenyans themselves to wonder what is yet to happen.

TALES FROM MT. KENYA

I haven't been to Mt. Kenya myself as yet even though i have been in Kenya for a long time now but the tales from there are just too hilarious.

Some of my pals recently went there for their recess a week ago, they went in one piece but they came back in a different format. Climbing that mountain isn't easy at all, its about 80km to the top and the you know the higher you go, the cooler it becomes. So these guys were supper excited to have this opportunity to go as some of them aren't Kenyans and are going back at the end of May and others were invited for free which is like a one time offer.

So this is how it went down, they got to the base of the mountain and hiked around, went for walks and stuff before starting the actually journey of climbing the mountain.. They were climbing in groups and as they started out, the climbing wasn't so bad and Loyol was starting to wonder why people were complaining and being negative about it. This dude who is an exchange student was literally jogging up the mountain since he had been jogging from day one making the others look all unfit. They reached a certain point where it was getting colder and colder as they climbed and as they were climbing, some people literally froze and couldn't go on moving. My friend Musa decide that climbing this mountain to the top is never that serious so he laid down somewhere on the mountain and slept after feeling dizzy since he is so tall and the altitude wasn't favouring him. All the Koreans and Americans made it to the top, some came down and went back again while on the other hand, two from I don't know how many black girls made it to the top that being Loyol and Kapii.

Climbing this mountain can make a grown up person cry like a child who cries for his mother. It also tests your faith. By the way it's not people that are physically fit who are assured of making it to the top but also those are are determined and fit in the mind, like I have been told, that mountain can make a grown up person cry like a baby. These guys were reciting verses from the bible like Phillippians 4:13 I can do all things through Christ that strengthens me and others sung Mary Mary song's like i just can't give up now. It's funny when they look back and see how difficult that journey was and laugh about it because their walking styles changed from normal to limping.

It's just so amazing and my friend said that if you want to be sure that the guy you are getting married to is the one you want to marry, then go climb Mt. Kenya and see if you will be walking down that aisle to him or somebody else.

PROFESSIONAL ETIQUETTE

Daystar Mulandi is a primary school that is an on-going project that was started by some Daystar students a few years back. This was started because the students saw kids from off campus without being lifts from the school buses, walking to school in Athi river which is around 10 kilo meters away from home every single day so you can imagine that’s 20 kilo meters covered 5 days in a week by these young kids who are more or less 7- 12 years old.

The project started picking up the moment Mrs. Mulandi, a lady who owns land around Daystar University donated land towards this project and classes were being built by different sponsors that accepted the proposals sent out to them. Currently the school is off campus not far from the kids homes so they don’t have to walk.

So tomorrow there is a harambe being held as a way of raising funds for this school in order to provide stationery for these kids and build permanent classes as the few that are in existence are built from iron sheets. Many people in school both the students and staff have made donations in any ways they can to support this cause and I would like to say things are looking up but there is this one staff member who has just killed all my psych. So this is me, I went around offices talking to lecturers and other staff members about this project and harambe who were positive except this one chic who was so rude, I should actually say arrogant. I mean I was so polite but heeeeeyyyy she couldn’t give me a sec of her time because she was ‘‘busy’’ and even after convincing her to give me a minute, she just told me how I should have approached her like a month ago, blaaahhhh blaaah blaaaahhhh. It’s true that times are hard right now according to the economy and credit crunch and all of us are being affected but you don’t have to be mean to people. I believe there are many ways of being polite to people no matter the age difference, race or status. Just because am a student and she is staff she has no right to be rude besides its because of us the students that she is able to be behind that desk and call it an everyday  job. What would happen if all our lecturers were mean to their students. It’s a university for crying out loud not primary school where they deal with young kids. Thank God she isn’t a lecturer, I am just saying.

KASEY N CHRISTINE IN KENYA :-)

So we always have exchange students come to Daystar from Bethel University in the USA and Koshin University in Korea for only four months which is an entire semester.  This time round we got another student coming from USA but from North Western University. I say we because am part of the international student leaders body which is called ISADU.  
Besides the dudes that are coming from the USA, there’s Kasey and Kristen who actually didn’t know each other coming from different universities, they met at the airport and realized that they were not only heading to the same country but to the same school and that’s where their friendship began.

Now the most unusual thing happened this semester, once school opened and my friend Thandiwe came back two weeks later BAMMMM, Kasey was her roommate. Introductions were made and as time went on, we became close more like HOMMIES not forgetting Kristen and Loyol as well. Now when I say the most unusual thing happened, that is what I’m talking about. We had never been close to any of the students that had come before, I don’t know if it was cultural shock or they weren’t roomies to any of us…. i don't know.

Anyways this one time on a Sunday afternoon, we all went to a children’s home off campus called Redrhino. It takes care of children who have lost their parents, some don’t even know them. So when we got there, they were so excited as usual to see visitors, I had been there before so I had predicted to Kasey and Kristen not to be surprised when the kids only hang around them and not us, which ended up happening J well we told stories, played basket ball and finally helped them finish up their homework and bid them goodnight when they were having supper. Am glad we all had this experience, lesson learnt is that you don’t have to buy these kids things. Just showing them love and that you care is enough for them.

So they have really learnt a lot from their stay here, things like culture, how we celebrate birthdays by pouring water on people, how to bargain in town and not be conned since they are white, how to make African chapatti and pancakes LOL, isssssssshhhhh the list is endless. Even us we have taken a few recipes from them heehee, learnt about their culture and different things.

SIGH…… It’s been an amazing journey for all of us, who knew that we would be friends besides God. So much I can’t write about has happened and a lot more is going to happen and it sucks that they have to go back in May. I know East or West, home is BEST but that won’t break the bonds and friendships we have made J

kids say and do the dumbest things!!!

So this time round on one of my occasional visits to my brothers crib, we decided to go pay grandma a visit and whilst it lasted, I asked my four year old niece, "Chloe, do you know that man on the cross?" pointing towards the T.V where the story of Jesus was being cast. Innocently, she replied, "Yes, His name is Jesus!" I went on to ask her again, "Where does he live?" and without any hesitation, She told me straight in my face," In the Television!"
Well as much as I wanted to laugh at her silly answer, I just couldn't do it right in her poor little face, so instead I explained and described to her where Jesus really lived. No sooner had I finished my short lesson, I asked her one last time," Chloe, do you now want to go to Heaven?" she simply just said," No, I want to go home!" Well am sure this came out coz she was bored with all the adults at grandma’s.

So sometime which is way way back when Tony, my big brother went to visit our elder brother Frank, and he carried Chloe for one of those big lovely hugs and pecks  and didn't care to notice that she was poking her nose. Being lifted in her uncle's muscular arms, she managed to pull something out of her tiny nostrils and with a frown she asked," Uncle, what is this?" while placing it in his hands. Poor guy held it carelessly trying to figure it and on failing to tell what the hell it was, He asked," Now Chloe, where on earth did you get this from?" she answered him with this evil grin," From my nose!"

As I have been told, it was the 13th of April 1990, when mum returned home from hospital carrying me in her motherly arms and couldn't stop smiling because this time round it was a baby girl. It being late at night, the boys had already been put to bed and as morning slip into the disappearing dark night, Mark my other big brother was always the last one to wake up, but on hearing that the new baby had arrived the previous night, He jumped out of his tiny bed at once and zoomed into mum's bedroom. Luckily this time round he didn’t bump his big head into the corridor walls nor had he tripped over something like the last time he had done when his younger brother Tony had arrived.
Anyhow, he found me laying naked on mum's king size bed after my bath and definitely got a shock of his short lived life on planet earth... He had never seen a girl naked before and neither had he known by then what differentiated a girl from a boy. Now during this whole time, mum hadn't noticed him scrutinizing my secret area code so hard not until when he tapped her back and asked still in utter shock, "Mummy, where is the baby's penis?"