The Leader Magazine

CHAPTER ACTIVITIES • Rovering with purpose • Sprinkle of light

PERSONAL EXPERIENCES • Mentorship journey • Medical school • CELP

MENTAL HEALTH • Friendships • Hormones

contents

OFFICIALS

4

CHAPTER ACTIVITIES

14

INDIVIDUAL PROJECTS

19

PERSONAL EXPERIENCES

23

SCHOLAR OF THE YEAR

27

ARTICLES

28

MENTAL HEALTH

41

POEMS

44

BOOK REVIEW

49

SHORT STORIES

50

EDITOR’S NOTE Dear Readers,

Dear Readers, Fun fact, I always wanted to be an equity scholar because I believed that it would be my gate pass to finally realize my American Dream, you know, just like in the movies.

I have since come to learn that dreams need not be attached to places or things. Here, I get to live and practice my dream Medicine, which is both a pain and rewarding and design which is both heartwarming and exhausting. I couldn’t have it any other way.

Needless to say, I am grateful to have this opportunity to be part of the KU-ELC family by extension.

I appreciate all who sent in their submissions and my team of editors who helped being it together.

Flip the pages and see the work of your hands.

CATHERINE NYABUTI CHIEF EDITOR

University of Nairobi Medicine and Surgery O’neil Wamukota

It is with profound joy to present to you the first edition of The Leader Magazine. This is a realization of a dream that we set out to achieve when we got elected into the office. We hope to invite our members to write and share pictures that will bring us closer as an ELP family. This first edition would not have come at a better time. In this issue, we received very interesting articles from not just KUELC but also from other other chapters and we hope to receive even more in our future editions.

These articles fall on different categories including but not limited to; Politics, Economy, Mental health, Art , recipes and personal experiences.

I wish to thank everyone who sent in their articles and submissions, were it not for you this magazine would have remained a dream. Special thanks to our team of editors led by The Editor-In-Chief Ms.Nyabuti for putting together this amazing work.

It is my hope that you will enjoy reading it as we did compiling it.

For any feedback or comments, feel free to write to us; kuelc.publications@gmail.com.

ANDREW GITHIRIA EXECUTIVE EDITOR Nikita Masha Laura Nyiha Valentine Lulana Faith Murage Benjamin Wafula

OFFICIALS

ANDREW GITHIRIA PRESIDENT MEDICINE & SURGERY

MARK SOKO SECRETARY COMPUTER SCIENCE

KEVIN JUMA VICE PRESIDENT ECONOMICS

PURITY MORAA MENTORSHIP HEAD PSYCHOLOGY

EDWIN BARASA ORGANIZING SECRETARY ECONOMICS

DENNIS WACHIRA TREASURER ENERGY

AGGREY OCHIENG’ ALUMNI MANAGER ECONOMICS

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CLUB MEMBERS

OFFICIALS

GITHIRIA ANDREW PRESIDENT

Kenyatta University Medicine and Surgery THESE ARE UNCHARTED TIMES AND EVERY LEADER AND ORGANIZATION IS STRUGGLING TO FIND THE RIGHT FOOTING AND HOW BEST TO STEER ON WITH THEIR BUSINESS UNDER THE PREVAILING CONDITIONS

Greetings Leaders,

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hope you are doing well and keeping safe. 2020 is undoubtedly a tough year for all of us for many reasons, but one that all of us relate to is the COVID19 pandemic which has interfered with virtually everything we had set out to do this year. However, even in these uncertain times I have no doubt in my mind that together we will overcome.

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OFFICIALS First and foremost, I wish to thank all the members for expressing their confidence in me and my team by voting us in early in the year. We took office and hit the ground running by organizing a number of activities which we successfully carried out before covid19 disrupted our calendar. These are uncharted times and every leader and organization is struggling to find the right footing and how best to carry on with their business under the prevailing conditions. We had to conduct all our meetings and training virtually by utilizing the existing online platforms. You must have attended at least one of them already. We have, with support of ELP team organized trainings on different topics suggested by you as well as interactive sessions such as #MyConStory on whatsApp and Logo competition.

Even during this difficult period, our members have remained steadfast in their commitment to support their communities in different capacities following closely the example demonstrated by the bank and our mentor Dr.James Mwangi. Notably, our members who are currently in their senior years undertaking health related disciplines such as Medicine, joined the Equity Afia doctors in providing COVID19 Awareness Talks in various Equity Bank branches at the onset of the pandemic. These members have also continued to support the banks in distribution of PPEs in different counties across the country. We have also received reports of our members educating their communities in various ways of protecting themselves from contracting Corona virus such proper hand washing techniques, proper ways of wearing and handling masks, and maintaining social distancing. Our members have also continued to give back to the community by engaging in virtual/online mentoring of wings to fly scholars who are currently at home with the rest of the students in the country.

We have noted an increase in the number of scholars who are engaged in various marketing opportunities availed by the bank to constructively utilize the time in their hands away from schools as well as making an income to support themselves and their families.

We have continued to support new applicants to get marketing rights and organized training to enable them carry out these activities smoothly. We have also individually and collectively as a club managed to support a few scholars who have reached out. We appreciate the generosity demonstrated by our members during this period in support to one another and we commend the resilience demonstrated by each one of us.

As the leadership of the club we have reorganized ourselves to continue providing support to our members even though we are in different parts of the country. We will carry on with our club activities virtually until such a time when we are able to return safely to school. We revamped our social media platforms to serve as channels to pass information to our members. We are now at the final stages of developing an interactive website to enhance our virtual interactions even further.

Finally, I would like to thank everyone who has been involved in the creation of this magazine. I hope it will serve the purpose of connecting us not just as KUELC family but all ELP chapters at large. I hope it inspires us to learn from one another and collaborate in building Africa! Stay safe and positive!

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OFFICIALS

KEVIN JUMA DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Kenyatta University Economics KU-ELC IS NOT JUST A CHAPTER OR CLUB PER SE BUT ALSO A FAMILY FOR THIS ASSEMBLAGE OF FUTURE LEADERS

Hi,

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enyatta University Equity Leaders Chapter (KUELC) is a congeries of all Wings to Fly(WtF) alumni and Equity Leaders Programme(ELP) scholars at Kenyatta University. KU-ELC is not just a chapter or club per se but also a family for this assemblage of future leaders. As a team, we mainly stress on the following key aspects: unity amongst ourselves,, equality in opportunities, networking, mentorship, eadership career development among other areas

The success and prosperity of the chapter is ascribed to the spirit of teamwork and cooperation among the ever dedicated members and consecrated executive. Serving in the office of the Deputy President, I ensure discipline, timeliness, and order in all our activities and amongst ourselves, a role that has been made easier by the utmost cooperation and dedication of the chapter members. I have been motivated and supported by the esteemed members and executive of the chapter to rally and advocate for unity and good governance that will lift the chapter to even higher levels.

Truly, KU-ELC is home away from home! God bless KUELC.

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OFFICIALS

DENNIS WACHIRA TREASURER

Kenyatta University Energy AS A TREASURER, I ENVISION A CHAPTER WHICH WILL BE SO WELL-KNIT IN CARE FOR EACH OTHER AS ANY FUNCTIONAL FAMILY UNIT WOULD DO.

Mentorship and Wellness meetings and Entrepreneurship Day. We also set up opefully you are keeping safe during a Welfare support official line in which this Covid-19 period and warm anyone with any pressing mental health issue would be directed to the Wellness during this cold season.

Before joining Kenyatta University in team behind the line.

September 2018, I received a call from a guy, so friendly by the nature of his voice. Matters Treasury, we have seen a steady He introduced himself as a mentor and that rise in the number of members who have he would be my guide as I got ready to join contributed their annual club subscription.

KU and after joining. I later called him to To cater for the necessity of funds to run our ask him why he cared and that’s when he club, we have explored more fundraising told me his name and that he was the then options which were underway before Mentorship Head KUELC and supporting Covid-19 came knocking. These include young people was a passion of his. That’s selling of Club’s merchandise and signup how I became aware of the club. A family fees for events. indeed.

As we promised, accountability and As a treasurer, I envision a Chapter which transparency have been held in the treasury. will be so well-knit in care for each other We are working on a PayBill Number to as any functional family unit would do. In ease on payments of club subscription fees pursuit of this, the Executive with utmost and other payments . As we dare to achieve support from my docket has organized and more for this great family,let’s be even more performed events such as team building, accountable to ourselves and others.

Greetings,

H

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OFFICIALS

PURITY MORAA MENTORSHIP HEAD

Kenyatta University Psychology I AM A PRODUCT OF MENTORSHIP MYSELF. I HAVE GROWN HOLISTICALLY THROUGH THE GUIDANCE OF MENTORS IN DIFFERENT FIELDS AND SPHERES OF LIFE

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t would be a lie to say mentorship is a new thing on the scene, oh no, it’s not! Back in the day, our forefathers used to ‘mentor’ our fathers and the fathers that came before them through the art of apprenticeship, which would be termed in modern day as mentoring. To learn a new skill from someone who is way more experienced so that you become like them or better than them so that the skill is passed on from generation to generation, from parent to child, from one community to another.

One of the most notable skills passed on in my community by my ancestors through the art of apprenticeship is the soapstone carving expertise, very well known among the Abagusii community, and has helped my community members earn a source of livelihood overtime.

call me a mentorship fan, I bet I’d have a mentorship Jersey if mentorship was a soccer club!

I would mostly attest this to the fact that I am a product of mentorship myself. I have grown holistically through the guidance of mentors in different fields and spheres of life. In this regard, I am excited about my position as a mentorship head in the club and look forward to creating more ardent mentors through training and skill enhancement. This way, like the gospel itself, the message of mentorship can be spread from one soul to another and engraved deeply in our hearts to guide the younger generations that comes after us in the different fields of expertise, may it be academia, career-wise, in terms of lifeskills, socially, spiritually or in whatever area. This will help them cruise through life smoothly with little or no challenges.

My name is Purity Moraa, the Mentorship head of the Equity Leadership Club Kenyatta University chapter. I am a Third year Psychology student, a mental health I look forward to working with the members advocate and wellness enthusiast. I am a of the club to make this dream a worthwhile leader, and a lover of life and art. I enjoy reality. Viva! singing, cooking, writing and poetry. I am a big believer of mentorship. You could KENYATTA UNIVERSITY EQUITY LEADERS CLUB

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OFFICIALS

MARK SOKO SECRETARY

Kenyatta University Computer Science THE MORE SKILLS ACQUIRED THE MORE POWERFUL A LEADER BECOMES should have knowledge on what they are supposed to do in their position.”

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f asked at the moment what leadership is, I would say it is the art of motivating a group of people to act toward achieving a common goal.

I have been a leader almost throughout my lifetime. I have to say this because I am the firstborn in my family. I always believe that firstborns have no choice but to portray some leadership character in their families.”

Are leaders born or made?” According to most people leaders are made. The more skills acquired the more powerful a leader becomes. The minority (Born leaders), I will equate it to the above example on firstborns.

My first leadership role was when I was in class 3. I was appointed as a class prefect.

I still don’t understand the criteria that they used to assign me that position. Were it you, would you have questioned at that age?

All the way to class 6 I had been writing noise makers and collecting books. At the end of it all I realized this task kept me so focused on my studies. As I would ensure that I completed my assignments on time just for the sake of collecting books. It was at this time that I was so good at football.

Mr. Ebwel was the first to discover my talent and allowed me to showcase it during an inter-school tournament. I was given school team assistant captain position.” Leaders

My classmates believed in my leadership and elected me as their class prefect in class 7 and 8. “Good leaders gain trust from their subjects”.

In high school, I was appointed to lead my class just because I offered to collect some books from the library.” Service comes first in leadership.” I had passion for scouting and loved the idea of being out of school for a couple of days. Due to good commanding skills, consistency and commitment, I was appointed as the chairperson in Form 2 and later as a chief commander of Butula sub-county scouts.

Currently, I serve as the Secretary KU-ELC, a big privilege indeed. I decided to come in and help out resolve some weakness I had seen in the club which will remain confidential for now. But since I like to handle and manipulate data, my agenda revolves around there.

Hugo Heij says, “True leaders ensure they continue to develop their leadership skills throughout their careers, through learning and development materials and activities.”

Thanks to wings to fly foundation for their consistent education on leadership during their leadership conferences. These conferences did shape me to the person I am today.

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OFFICIALS

AGGREY OCHIENG’ ALUMNI MANAGER

Kenyatta University Economics OUR UNITY AND TOGETHERNESS SAW THE CLUB ENGAGE IN DIVERSE ACTIVITIES AND WE GREW TO BE AT THE HELM OF THE MOST ACTIVE EQUITY LEADERS PROGRAM UNIVERSITY CHAPTER

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hen I joined the club in early 2017, I found a new family. My dream since then has always been to make it a better family. I first unsuccessfully ran for the position of the club treasurer when I joined. I however continued working with the then leadership in the aspects I couldto help support the club. Come 2018,I successfully ran for the club presidency unopposed .

My first aim was to revive the long lost unity in the club and to help unite all the other university chapters. We revived various activities including volunteer mentorships and givebacks to our Center of excellence school; Robins high school Ruiru, weekly meetings among others, to help unify the members. Bringing all the other university chapter leaders together for a roll out of inter-chapter activities, saw the initiation of various activities including Interchapter games ,poetry spot competition, team building among others and this helped unify all the chapters.

I believed bringing people together was the first step towards attaining a greater family.

Our unity and togetherness saw the club engage in diverse activities and we grew to be at the helm of the most active Equity leaders

program university chapter.

Successfully running again for the presidency saw me leave a united family. A family where people are so eager to take part in it›s activities.

Gone are the days when people didn’t even want to run for office. When I first ran for presidency we saw all aspirants in all the positions run unopposed because people weren›t interested in the positions.

After just a term,we witnessed change, people wanted to take over, some positions even had upto 4 contestants, they all had the same purpose-making the club a better place.The power of unity.

Unity was my mission ,and it›s still my greatest aspiration for the club.

I believe through unity we can help leverage on the club›s vast diverse network and expertise, ranging from its members to the alumni to achieve a great transformative family to both the members and the society.

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OFFICIALS

EDWIN BARASA ORGANIZING SECRETARY

Kenyatta University Economics AS DR JAMES MWANGI ALWAYS PUTS IT, A SOCIETY CAN NEVER BE BETTER THAN IT›S LEADERS

As all of us can agree, KU-ELC,is not just a club we are a family, we bond, we encourage each other,we help each other in times of trouble keeping in mind that we have a common history since we joined the Equity Bank.We also help each other grow emotionally and give moral support.

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enyatta University Equity Leaders Chapter (KU-ELC) is a family that brings together the wings to fly Alumni,and the Equity Leaders Program (ELP) of Kenyatta University. It is a mirror for which we look back to the journey that we have come from and the expectations the society has on us having been given an opportunity by Equity Bank together with its Partners.

As a chapter,we focus on a lot of issues, such as Mentoring and Community give back. Sitting in the office of the Organizing Secretary I ensure that the Chapters activities run smoothly. This has been made possible by our able team and our committed members who I greatly appreciate.

As an office, we want to ensure that we grow leaders who are going to impact the community positively ...we want to grow humanitarians...leaders whom the whole world will be proud of.

As Dr James Mwangi always puts it, a society can never be better than it›s leaders....so we are raising a people through who change shall spread to the whole world.This can only be achieved when we work as a team...and be our brothers and sisters keeper.

As I conclude I call upon all of us to join hands and ensure that we take our Club a notch higher.

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CHAPTER ACTIVITIES

ROBINS SECONDARY SCHOOL MENTORSHIP

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hursday afternoons are ever so exciting. Wanna know why? Well, this is the day we, The Kenyatta University Equity Leaders Chapter get to meet and interact with our mentees from Robins secondary school in Bypass, Ruiru. As part of the give back project, the chapter adopted the school way back in January 2015. One of the officials, Mary Waheti, who was then working part time at the school as a teacher saw the challenges and gaps that are there in the school and sought to make the school better in terms of academics and discipline. So, together with the then club president Edwin Kuria, they pioneered a mentorship program that has been effective for over 5 years now, being taken up by subsequent chapter leaders over the years. During the onset of the project, there were two programs executed: Mentorship and volunteer teaching, which included having the chapter members visiting the school and teaching them on different subjects.

In the year, 2017 when the new leadership came in presided by Junior Hardy and his vice Angela Oruko, they took up the project and other than mentorship and volunteer teaching, they held a fundraiser whose contributions saw them buy a computer and a couple of desks for the students at Robins. Other prominent contributions towards the Robins Mentorship Program include a book and stationary drive and a Girl child empowerment project which included a sanitary pad drive and discussions on selfawareness by female mentors, spearheaded by the then President Aggrey ochieng, his Vice Emma Mwangi and the Mentorship Head, Willise Otondi in the year 2018-2019.

The school administration, headed by the school principal, Mr Richard Were, has noted the substantive impact of the mentorship on the students and has given a positive feedback lauding the improvement in academia and discipline among the students. They have also been ever so grateful for the donations received from the chapter and how beneficial it has been for the students in improving the quality of their education and lives in general.

We look forward to doing more as a chapter for the year 2020, even though this year’s projects and plans that we had for the school have been stalled by the COVID-19 pandemic, we hope to connect again with our students once schools resume.

Mentorship is all about giving guidance and counsel, but over and above all these; hope.

Hope for a better, brighter future. Given the needy background of the students we mentor at Robins, a greater future is all we can hope for. We know how impactful Mentorship is, and we are excited to hear the success stories of our mentees for the years to come.

This article was written by Purity Moraa, The mentorship head, KU ELC.

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CHAPTER ACTIVITIES

SPRINKLE OF LIGHT

FLORENCE MAINA PRESIDENT

Chuka University Bachelor of Commerce

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percentage of us identify ourselves with public primary school we attended. Teachers on duty were readily waiting at the gate with canes for the late ones without minding their journey to school. Some of us had to prepare our siblings in the morning since parents left before dawn to hustle while others had to pass by the dairy dropping the milk and if the collection can was late, then it meant you’ll have to be late for school.

Walking over 3km to school, crossing bridges and on rainy days use longer routes since the rivers were overflowing .The journey to school was overwhelming to say the least. If you got late punishment was waiting for you. We would wear the same dress to school for a whole week meaning you had to be extra careful during playtime so as not to make it dirty or you’ll have to sacrifice time with friends in the evening to quickly clean and air dry your uniform for the next day. This deprived us a wonderful playtime but we survived.

When the United Nations says at SDG 4 that we aim at attaining Quality Education for all or at SDG 10 aiming to reduce equalities across all races, tribes, nationalities and even continents the greatest question in our minds is, is it possible? Well yes it is if we take individual responsibility and focus our

hearts to making the SDGs a reality. At ELC Chuka, we took an individual responsibility to act in our community and came up with the project SPRINKLE OF LIGHT at Mungoni Primary School.

The sole purpose of this project was to raise exposure of the students in a local public school to be closer to those in private institutions. Our approach to this was through having our members volunteer every Tuesday and Friday for 70 min to spend time at the school. On Tuesday’s we focused on helping our students with revision of their class work so as to raise their academic performance while on Friday’s we focused on having more interactions with the students beyond class work to develop their soft skills and interpersonal relationships.

We also went a step higher to introduce the class 8 to computers and the reception was positive. This project was received positively by the school and we could say we received maximum support from the school’s management. Our members have also been able to develop their personal capabilities such as confidence, community participation and interpersonal skills as we sprinkle a light to the kids to have a better learning experience than what we actually had.

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CHAPTER ACTIVITIES

ROVERING WITH PURPOSE KENYATTA UNIVERSITY EQUITY LEADERS CLUB

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n the month of September2019, there was a need to identify scouts in the country because the ELP Community is growing at Superjet speed and the scout are there to serve the community at large. The group started with a group of 15 members from the leaders congress from all campus and colleges with ELP clubs at Kasarani being spearheaded by the group head of communications commissioner Lydia Kiburu.She gave us a headstart to stay and live as scouts and make the best of the programs of Rovering because there are so many benefits of the program which build and model an all-round human being fit to solve the challenges of the modern society regarding the economy, leadership and social lives.

So far,we have been able to help our immediate Elp fraternity by representation and trying to mak an image which the society can appreciate. We participated in tree planting in Ngong with the goal of the bank to plant 35million trees in commemoration of 35years since its establishment in Muranga county as a society for tea farmers .

We also participated in Meru university tree planting where we achieved to plant 20 trees in the university grounds .We also had an opportunity to establish a scout’s crew in the university-an extended branch of our Elp family to make sure of our existence in every campus in the country.

For the Rovering spirit, the objectives for the program were: • Equippng rovers with knowledge and skills of life • Creating a better world though engagement in various activities in the society Having a general Elp is a good idea although managing it is not easy thus I would prefer if we have one in all chapters to ensure active participation. They will help in CSR issue with giving back to the society and improve club activities by contributing ideas, exposure and insitlling scout ideals within scholars at chapter level

LOISE NJERI

ERICK OMEJA

University of Nairobi Microbiology and Biotech

Maseno University Media

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INDIVIDUAL PROJECTS

Who is Grace Njoki ?

Grace is an inspiring entrepreneur who sees a gap In a niche and creates a solution for it.

At an age of 22 I ventured into the world of business and is running an online business of selling thrifts clothes and some of the leading makeup brands in the world.Having come from a humble background my ultimate goal is to change the lives and livelihood of my family and community.

What are your hobbies?

I love reading inspirational books, business and cooking.

Books that have really changed my life are: The leader without a title by Robin Sharma and Become a better you by Joel Osteen.

There is a quote on the latter that states “No matter where you are In life, you can be better�. This pushes me to be the best version of me there is.

INDIVIDUAL PROJECTS

Who are your role models?

It may sound as a cliche but my mother is my role model. She is a fighter and a strong black woman having to raise 4 kids on her own and never bending. She once told me to never allow my circumstances define who I am and to always focus on my goals .

Where do you see yourself in 10_ 15 years ?

Grace in 10_15 years will be a world leading entrepreneur changing current gaps into opportunities to change and create job opportunities for the youth.

If you were to change one problem in Kenya what would it be?

Drug abuse and depression, coming from a society where drugs are sold in every corner of the street I have seen most of my fellow youths become drug addicts, others have fallen into depression due to lack of guidance and losing hope in life.

I would come up with a project to assist the youth overcome their challenges with drug abuse and those who have fallen into depression a medium to express their fears

INDIVIDUAL PROJECTS

SCHOLAR’S HUSTLE

I am Jabuya Lawrence Otieno, a fourth year student at Chuka university pursuing Bsc. in Agricultural Economics. I am currently practicing an agribusiness project, in line with vegetables production, precisely Capsicums (pilipili hoho). The project is on a half an acre farm in Migori County, Suna East Sub-county, Kwa Ward.

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PERSONAL EXPERIENCES

MENTORSHIP JOURNEY I STRIVE TO CREATE AN ENVIRONMENT THAT FOSTERS MENTORSHIP IN VARIOUS CLUBS, SOCIETIES, AND ASSOCIATIONS THAT I AM PART OF WITH A MOTTO “SHARING IS CARING”.

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y name is Willise O. Otondi, ELP scholar class of 2015 and a final year Biomedical Engineering student at Kenyatta University. As a firsthand mentorship beneficiary (thanks to Equity Group Foundation and other affiliated stakeholders as far as Wings to Fly Scholarship program is concerned), a trained and practicing youth mentor and a youth mentor trainer, I am ceaselessly utilizing and enhancing my hard gained skills in sharing what I have and continuously striving to gain what I lack (majorly through reading, learning, and networking resourcefully). Currently, I am mentoring Wings to fly scholars at Thika High School on four pillars (value-centered lifestyle, academic excellence, art of giving back to the society and transformative leadership) where I previously served as the lead mentor in 2017-2018.

One of the other avenues that has helped me explore mentorship is; Kenyatta University Equity Leaders Chapter, where I served as the mentorship-head. In this position, I organized weekly mentorship and charity activities at Robins mixed secondary school (Kenyatta University’s center of excellence).

In addition to this, I am serving as the IEEEKU Youth Mentoring in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) Project Lead- which was recently launched at Thika High School and an affiliate of IEEE WIE(Women in Engineering) advocating for women involvement in STEM courses (wie.ieee.org ).

In conclusion, I strive to create an environment that fosters mentorship in various clubs, societies, and associations that I am part of with a motto “Sharing is caring”.

So long as I am alive (which I am indeed grateful) I will continue to fly, soar and explore with the wings I was accorded in order to Serve, Learn and Share resourcefully.

WILLISE OTONDI

Kenyatta University Biomedical Engineering

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PERSONAL EXPERIENCES

MEDICAL SCHOOL IT HAS BEEN A JOURNEY FILLED WITH PITFALLS AND FULFILMENTS ALIKE

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numerous rotations exposed us to the various diseases that inflict humanity. This required perseverance in the learning process even in the face of frustrations from questioning and cross examination by our tutors during bedside teachings and ward rounds. All these experiences are geared towards moulding a competent doctor. Nothing beats the recovery of patients under one’s care and of course the correct diagnosis.

The numerous times that we would scrub The welcoming remarks by the dean in theatre and assist the surgeons during psyched us up to the profession. Getting surgeries instilled in us a sense of belonging the lab coat with names encrypted boldly to the profession regardless of our levels of on the lapel got me walking around head study. high! Reality set in thereafter when we got introduced to Anatomy - the backbone of Exams mean everything in medical school; medicine. Stepping into the Anatomy Lab they determine whether one is promoted to in itself was a gamble; first due to the smell the next level. Exam days are always crazy of formaldehyde and secondly the sight of and you find us tearing down our elastic cadavers covered in body bags. The feeling limits of toils. The feelings of one’s name of holding a scalpel for the first time and appearing on the much coveted pass list is cutting open the cadaver instilled in me a enchanting. My life in Med-School has been sense of responsibility; one that I will live bearable and fulfilling and I am optimistic to come out of this school as a competent with for eons to come.

Soon enough we realized that we had to and well versed doctor. spend every second of our lives studying medical jargon. Lectures and demonstration I am forever grateful for my Equity family sessions would follow one another through the ELC-KU Chapter for the occupying the better part of the day and various opportunities and activities we most evenings would find us holding have participated in and look forward to discussion groups before proceeding to the engaging this club the even more. library for individual study at the library.

We even had identified slots at PML’s 4th BOAZ MELLY floor! he year is 2014 and I’m seated at Equity Bank Kapsabet branch’s cubicle wowing customers and the much coveted email pops up that I had secured a place at the prestigious Kenyatta University School of Medicine! The joy and the fulfilment was immeasurable to date! It has been a journey filled with pitfalls and fulfilments alike.

The start of our clinical years had us make sense of medical conditions and their subsequent management plans. The

Kenyatta University Medicine and Surgery

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PERSONAL EXPERIENCES

LEADERSHIP EXPERIENCE

BY SERVING, ONE CREATES A NEW NETWORK OF PEOPLE, GROWS AND NURTURES THEIR LEADERSHIP SKILLS

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or the 2 terms I served in Kenyatta University Pharmacy Students Association, I came to appreciate the spirit of teamwork. Putting an event to order is no mere feat. It requires great skill in coordinating and managing people. As the leader, striking a balance between the demands of people and keeping in line with the association goals and objectives is key. Bringing a project or event to life was my area of expertise; with help from training sessions from the Kenya Pharmacy Students Association (KEPHSA), Leaders in Training sessions.

As a leader, I learnt that you need people who will always stand with you even when everyone else is doubting you. Secondly, I learnt that for a project to be successful, the participants need to have some ownership of the activity going on. We in KUPHSA, implemented this by collecting opinions on how best to carry out the project from the very same people we were planning it for; know their desires and turn them into a reality. In governance they would call it “Public Participation”.

I owe my social and leadership accomplishments to these two KUPHSA Committees I served in; first as a treasurer and later as their chairperson in the 20182019 year.

In the tenure that I served in KUPHSA, we were able to bring into reality new events and activities to the club: the first Karura

festival and treasure hunt in 2019 and the first ever KUPHSA annual dinner held at Verona hotel. The editorial team also introduced the ‘’Pharma friend Magazine’’ and published the third issue of the ‘’Pharm Journal’’. We were also able to increase and fortify the KUPHSA-Alumnus relations with the K.U pharmacy alumni, from just two alumni who were supporting and kept the club’s affairs at heart in 2018, to more than 30 alumni on board by the end of 2019.

For any aspiring club leader in the university, finances will always be a pest; brace up and innovate new financing strategies.

Always think win-win ventures.

I enjoyed serving the pharmacy students for the two years and would highly recommend everyone to always take up the opportunities to serve. By serving, one creates a new network of people, grows and nurtures their leadership skills and finally, there’s joy in creating an opportunity for other students, either to learn, have fun or network.

“You can have anything you want in life if you just help enough other people get what you want” – Zig Ziglar.

MARANGU MOSES

Kenyatta University Pharmacy

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PERSONAL EXPERIENCES

CROSSROADS EMERGING LEADERS PROGRAM BELIEVE YOU CAN AND YOU’RE HALFWAY THERE, THE OTHER HALF CAN BE COVERED BY THE PEOPLE WHO BELIEVE IN YOU...

“

Believe you can, and you’re halfway there,” said Theodore Roosevelt, and I agree. The other half can be covered by the people who believe in you, give you wings to fly, and power to fight for your dream. I’m excited to share with you my Crossroads Emerging Leaders Program (CELP) experience.

First things first. CELP is a prestigious and fully-funded career development opportunity for students across the world. The program was inaugurated in 2017 as a joint effort between the Harvard Business School Club of the GCC, HBS Professors Karim Lakhani and Tarun Khanna and The Lakshmi Mittal and Family South Asia Institute at Harvard University. CELP aims to create future leaders from across an array of cultural, racial, and socio-economic backgrounds and a diverse pipeline of prospective graduate students at leading universities.

The application process slightly varies from year to year. Kindly check their website for more information.

learned how nations should manage their wealth.

How can nations make their citizens happy? How should we address some of the biggest and most pressing questions of our time? Should we have a ministry dedicated to happiness and wellbeing like the UAE? These are some of the questions, Prof. Kristin Fabbe answered. Besides this, we talked about the untold story of Britain’s Gulag in Kenya. Did you know that a Harvard Professor was instrumental in a high court case between Britain and victims of the atrocities committed by the colonial government in Kenya? I liked the case method because it was extremely engaging – I was definitely paying more attention to what was going on than I usually do in class.

It was not all about academics. We had a chance to interact and network with other students, mentors, and HBS Club Officials.

Additionally, we visited The Nasdaq Stock Market, where we were taught about their Like every student, I have always dreamed operations and opportunities that existed. of having a Harvard experience. Thanks While at the Dubai Future Accelerators, to exceptional people who trusted and we learned about startups. Overall, the supported me, I fulfilled my dream. On program was enlightening. It surpassed my Sunday, the 23 rd of September 2018, just a expectations. I can’t help myself but say I day after arriving in Dubai, we began our enjoyed my stay. Live Dare Inspire! classes. During the first session, we learned IRERI VICTOR how Jose Antonia Abreu, an entrepreneur from Venezuela, tackled a tough problem University of Nairobi using music. Furthermore, based on a case Medicine and Surgery study about Chile’s copper surplus, we KENYATTA UNIVERSITY EQUITY LEADERS CLUB

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SCHOLAR OF THE YEAR

SCH LAR OF THE YEAR

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y enthusiasm for mentorship and transformative leadership earned me a spot as the university’s ELP MY NAME IS PURITY chapter mentorship head. I enjoy writing, singing MORAA. I AM A THIRD YEAR and poetry. The Wings to Fly mentorship program has given PSYCHOLOGY STUDENT AT me an opportunity to be a mentor and network. I am also KENYATTA UNIVERSITY. I AM A a mentor with Kite-Oxford, Nairobi, an organization that WINGS TO FLY ALUMNI, CLASS promotes student innovation and mentorship. Other than OF 2016, GIKOMBA BRANCH. mentorship, I am fervent about community work. I am an active member of the Rotaract club, a worldwide organization that aims at developing young adults as leaders in their communities and work places through professional workshops and community service. I am also the vice chair of Mfariji foundation, a budding non-profit organization that supports children in children’s homes and those in need.

Lastly, I am very vocal about matters concerning mental health. My ardency in understanding human consciousness and attitude inspired me to be a peer counselor in school and part of Amazing Minds Africa, Kenyatta University, an organization that creates awareness and supports the youth, especially in campus, going through mental health related issues through art, support groups and therapy. Amazing minds Africa has given me the chance to network and lead as the head of creativity and art. It has also exposed me to other opportunities such as working with CitiesRise, World Health Organization, Basic needs Kenya and Psychologists for Kenya to support the mental health Agenda in my country.

During this pandemic, I urge all of us to take care of our health, more so our mental health. Let us find healthy coping mechanisms and encourage those around us to reach out in case they are going through a hard time trying to adjust.

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ARTICLES

THE HANDSHAKE

JUST LIKE ANY OTHER ‘WANJIKU’ OUT THERE, I HAVE A PROBLEM WITH HOW THIS SUPPOSED ‘ROMANTIC LOVE ARTICLE’ IS BEING FORCED ON THE ALREADY WORN OUT AND HACKNEYED BACKS OF THE COMMON MWANANCHI.

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hen you graduate from University, you’re given the power to read and write. Not read and read.

Not write and write. But read and write. Not even write and read. Well, the reason is quite simple. In reading, you gain knowledge that enables you to write authoritatively and informatively without predilection and warp. The term handshake can have as many definitions as the definers are. For the sake of those who don’t subscribe to the same school of thought, I will be courteous enough to define it.

Handshake; shake; handshaking; handclasp: grasping and shake a person’s hand (as to acknowledge an introduction or to agree on a contract).

At the wake of March 9, 2018, Kenyans woke to ‘lifechanging’ news through a rather unexpected event that was then coiled as a handshake between the two all-time worse political rivals; H.E Hon. Uhuru Muigai Kenyatta (Kenya’s fourth president) and Right Hon. Raila Amolo Odinga (Official Opposition Leader). Let’s fast forward and brain wave our cortical potential on some of the effects of this supposed end to tribal politics, post-election violence, corruption and cartels only to mention but a few. Two years down the line, a lot has changed. The Republic of Kenya, which is barely fifty six years old, has changed diversely and multifariously in that multifaceted undertaking by the duo with multifarious interests. First, it was from ‘yule mganga’ and ‘mlevi’ (that witch and drunkard) to now ‘the President’ and ‘my brother’. This had a purgative and cathartic effect on the government. It led to from ‘my Deputy President’ to ‘yule jamaa wa tangatanga.’ Verily, there are no life enemies in politics. And definitely there are no life friends either.

Politics is just a game of numbers. I’ll call it poker. Fortunately or unfortunately, depending on which side you’re, the game did not just stop at the practical handclasp between the two gentlemen from the two considered most powerful influential affluent political dynasties and the theoretical preaching water and sleeping in a drinking spree. They KENYATTA UNIVERSITY EQUITY LEADERS CLUB

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were wise enough to give a name to this child. A taskforce was formulated under the chairmanship of the Garissa Senator Mohammed Yusuf Haji (former minister of Defence).

Call it the Building Bridges Initiative, popularly known as the BBI. It was meant to have a palliative effect on the ‘bleeding’ Kenya but it eventually succeeded in killing President Uhuru’s Big 4 Agenda which included food security, affordable housing, manufacturing and universal healthcare. It was compared to reggae which in their opinion can’t be stopped; ask Gatundu South MP Hon. Moses Kuria. Thanks to COVID-19, reggae seems to have been stopped (at least for now).

I have no personal issues with the BBI report, in fact it can be the paradise of Kenya if not Canaan. Just like any other ‘Wanjiku’ out there, I have a problem with how this supposed ‘romantic love article’ is being forced on the already worn out and hackneyed backs of the common mwananchi. Well, that’s another story that can be followed on one of my favorite Facebook pages “Juma KE”. Now back to the elephant in the house, the handshake has had multitudinous changes on the political system of our beloved nation.

What comes out vividly is the lack of opposition party in the state. We can’t just pretermit the role of opposition in any given country, let alone a third world developing nation. In simple terms, we have succeeded in killing the government’s watchdog. What a pity! But again, we can’t just censure this handshake spirit and its fruits to the nation.

KEVIN JUMA

Kenyatta University Economics KENYATTA UNIVERSITY EQUITY LEADERS CLUB

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ARTICLES

KENYAN ECONOMY DURING AND POST COVID-19

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he set-down of COVID-19 on our land marked the dawn of a new normal. Uncertainty and incertitude took control. Our government imposed containment measures to control the situation. The receipt of a memo from my school, Kenyatta University, implicating indefinite closure of the institution brought the reality of the situation to my door step. Ever since everyone has been grossed out. Our business community has been hit head on. Some closed down and others downsized. Will we pull an Italy? Will we live to survive this? These are some of the questions that keep lingering in the minds of Kenyans. People have turned to their supreme beings culminating in a national prayer day. The numbers keep increasing. Talk of COVID-19 coming, seeing and conquering!

Everyone just wants to stay alive. The prosperity of the economy has been left in the hands of the Most High. And as our commander in chief reiterated, “The economy can always be revived, but we can never bring back lost lives.” This takes me back to the days of the great depression of 1929 in the U.S, when their economy was at the brink of crumpling and the Wall Street was crashing. One of their greatest magnates of all time, John D Rockefeller, spoke some words of optimism in the air when he said, “These are days when many are discouraged. Depressions have come and gone, prosperity has always returned and will again.”

Day by day from when patient zero was reported on March 13, 2020, COVID-19 has continued to bring in adverse effects on all sectors of the economy. It has affected international trade, financial and commodity markets, supply chains, currency volatility, our diaspora remittance, monetary policies and had macroeconomic impacts on the key sectors of our economy. International trade started shaking when the first case was reported in China on December 31, 2019. Major markets for instance, China, were locked down. This led to the disruption of our supply chain and an increase in the prices of goods previously imported from China.

Activities within the manufacturing sector have been disrupted due to shortages of intermediate goods used to manufacture products.

Our financial market has continued to perform poorly YTD. Most foreign investors who had invested in the Kenyan stock market have sold their stocks as the virus continues to ravage the country. The blue-chip stock investors have also resorted to selling

MAJOR STOCKS SUCH AS SAFARICOM REGISTERED UP TO A 7% DECLINE. THE NSE 20 HAD TO HALT ITS TRADING AT SOME POINT AFTER IT DROPPED MORE THAN 5%, AS PER THE PROVISIONS OF THE EQUITIES TRADING RULES.

their equity holdings and purchasing fixed income securities due to the uncertainties. Major stocks such as Safaricom registered up to a 7% decline.The NSE 20 had to halt its trading at some point after it dropped more than 5%, as per the provisions of the equities trading rules. All the large cap stocks have recorded losses in the YTD performances majorly as a result of sell-off from investors moving to safer havens.

Our currency volatility has also been affected with the reduced supply chain in the global economy.This has seen an increase in demand for the dollar by foreign investors exiting the market and has led to devaluation of our currency. The Kenyan shilling currently stands at 108.0 against the dollar, a rise from 101.2.

Tourism, one of the key contributors to Kenya’s GDP has registered an 80 billion loss in revenue which amounts to almost half of last year’s total tourism revenue. Our agricultural sector has also been affected with Kenya registering a fall of sh 1.3 billion in tea earnings.

Unemployment rates have increased with firms laying off staff to accommodate the costs. The economy has been predicted to register a 1.1% growth from the former 6.0%, in 2020. The small and medium-sized enterprises which happen to be the drivers of our economy remain shut. The rich have resorted to hoarding money as our financial institutions continue to suffer bad loans and fall in interest rates. Reduced deposits have led to difficulties in getting credits. Corporations have resorted to not paying dividends to save for liquidity. Our economy under COVID-19 has generally suffered reduced money supply, with the government issuing bonds to cater for the fall in revenue. Talk of the health problem becoming an economic pandemic?

The Kenyan economy post COVID-19 will need a massive liquidity injection. Increased stimulus packages to cushion SMEs and the vulnerable population will serve as a good starting point. Encouraging banks to give loans at concessionary rates to facilitate businesses and to reschedule due loans will help revive businesses. Supporting local productions will boost output and create more employment opportunities. The central bank will have to adopt the expansionary monetary policies to help increase money in circulation. I believe with adherence to the containment measures, we shall overcome this novel virus.

AGGREY OCHIENG’

Kenyatta University Economics

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ARTICLES

COVID-19;

A DISASTER TAKEN WITH A PINCH OF SALT?

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ays are moving like the waters of River Nile. The year is halfway and almost over. Nothing of substance has been done in almost all spheres of life. All schools are closed, everyone is at home waiting for what seems to be eternity. Everyone seems confused. Is this the time to turn to our Redeemer? Might this be the apocalypse we have all been waiting for?

On March 13, 2020, the first confirmed case of COVID-19 was reported in Kenya. People in the cities had no otherwise but to relocate to the countryside. Measures were put in place by the Ministry of Health in conjunction with other key ministries. I remember calling my father to do the necessary. He sent me some fare and I hurriedly booked a seat with one of the bus companies. I didn’t take any chance with the virus. Cases kept on rising. Lockdowns and restriction of movement were imposed on areas identified as hotspots of the virus. Food reliefs were provided by both the government and other nongovernmental organizations. But was this enough to mitigate the effects of the virus?

Ever since the first confirmed case of COVID-19, business has never been as usual. The pandemic has driven so many to desperation and the students are no exception. This period is not for the faint-hearted. Judging from the way the cases keep on rising, issues of mental health are also likely to be on the rise. We can no longer predict the future.

We can’t set dreams and targets. We’re just doomed. Many would wish to say goodbye as the waters are so murky. The salt is no longer tasty, honey is bitter. We can no longer embrace each other. Something which almost everyone including me assumed it would take a few days to disappear is now more than a disaster. Our systems are gutted down.

Our mouths are shut. A friend is no longer one. The valleys of fertile hope are dry, and cannot sustain anything for growth. Can we take COVID-19 to be a pinch of salt?

JAMES KAI

Technical University of Kenya Geospatial Engineering

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ARTICLES

SUCCESSFUL

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very challenge comes with a realization. A new era has come and is calling for our attention. Do not be surprised when new adaptations go on even after the control of the pandemic. Trends such as online learning / digital learning and working from home are currently being appreciated. A basic knowledge on how to go about it is required. What I like about online learning is that it gives you the opportunity to discuss what you›re learning more often than in person. If you have an in-person lecture of 300 students, it is very hard to ask a question, while with online learning you can just type the question, and your professor and other students can respond instantly.

WITH ME IS A CHECKLIST TO YOUR ONLINE STUDY SUCCESS: • Know the expectations study the syllabus » Print your syllabus and follow it closely. » Note any due dates. » Recognize your instructor’s expectations and requirements for the course.

• Create a schedule • Be flexible • Eliminate social distractions • Do the biggest most important task first • Focus on one thing at a time • Ask for help from your professors & fellow students • Find a study space • Have a backup plan • Prioritize your activities

A great place to start is by knowing the expectations for the course. Use the syllabus to identify the main activities and the associated timelines for the course. It’s advantageous to know the timing and the pacing for assignments and interactions for the course. Expectations will vary in the different courses. Be sure to know what the expectations for the course(s) you take are. Having a schedule that identifies time related for both your learning and your personal plan is a great exercise to ensure that time is set aside and that priorities are being acknowledged and accounted for in your schedule.

Certainly, putting due dates for coursework in either a digital calendar system or writing it on a traditional calendar is a great visual reminder. Digital calendars can provide reminder messages on your phone or computer. The most commonly used digital calendars are: Google calendar, Microsoft Outlook calendar , Apple calendar, Thunderbird Lightning calendar (my favorite).

If you prefer a traditional calendar, put it somewhere where you will see it on a daily basis as a visual reminder.

A schedule and a plan are resourceful until something unexpected alters those plans. It’s important to build in extra time and flexibility as life demands for family, friends, and work will challenge your study plans. For example, if you have KENYATTA UNIVERSITY EQUITY LEADERS CLUB

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ARTICLES and energy to switch task work based on recency or priority. Asking for help from both your university resources and your personal resources can assist in staying on track for your studies. You should also have a physical space that allows you to focus on your work. Finding a place where your main activity is academic work, such as a home office room or a public library, can Digital and online learning means being reduce noise and visual distractions. connected to learning through technology like a computer, laptop, tablet, or phone. Plan to mitigate accidents and technical Those are the same tools for how we issues with cloud-based backup systems receive new alerts, share social media such as Dropbox, Google Drive, or other pictures and posts, and send texts and systems. This can assist in recovering your emails. These will all be competing for your work files from situations where you might attention while you’re in your online class. accidentally delete a file or have a technical Be sure to turn off notifications and set your accident such as spilling water on your phone to silent mode if possible. You will laptop and damaging it. Having a remote have to remove the low priority and non- or cloud-based backup of your work can urgent communications that have become get you access to your files, even if your dominant in our everyday computer’s stolen. Have you connected digital life to ever thought that there just isn’t concentrate on completing enough time in a day or week your academic work. At first to accomplish what you need this was my biggest challenge. to do? Having a system to be able to prioritize and rank your In 2003, there was a recurring tasks can assist in breakthrough in laptop battery ensuring that you have enough life. It wasn’t a technical time to do the important items. breakthrough as much as it was a process A quick analysis of the things you might breakthrough. Computer scientists found normally do in a week and the associated that when they had computer processors time will help you prioritize what needs complete tasks all the way through in a to be prioritized, reduced, or perhaps linear approach, as opposed to switching eliminated. Hopefully, you recognize and tasks based on a recency or even an are already using some of these strategies. associated priority, the battery life lasted I developed this knowledge from Baobab longer. Basically, extra energy and time platform and every time I study, I can see was expended to switch out information the progress I am making. Let’s all try out associated with attempting to multitask. for effective learning.

The same can be applied to your studies and they effort needed to switch mindsets MARK SOKO MASIKE and information for various tasks as they Kenyatta University come into our processing queue. Be like a Computer Science computer and focus on one task at a time until it’s complete without using extra time a research paper outline due on Sunday, it would be optimal to complete the work during the week and schedule some flex time on Saturday as opposed to starting the work on Saturday itself. Planning general flex time into a weekly schedule is a great way to ensure you have a backup plan to stay on track with your weekly goals.

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L

AND BU G E TS D

TRAVE

ARTICLES

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or a long period of time tradition and our ways of growing up got my friends and I thinking that travelling and vacation is for people with huge salaries or rather the top and middle class people. But the reality of it is anyone can travel as long as you have an adventurous spirit. Today I’d like to share a few tips that have helped us get to our dream destinations and create life time memories that will forever be ingrained in our hearts.

CHOOSING DESTINATIONS Based on my interests and thrillers I have learnt to create a list of all the places I plan to visit prior to my travel. It is okay to include both local and international destinations. I also go the extra mile of including my reasons why I want to visit a particular site mainly because it makes me fully assured I want to visit the place and when I get there I won’t spend on things outside my list. I also check out what other people are saying about my preferred destination. I watch vlogs or posts to see what others feel about it. This saves me the hustle of showing up at a place only to realize it doesn’t match my taste and expectations.

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ARTICLES TIME MAP OUTS Once I have a list of all my dream destinations, I then move forward to setting aside my travel time. Often I choose to travel monthly, quarterly, semi-annually or even annually depending on my school and work schedules. I also ensure that the time gap between one travel and another is enough for me to save for the next trip so that I don’t have to strain my budgets or travel when I feel I’m not well prepared.

TOURS AND TRAVEL COMPANIES This is a secret that I just recently discovered. Instead of facilitating your travel from zero, you can opt to use a tours and travel company. It makes tourism way cheaper because it saves you destination juggling costs and these companies will go through all the hustle of negotiating prices for its clients so you are able to get amazing experiences at pocket friendly prices. However, you will need to carefully pick out packages that will minimize your pocket expenditure as possible and also give you the experience that you are looking for. Make a point of contacting the company before payment to confirm what is included in their rates. Check out for reviews on the company and their travel history to make right choices.

SAVINGS PLAN If you love visiting new places you’ll definitely agree with me that travelling deserves to be added to your budget list. When I want to travel I often reduce the unnecessary expenditure on my day to day activities and save that money for a holiday during my work leave or school holidays. Saving for travel requires as equal discipline as rent, food or other bills to achieve the target.

BONUS TIP Having a difficult time saving alone? Try group savings and group travel. Sometimes I lack the discipline so I reach out to my friends who want to travel to the same destination and we set a date and target amount. Trust me this is the greatest motivation. Also check out for travel companies that allow you to pay for your trip in bits.

FLORENCE MAINA

Chuka University Bachelor of Commerce

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ARTICLES

UMANITY

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BECAUSE OF THEIR SIGNIFICANTLY HIGHER LEVELS OF INTELLIGENCE, HUMAN BEINGS SHOULD UNDERSTAND THE IMPORTANCE OF HUMANITY IN HUMAN EXISTENCE. IT IS ONLY BY DOING SO THAT THEY CAN UNLOCK AND FULFIL THEIR PURPOSE ON EARTH.

umanity can be defined as the quality of being human. The peculiar nature of man, by which he is distinguished from other beings. Being human does not mean that an individual possesses humanity. If you want to understand the quality of humanity in an individual, take note of how he/she treats people who have nothing to offer in return for his/her favors. Humanity means caring for others and helping them when they need that help the most.

It means forgetting your selfish interests when others need your help and extending unconditional love to each and every living thing on Earth.

A perfect example of humanity can be demonstrated by the following story: A king with a kind heart once saw a pigeon and an eagle fighting. The pigeon asked the king to save him from the eagle. The king told the eagle that he was ready to pay any price to succor the pigeon. The eagle asked him to give it an amount of flesh that equals the weight of the flesh of the pigeon. The king agreed to the eagle’s demands and started chopping off his flesh. After chopping some of his flesh, he weighed it against that of the pigeon and realized that the pigeon was still heavier. He, therefore, decided to offer all of himself to the eagle. As soon as the king had offered himself, both the eagle and the pigeon turned into angels. They had come to earth to put the king’s humanity to test. They rewarded him with precious gifts and eternal life for his show of humanity.

If one has the mindset of not being self-sufficient, he/she cannot help someone else.

One is always remembered for his/her good deeds. If eating and having fun is all we are born to do then animals are way better than us. Because of their significantly higher levels of intelligence, human beings should understand the importance of humanity in human existence. It is only by doing so that they can unlock and fulfil their purpose on earth. You do not need a hefty bank account to contribute towards humanitarian activities. In Mother Teresa’s words, you don’t have to do great things but you can do small things in a great way. You have what it takes to impact lives. Start by changing the environment around you. The time is now.

EDWIN ETYANG

Kenyatta University Economics

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ARTICLES

FRIENDSHIPS

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o you have friends? Not just friends but those whom you can truly rely on. How many people in your circle of friends are ready to go the extra mile for you? For instance, right now if you really hit rock bottom, who will stick around and stick by you? Friends bring a new dimension to life.

Your life can be interesting or miserable simply because of the people you decide to hang around. As a certain sage rightly put it, show me your friends and I will show you who you are.

We live in a world where almost everyone is looking out for themselves even at the expense of their dear ones. This means that it really takes a special friend to always looks out for you. It can be as simple as checking up on you. An example of a good friend is one who remembers you if there are job openings for your career progression rather than keeping the information to themselves. This shows that he or she values your friendship and views your success as theirs and not as competition.

Let me take you to the good book where I will show one of the best friendships the world has ever seen. The story about David and Jonathan gives us a reflection of how our friendships should be. Come to think of it, Jonathan knew that David, his best friend was to take over his father’s throne. That meant that Jonathan was literally willing to forego all the trappings of power that he was to inherit for his friendship. Jonathan could have been jealous and even killed David but their friendship was so dear to him that he even referred to David as a brother. How many of us can really go as far as foregoing our inheritances for our friends?

WE LIVE IN A WORLD WHERE ALMOST EVERYONE IS LOOKING OUT FOR THEMSELVES EVEN AT THE EXPENSE OF THEIR DEAR ONES. THIS MEANS THAT IT REALLY TAKES A SPECIAL FRIEND TO ALWAYS LOOKS OUT FOR YOU. IT CAN BE AS SIMPLE AS CHECKING UP ON YOU.

As we ponder about our friendships and relationships- romantic or platonic, let’s choose to be true to our friendships. It really helps to have an extra shoulder to lean on when things get tough.

I look forward to a world where we have genuine friendships because in this life no man is an island.

HAPPINESS KERUBO

Kenyatta University Economics

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ARTICLES

LONGA VITA BREVIS

ARS

HIPPOCRATES

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hen Andrew, the editor of The Art involves human application, it is also Leader, asked me if I could write the physical expression of creativity found an article on art he left me in a in our cultures and societies. Traditionally, dilemma. I had so many options but I did art is divided into four categories which not know exactly what to write about. Art is include visual arts (design, printmaking, extensive. It encompasses a highly diverse photography and ceramics), literal arts range of human activities and physical (fiction, drama, and poetry), performing arts (dance, music and ways of expression. Art theatre) and culinary arts is a process, a product so (cooking and cooking art). broad. There is so much LIFE AND ART Various forms of art can knowledge to acquire and ARE INEXTRICABLY combine in their elements not nearly as enough time INTERTWINED. AS to form a distinct art form to acquire it. In the words SUCH, THROUGHOUT for instance, an artist of the ancient Greek OUR LIVES, WE ARE can combine visual and physician, Hippocrates, CONSTANTLY DOING. performing elements of art “Ars longa, vita brevis” ART MANIFESTS ITSELF IN which translates to art is THE WAY WE DO THINGS, to create a motion picture. long, and life is short.

OUR MANNERISMS, Art has different functions OUR SURROUNDING, in our society including The first time I looked up the AND EVERYTHING WE personal, social and meaning of the word Art DELIBERATELY ARRANGE physical functions.

A was probably during my IN A WAY THAT APPEALS physical function may be first agriculture lesson. KLB TO HUMAN SENSES AND as an instrument, like vases Agriculture, the Agriculture EMOTIONS. made by a potter, or a chair course book then, defined carved by a carpenter.

Agriculture as an art and science. It went ahead to explain that One of the greatest social functions of art is agriculture was an art since it involved communication. Throughout history, people doing. The first meaning of the word art, is use art to explain or illustrate a specific a way of doing. It is the process or product point. For instance, in the education system, of deliberately arranging elements in a way right from kindergarten to university, that appeals to human senses or emotions. diagrammatic illustrations have been a KENYATTA UNIVERSITY EQUITY LEADERS CLUB

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major pedagogical tool. Maps are also illustrative art forms of communication.

Artists communicate their emotions, moods and feelings towards different topics through different art forms, such as music, poetry, painting and filmmaking. An artist might create a piece of art solely out of need for self-expression. It could be for education, entertainment, thought-provocation or purely for aesthetic value. The functions of art are just as diverse as the different forms. Different people perceive and use different art forms for different reasons depending on what appeals to their senses and emotions.

To me, art is life. Every aspect of life has an artistic element in it.

Life and art are inextricably intertwined. As such, throughout our lives, we are constantly doing. Art manifests itself in the way we do things, our mannerisms, our surrounding, and everything we deliberately arrange in a way that appeals to human senses and emotions. I have always been in pursuit of artistic knowledge. With all there is to learn, I hope I have sufficient time.

SHARLEEN WANJIRU

Kenyatta University Film and Theatre

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MENTAL HEALTH

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TORN PAGES FROM MY EULOGY

addy, it has been ten years. Ten solid years of concoctions and a string of questions about my fractions. Ten years of regret. Back and forth, I can’t loathe. Sorry, I can’t help to fathom. Ten years of waiting upon each dawn and when sunset came up, it is my tears that went down. And I kept on looking at your direction because you told me you would be back. So that was a trap. So the gap, only a small crack became a galley and ten years later it has grown to be a deep valley. Ten years, that is what I tally. One is for the conversation we last had one on one. Two, the howls of insults and that knife you lodged in her chest at impromptu. Three is because in prison you are not free. Let’s skip to six and who knew the malicious you had to take mum six feet deep. That you left me in grief. And I was used to sleep in the warmth of her cuddles so I had to adjust to light up the candle. How do I explain to you that, I hate you for being you? I hate you because you left and my heart is not at the left, it moved to the right and that’s why I write. I hate you because, you took everything behind bars apart from one thing, depression!

liquor that made our tiny home go amiss?

This is not an apology. Not a letter. Just a dilemma. And I lost faith so I stopped kneeling in reverence calling on for the Son of the Most High. I stopped having faith on men and had faith on those men who liked it my legs so high. Yet to date I still kneel in benevolence to shove their manhood deep in my throats. Deeper they shovel so I wonder did you have to lodge that knife so deep?

Her blood, my ink; they call me tales of the bleeding pen. The last lines before this pen exhausts its ink. I didn’t tell you that, this paper is smeared in blood and a head of bad thoughts. Cuts to my wrist.

Blood on the blades. The ARV pills under the bed and a few notes from the guitar because nowadays there are no notes in my wallet. My head is screaming at you but my lips are numb, in silence and defeat.

To soil shall my body return. And when they burry no don’t be left in fury. I will become the left overs of soil that moulded me; third class material. When I am gone burry my body not my words. This are the torn pages from my eulogy no one will ever read. That I hated the fact that my parents Toxicity, masculinity, miniscule femininity. were in this toxic relationship and my life is When the relationship became toxic, my not promised. feelings became nostalgic. So life became acidic. And my PH kept on reducing till Life is stinky, and you left with my spray. the chemistry in me erupted. I was that girl For the fresh leaves in the desert, tales of whose mother went to some hollow ground the bleeding pen. and her father went behind bars; courtesy of what he loved in the bar. Is it the not so NICE MWAURA WAMBUI fluttering dad I miss or is your stench of

Kenyatta University

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MENTAL HEALTH

HORMONES

H

ow are you feeling today? Happy?

A little under the weather? Ecstatic?

A little worried about something?

Well… apart from the obvious external reasons, say, you may have perhaps gotten something that you’ve been waiting for, for a long time, there’s a mixture of relief and joy…If things are going wrong, you may experience worry, sadness or anxiety. Well, it’s about time you get to understand why your body reacts or responds to things the way it does. There are chemicals in our bodies that affect our emotions thus how we feel in certain situations. These chemicals are called hormones and neurotransmitters, we all have them. Both Hormones and Neurotransmitters share in some functions, like our motivations, thoughts, ability to concentrate and learn.

They are sort of dissimilar too…differences being that neurotransmitters are produced by the nervous system and can execute both voluntary and non-voluntary functions for short periods of time while hormones are produced by the endocrine system and drive purely involuntary functions, they work for long periods of time. There are 4 main hormones and neurotransmitters involved in making you happy. They include: Dopamine, Serotonin, endorphins and oxytocin.

HERE ARE TIPS TO BETTER IMPROVE AND BALANCE THE HORMONES RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR MOOD: • Do some exercise; stretch those muscles for a good mood folks!

• Meditation would be a great way to enhance your mood too and help you relax.

• Remembering happy memories boosts your mood and makes you feel better. So walk down memory lane and laugh at those old photos you got there!

• Do you ever feel good after achieving a task that you set to achieve? Well, Setting and achieving goals improves the dopamine levels as this (dopamine) is the brain’s reward system. Therefore it’s time to tick something off your bucket-list and improve your mood today!

• Getting out of your normal routine and exploring new experiences increases your dopamine levels and boosts your mood.

• Eating foods rich in Omega 3 is a great way of enhancing one’s mood. Beans, eggs, meat with low-fat and yoghurt also improve the levels of dopamine.

• Spending time with nature, say walking around the park or just connecting with the flora and fauna whenever and wherever you can is a great way of enhancing your mood. Feel the green!

• Laughing with and connecting with people you are close to, like family and friends boosts your oxytocin levels and makes you happier, so don’t you be such a loner.

• Music!!! Listening to your favorite jam can take you from gloom to bloom!

• Having enough sleep enhances your mood, as your body would have had enough rest and released stress during the night making you active during the day, thus making you feel great! Tell that night owl to better be an early bird!

• Last but not least, Therapy such as psychotherapy is a great way to help you get your grove back. Your serotonin levels are improved through Psychotherapy. So if you’re feeling peaky, maybe it’s about time you see a therapist.

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We’ll start with Dopamine (popularly known as the ‘feel good’ hormone) and serotonin.

Joy, ecstasy and excitement are emotions fueled by dopamine and serotonin. These hormones affect mood, memory, sleep and libido. So whenever you feel like you are not sleepy although it’s past your bed time, chances are, your dopamine and Serotonin levels are low. Apart from insomnia, lack of or too much of dopamine and serotonin can cause addictions of various nature like drug and porn addiction. Mood disorders, memory and attention disorders like Attention Deficit and Hypersensitive Disorders (ADHD) are as a result of an imbalance of these hormones in the body.

The second hormone we’ll be looking at is Oxytocin. People call it the ‘Love Hormone’ as it is produced when we’re in close contact with people we love and care about.

That feeling you get when you hug or kiss a loved one, say your spouse, parent, friend or sibling is as a result of the body releasing Oxytocin. People who don’t form strong bonds with others or are antisocial tend to have low levels of Oxytocin.

It is important that we maintain high levels of oxytocin as this enhances our mood.

I mean, don’t we all just feel good when we are around people we love? Lastly, the Endorphins, famously known as the ‘natural pain relievers.’ This is the hormone produced when we feel pain or are exposed to potential pain, stress or any form of discomfort. This hormone is meant to ensure you’re in the most comfortable of feels.

Everyday we experience different emotions. Sometimes we may experience more than one emotion simultaneously. As we have seen, there are intrinsic drives to these emotions and to live better and happier lives, we need to master our emotions. This is what living a quality life is all about. I bet you’ve got a cheat sheet into hacking a happier life, aye?

PURITY MORAA

Kenyatta University Psychology

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POEMS

COVID-19 DARKNESS One, two Three, four five Numbers on screen Popping up as popcorns In a blink they increase Locked myself not at ease Afraid if there comes a knock On my weak door By the numbers I listen I pay attention To the statesman To the churchman I hear rumors, and facts I hear the mark of the beast Statesman says he knows best Their tongues diverge I’m confused “Wake up!”

My neighbor Asks me to hate the bed Mr. 2022 is visiting our area We miss if early we don’t rise The dire charity of flour and rice Manifesto printed on the package Taking advantage Of pandemic Vomit!

It has dawned 14 year old pupil Child expecting a child Nothing to really smile about We can’t manage to stomach The scorching effects of the pandemic Let’s all care for the future Uterus

RICHARD OYAMO

Kenyatta University Literature

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POEMS

DAUGHTER OF FATE Did I forget to mention that she has the best and cutest smile?

The most beautiful eyes that made many fall for her But who has not heard that the most beautiful eyes have cried the most tears...

And that the cutest smile hides bundles of pain deep inside.

Who would suspect that she wore the smile only during the day?

And when darkness fell, she would bury her head under the pillow And cry herself to sleep, tearful sleepless nights Who would tell the dangerous thoughts that raced in her mind?

She was told to be strong, but who cared to know that which made her weak Indeed she was strong, an iron lady She hid her pain and went ahead to encourage others to be strong Who would deny that she lived a stress free life?

Deep in her were hidden the most dangerous thoughts The suicidal thoughts She thought she had been through a lot and it was time to bring it to an end Her face shone as she smiled at the idea But was it really the best?

Daughter of Fate is the name that suited her The men in her life were few but they were

monsters She failed to understand how he could do that to her Did she have to tell anyone what happened back in the years?

But she would have been stigmatized and seen as a ‘careless’ girl She opted to hide it in her heart Little did she know that her heart would be poisoned It would make her entire life a nightmare.

She still sees him in her dreams, feels the tight grip on her wrists Fighting, yelling, crying No matter how loud she screamed nobody came to help That alone made her think that her entire existence was a mistake She felt ashamed as she limped into the bathroom All the threats replaying in her mind They still call her an introvert Little did they know what turned her into one Was it her fault? Did she deserve that?

Who will convince her that he is not after ruining her life anymore?

Who will whisper to him her fears?

Will he misjudge her if he gets to know the truth? ©Ms. Njenga

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POEMS

MAN IN

BLUE There’s something about a man in a suit That which you may not quite explain immediately I ask you For me, you will not need to ask You will see it in my facials Everything laid down on my face I wanted to say ‘like an open book’ But then I remembered it’s not always like that Even with open book exams It’s not always as easy as ABC In fact, I’m told such are the worst So I made a mental note to myself a while ago That if I was to choose I would never go for that option I’d rather sit with that sadist lecturer Face to face in an exam room Back to men in suits A man in a suit will always almost carry the day It doesn’t matter if he is penniless The crowd won’t care he had porridge in the morning Sugarless porridge and last night’s Ugali They will not know He will get into a room and respect will surface And when he adds a good watch to it?

Wow, he will own that room even if the watch doesn’t work Own the table, chair, even own your eyes True or true?

Blue suits are always a statement for me I can spare a minute or two for a man in blue But whatever the color A man in a suit will look like he has it all figured out Like he has the whole world at his feet He may have problems back at home Didn’t eat last night, rent overdue Issues with the missus You won’t know The blue suit will blind you

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POEMS It’s not like a woman in heels So vulnerable, so fragile That you will want to reach out to her at first sight My man in blue will not show his vulnerabilities He will swallow all his problems And clothe his troubles in blue Blue is a good color Notice how the baby shower planners always pick blue if it’s a boy?

That color looks good on our men Do you know what looks good on the outside?

A man in blue And do you know what looks bad in the inside?

A man with hidden sorrows A man that bottles up all his feelings A man who looks great on the outside But could crash any minute, any second You see him looking fine in that meeting Back at home, he sinks himself in a pool of stress My man in blue is in a mental dilemma My man in blue feels like he can handle everything He doesn’t need outside help He doesn’t even know his neighbors What is Nyumba Kumi to him?

If he discovered he doesn’t have a matchbox at midnight He would have to make salad What is it with my man?

Tell his friends about everything?

Brainstorm with his father figure on possible solutions?

No, he thinks this will make him look weak Like he is less of a man He is not ready to sacrifice his ego But is comfortable giving away his mental sanity Man in blue, it will end badly.

LAURA NYIHA

Kenyatta University Medicine and Surgery

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POEMS

THE ROLLING COIN

Doesn’t get rusty, it’s just rolling.

Adults can’t put a smile, imagining it is an omen.

Kids have not been left out, They are all on the run.

Are their stomachs becoming dens of lions?

Toothless and hopeless everyone is.

It’s rolling and rolling.

Red line is thicker and thicker.

It’s hotter, no one cares to trespass.

Is the coin natural or artificial?

Who knows? Stop asking, huh!

I’m confused, are you?

Parrots turning on humans, It’s indeed a rolling coin.

JAMES KAI

Technical University of Kenya Geospatial Engineering

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BOOK REVIEW:

I’M FINE...AND OTHER LIES

BY WHITNEY CUMMINGS

I

am fine...and other lies by Whitney Cummings is a journey through the life of Whitney Cummings. When she was a teenager, she so desired a life of adulthood and now that she is an adult, she finds it so “cool” as she expected. Cummings is a normal woman living the normal life of glorious moments and emotional breakdowns, just like you and I. She has to tell jokes to her family members to make them laugh, because it was their way of saying “we’re fine”. The more tensed things got, the harder they laughed.

This book is a worthwhile read. I particularly resonated with its title. Most people are usually quick to reply “I am fine” whenever they are asked how they are. However, deep down, they are dying of depression, overthinking, indigestion, malnutrition and many other things. Cummings recommends therapy whenever you feel overwhelmed with anything. She posits that it’s okay not to be okay. It’s okay to cry in a rest room in the middle of a shopping spree. According to the Guardian Newspaper, Cummings is the first female Middle-Eastern stand-up comedian yet that does not bestow to her the ‘I am okay-super power.’

If you’re into happy endings, most probably this book is not going to be your cup of tea. You have to put yourself in Cummings’ shoes, take this ride with her and use her eyes as your binoculars. Apart from the many insights I gained from this book, I also picked two timeless quotes: “You’ve got to feel it to heal it” and “If it’s not hysterical it’s not historical.”

VALENTINE GACHERI

Maseno University Journalism

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SHORT STORIES

MAMA BOI, THIS IS NOT LOVE

Y

ou have a lovely child. He smiles all the time, runs all around and doesn’t quite know how to keep his mouth shut. He irritates me most of the time. He is noisy and clingy. He never takes no for an answer and is always looking for trouble. But he is lovely. In him I see myself, many years ago. Yesterday you beat him for an hour and my heart aches. It was night, just before supper time and tormenting wisps of frying meat snuck out of your kitchen window tempting the whole floor. Then very loudly the very distinct sound of a sufuria hitting the floor. “Umefanya nini!!!” This was you, at the top of your voice. The hairs on my body stood much as they would when my mother would shout at me. I knew there was going to be trouble and when I heard him scream, my own body quivered. First was a resounding slap and a thud as he hit the floor. He cried out then for you to please stop. You did not. I know sadly what the sound of a rubber slipper striking against flesh sounds like. Again and again you hit him. Again and again he cried out.

He cried for a while until he stopped. But that didn’t stop you. You still struck out at this child. Mama Boi, this is not love.

I remember the Sunday you stood up to give a short sermon. You quickly turned to Proverbs 13:24 best summarized as spare the rod spoil the child. And for an hour you stood and praised the verse. You said those who hate their children do not discipline them. You said it was the caned children I KNOW SADLY WHAT THE who turned out best. You spoke of how it calmed the tempers SOUND OF A RUBBER SLIPPER and protestations of children. You spoke proudly of how you STRIKING AGAINST FLESH caned Boi when he broke a plate and how he has never done SOUNDS LIKE. AGAIN AND that again. You called for all mothers to abide by this Holy AGAIN YOU HIT HIM. AGAIN Scripture and they rang back amen. When you finished your AND AGAIN HE CRIED OUT. sermon there was clapping. There you were receiving a few HE CRIED FOR A WHILE standing ovations proud and smiling. I stayed in my chair and UNTIL HE STOPPED. BUT THAT when the opportunity arose I walked out sad and yet furious.

DIDN’T STOP YOU. YOU STILL STRUCK OUT AT THIS CHILD. You might say it is not my place to tell you how to raise your MAMA BOI, THIS IS NOT own child. You once barked this at Mama Jony when she LOVE. interrupted one of your ‘disciplinary sessions’. That might be true but it does not stop me from hearing the cries when he KENYATTA UNIVERSITY EQUITY LEADERS CLUB

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SHORT STORIES weeps. It does not stop me from seeing the limp when he runs around. It does not stop me from seeing the marks on his skin. Some days he looks less like a child and more like a rag doll tattered and thrown about. It is not my place to tell you how to raise your own child but Mama Boi I simply cannot ignore the damage you are doing to this child. Because that is what he is, a child.

One time I broke a whole set of glasses when I was a child, the kind you women preserve for honored visitors. I cleaned up the shards carefully and threw them all away hoping my mother would not notice. A few days passed and I sighed in relief. I thought I was free. Then one day coming from school, I found my mother sitting there with the church pastor. As soon as I stepped into the house I knew I was in trouble. A table had been set and sipping from one of the usual cups was the pastor. My mother turned to me and in her eyes I already counted a thousand strokes. Once the pastor had bid his farewell. The dining table was set aside and what happened after still stings to this day. I could not sit properly for a week after. It hurt to do anything, even at times to breathe. I never looked at my mother straight in the eye after that day. I was inconsolable. I still am. I do not visit her on the holidays and return her calls on rare occasions. I simply cannot bear to look her in the eye let alone be in the same house as her. I do not go back to that house because being there is painful, my body seems to ache even when I think about that place so I stay away.

I fear your love for Boi for it only seems to wound him. Do you not see how he flinches when you call him? Or do you not hear when he is mocked by his friends – “Huyu mamake humpiga daily?” Do you not see just how much smaller he is than his peers because some days you send him to bed without supper? It makes him an easy target to bully. Frail, beaten and used to it. Can you not see what your ‘love’ has done to him? Your love for Boi is not love – it is pain, fear and loathing. And it is this thing I fear Boi will carry with him as he grows.

SHELDON KAHI

Kenyatta University Counselling Psychology

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MY CON STORY PATRICIAH NJERI

Kenyatta University Economics

S

o this person invited one of my friends kufanya job ya promo ya safaricom and akamwambia atafute a few of her friends coz he needed watu watano ,pay ilikua @2500...so that morning the guy came na akatupick(he was so formal BTW na akatuambia yeye Ni one of the managers safaricom)... promotion tulikua tufanye kiambu town .. so along the way alikua anacheza kiyeye (who will be the cheerleader of the team???..am happy all of you ,you in official outfits as I had said before...he made it look so real).

So tukafika membly akanunua gazeti,tukapewa Kila mtu yake...I dunno Nini ilikua kwa hizo gazeti coz honestly....So the guy drove for like 3 hrs Hadi tukasahau tulikua tunaenda job (now it was all about adventure..i.e friendxxx” see that mountain” Tukafika mahali gari ikakwama kwa bump...so the guy akasema tutoke tuskume . Up So everyone alikua ametoka na belongings (bags,simu) zake but the guy made sure Kila mtu amezirudisha kwa gari ie Kama ni bag “utasukuma gari kama umebeba *mzigo* si urudishe tu kwa gari “ and that’s how Kila mtu alirudisha bag kwa gari.

One of my friends alikua amebaki na simu kwa mkono,the guy is like *wee kuja ukalie drivers sit nikuonyeshe kitu utakua ukifanya sisi tukisukuma* so the friendxxx akaeka simu kwa mfuko ya nyuma ya trousers. The the guys is like *Sis si utavunja simu juu umeikalia,eka tu kando alafu ukanyange accelerator* So the guy made sure ameacha simu hapo.kidogo kidogo akasema tuskuma Sasa maybe itaacha kukwama. Wee...gari ilioverspeed tukaachwa hapo...Only later to learn this friend of ours walikua wamemeet na the guy the day before he invited us . LESSON: When the deal is too good think twice.

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WE ARE FUNNY PEOPLE

E

ver since sliced bread, few good things precisely it grounds it. As Kenyans we love have happened to humanity. Between our soap operas. Well not ours, we import wars, poverty, hunger, crime and all foreign soap operas with impunity but we sorts of social ills there have only been love them like they were ours. In the age a handful of moments of isolated genius. of Netflix it’s easy to forget the loyalty with Electricity, ice cream and Bollywood. which we would watch soap operas now There is something about Bollywood films that all you need is a half decent internet that makes them inherently enjoyable. You connection and a smartphone to watch cannot help but smile when they break into whatever you want wherever you want. a ten minute dance routine, or the extremely Just think ‘Storm Over Paradise’ or if you overboard action set pieces. Whether it is want to be a hopeless romantic about it a man hanging in the air for far longer than ‘TORMENTA EN EL PARAISO’. On Citizen necessary or the comical moments when TV every day for what seemed to be forever it would air episode the scene slows down, after episode from dramatic music plays I CAN ONLY REMEMBER WITH 8:00 p.m. till the news in the background as IMMEASURABLE FONDNESS THE time. There have been each character acts ANTICIPATION OF WAITING so many of its kind. But surprised.

Bollywood FOR THE SHOW. THE WAY THE times have changed. is made to be enjoyed.

7 O’CLOCK NEWS SEEMED TO But there is one thing FLY BY IN A HURRY. THE THEME With the introduction funnier than Bollywood.

SONG AND FINALLY JOY OF of set top boxes, the Bollywood in Kikuyu.

WATCHING A MAN LEAD THE availability of content MOST ENJOYABLE DOUBLE LIFE has multiplied beyond By now you’ve surely ANYONE COULD. WE ARE A the imagination. The sat down for even a few FUNNY PEOPLE. ubiquity of streaming minutes and watched a services, Showmax, Bollywood film with a Kikuyu sub or one in Meru or Kamba. There Netflix etc. has redefined the landscape is something about watching those Indian of entertainment. There is something for actors burst out in fluent Kikuyu that makes everyone now. No longer does everyone it simply enjoyable. You don’t have to have to sit and watch Alejandro and Maria understand what they are saying. Bollywood whisper sweet nothings to each other. You acting is very transparent, you can easily can plug in your earphones and binge on catch the drift from the background music Money Heist or whatever your meme lord and the actor’s faces. So to watch one of proclaims. But if you stop for one moment this films in one of our local languages as and just look around you find yourself you eat your supper at a kibanda is oddly missing something. With the world having satisfying. It elevates the comedy of your ground to a halt over the past few months usual flick to a different level. Or more there has been time to binge ourselves to

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SHORT STORIES nostalgia. I remember the first time I went to IMAX. The chill air of the room, the annoyingly comfortable seats, the air of vain sophistication and the caramel popcorn. The mutual understanding to chew politely and keep the babies quiet. The shared laughs when the film decided to be funny would look almost choreographed to an observer.

I went home satisfied. But it wasn’t the kind of experience that threatened to burst inside you if you didn’t go home and tell all your friends. That only comes when you watch a movie with DJ AFRO commentary. The room would be packed end to end. Only just bearably stuffy and you would have to settle for thin benches. There were no pre-agreed rules of etiquette and courtesy.

We did not go there to be quiet. We were there to laugh. The comedy of DJ AFRO’s commentary speaks for itself. It is without equal or imitation. There are few comedic acts that have brought a nation to tears much like those films do.

In a way that is the best of Riverwood – comedy. We are always looking for a good laugh, especially if it’s cheap, easy to digest and a sure bet any time. Think ‘Vioja Mahakamani,’ a courtroom so chaotic and so vibrant it made the idea of going to court appetizing. Or ‘Tahidi High’ which at its height was without equal, there has never been a more loveable cast of high school students and staff. And of course, ‘Papa Shirandula’. The passing of Charles Bukeko, the leading man and a singular force of comedy remains difficult to digest.

I can only remember with immeasurable fondness the anticipation of waiting for the show. The way the 7 O’clock news seemed to fly by in a hurry. The theme song and finally joy of watching a man lead the most enjoyable double life anyone could. We are a funny people. Which is not to say we don’t do drama. I think back to ‘Mali: United by Blood, Divided by Greed’ which

aired on NTV or its sibling on KTN ‘Lies that Bind’. Two shows that I remember thinking were oddly ahead of their time.

‘Changing Times’ which I have watched only in brief glimpses has always looked like a gem. Written by Jennifer Gatero it is perhaps her more recent production ‘This is life’ that brings her to the forefront of any conversation about the finest Kenyan filmmakers working right now. This is with stiff competition from Wanuri Kahiu, the mind behind ‘Rafiki,’ a film so good it just had to be illegal. Her ridiculously good filmography is matched rightly by unending critical acclaim and accolades. So in a way we are not without drama as well.

The last couple of years have seen the growth of amateur production of films and televised series. The beauty of it lies in their use of vernacular language. The rising prominence of vernacular television stations ensures that this language will not be so easily forgotten. These productions while still not of the highest quality follow and develop on the template set forth by their ancestors. There is a kind of comfort in knowing there will always be something funny to watch. And I am looking forward to a revised version of the Avengers. Because imagine Ironman battered in battle against the titan Thanos has swiped the Infinity Stones from his unwitting enemy who only now realizes he has been outdone.

Ironman looks his opponent in the eye and raises his hand to show the Infinity Stones on a makeshift gauntlet. And he says, “ Ndi mundu wa chuma.”

SHELDON KAHI

Kenyatta University Counselling Psychology

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