Skip to main content

Posts

Showing posts from June, 2016

Mentor-ship and Africa

(Marcbombenon Website) In stories told, before Africa was divided into colonies, the elders trained and taught the young ones about life. They were taught how to speak, how to act and how they were meant to live. The elders mentored the young ones and then left them on their own to mentor others. The cycle of  mentor-ship  continued on for generations and the culture, history and traditions of most African communities were kept. Unfortunately when the colonial masters came, Africans were forced to reject the traditional ways and adopted the ‘civilized manner’ of living. I have no arguments or bitterness towards that, and I do not think we should go back to “The African way of life”, rather embrace it and encompass it in our daily living.  Mentor-ship , to me, is what is making Africa drag its feet in the race towards incorporation into the global space. Today Africans are greedy and selfish. We have been given the mark of being  among  the most corrupt. The problem is that

Long Way from home

(Photo Source: Common dreams website) Jadim is a refugee. That is what the international organizations call her. The country hosting her is expected to feed her, protect her and make sure she is comfortable until her home country has some amount of peace. She gets ‘aid’ in terms of food, clothes, a blanket and a shelter. She has a right to get them. Moreover she is now pregnant, so she is feeding for two people. She sees people coming in and out, she heard they are called donors. Every time she sees the stream of vehicles she has to ensure her shelter is clean and she puts on a smile. They are the ones responsible for her stay there and they need to feel they are doing something. It also means extra rations that day, so of course she will put on her best smile. Jadim has lived in the camp for 2 years now.  Despite  all the niceties mentioned above, she constantly feels she was better at home, but since she lost her husband and two children to the war, she decided to run. She

The Last Bet

(Photo Source: Kaushalmahajan Website) “What did you do with the money?” “I bet it all.” “Are you trying to tell me that we have no money because of your addictive habits?” “Yes.” Betting has become a serious burden. The fact is most people who bet are usually trying to raise their luck and their standards of living. They go through extreme measures to ensure they win the jackpot. I have heard of stories about people who have borrowed bank loans and placed valuable things such as land, their house or school fees of the children as security. Richard’s story is one of them. It is important to note that betting should be a pass time activity, not a livelihood. Richard was a motorcycle rider and he used it as a taxi, commonly known in Kenya as Bodaboda. He used to work for at least 14 hours a day, 6 am to 8 pm. He had a family, a loving wife Sara and two toddlers who were a handful.  Richard was the sole bread winner, as Sara was a stay at home wife. However she