so lil ms sunshine turns 10 today!!
imagine that!!
one day she was one
and now 10
how time flies
her name, means joy
am told it also means abundance
in amharic no less
some people have called her
rahab!
others
furaha....
its Raha, short & simple
and her name is my wish for her
everlasting joy in her life
may God always hold you
my raha
in the palm of his hand!!
Tuesday, 4 December 2018
Thursday, 15 November 2018
Liberated
Liberated
there is something liberating
about finally making a decision
you know the thoughts
that have taken trips
round your head
for ages
and finally you have called
that important
'board' meeting with yourself?
you know
the one that has
me, myself and I present?
and you make THE DECISION
totally liberating
hashtag/ current situation
there is something liberating
about finally making a decision
you know the thoughts
that have taken trips
round your head
for ages
and finally you have called
that important
'board' meeting with yourself?
you know
the one that has
me, myself and I present?
and you make THE DECISION
totally liberating
hashtag/ current situation
Sunday, 30 September 2018
Quarter 4, lets do this
so september is over
we have 3 more months to end of year
what a year this has been
if stress had a year, then 2018 is the year for me
as i turn over a new year in my life
i pray that q4 brings with it
peace
traquility
rest
travel
and of course
new beginnings
...and then i received this encouragement as i was writing this note
Here is your word for today:
Verse: Philippians 4:13
'For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.'
- His presence in our lives changes the dynamic of everything around us.
- It takes us from being overcome to becoming overcomers.
- It takes us from struggling and striving to flourishing and thriving.
- Let His strength invade your life, and you will do what seemed impossible.
PRAYER: Lord, I ask that You will give me Your strength right now. I don't want to operate under my own power, but I want to operate in Your strength and in Your enabling power. Amen.
Have a blessed final quarter of 2018!!
we have 3 more months to end of year
what a year this has been
if stress had a year, then 2018 is the year for me
as i turn over a new year in my life
i pray that q4 brings with it
peace
traquility
rest
travel
and of course
new beginnings
...and then i received this encouragement as i was writing this note
Here is your word for today:
Verse: Philippians 4:13
'For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.'
- His presence in our lives changes the dynamic of everything around us.
- It takes us from being overcome to becoming overcomers.
- It takes us from struggling and striving to flourishing and thriving.
- Let His strength invade your life, and you will do what seemed impossible.
PRAYER: Lord, I ask that You will give me Your strength right now. I don't want to operate under my own power, but I want to operate in Your strength and in Your enabling power. Amen.
Have a blessed final quarter of 2018!!
Tuesday, 4 September 2018
Day 1....20 years ago!
September 4th 1998
I reported to my first real job!!
anxious, excited, worried, anxious again
I walked into the offices on Ngong road, eager to start this brand new role....me, new and the first person to officially take up this task in this upcoming NGO. I had been told to report at 9am and there I was, I think earlier than 9am. I found this lady at the reception and she welcomed me and told me to wait for someone to come and talk to me. Another lady came, greeted me well, but wondered who had called and asked me to come that day! I told her the name of the person who had contacted me (mercifully I remembered the name) and she went back into the other room. My mind was racing....for all the celebration we had already done for this new job...how come there seems to be confusion as to whether I was to be here or not!! Anyways, said confusion ended and I started off!..with an audit no less!
I stayed in said organisation for a cool 6 years!! I would never have thought that I would be in this organisation for that long. I learnt so many new things and in hindsight, its best if your first job is in a small organisation since you do/learn e v e r y t h i n g!! you can pick calls, do proposals, do budgets, heck even do radio talk shows when the station calls for that slot you have pushing for and none of the program staff are around and the Chair tells you...well by now you know the issues, go and talk about them!!!! That was COVAW for you - Coalition on Violence Against Women!
However, the downside of being at the frontline, or so I call it, is that you see all the bruises first hand. It gets to you at some point....thats all we talked about...everyday....whole day....the stories even at lunch revolved around violence against women..and children....sad, agonising, shocking, amusing tales of what women/children have gone through.....you can become cynic number ONE even with the group counselling sessions we had. I had to leave.....urgently......I looked for an exit earnestly and finally was got my next job.
But COVAW has a special part in my heart!
I made lifelong friends who I cherish to this day. I worked with interns who I relate to to this very day!! Some got bored cutting out newspapers and filing them in the scrap book.....got bored combing through the newspapers daily for advocacy issues that we must respond to, and faxing endless press statements to all newsrooms..........while others did this with so much enthusiasm! no wonder they are successful now....A T T I T U D E is everything I tell you!!
I worked with at that time young women with fire in their bellies....full of energy and zeal...thinking of new ways of doing things, of getting the message across! we celebrated when the messages got printed in papers! its easier now...all you have to do is tag all the relevant media! We did campaigns all year round....its all about having the conversation going..once we did a silent march in Nairobi - i dont where someone got the idea...but the essence was that we shall not be silenced like the silent women walking along the streets!!......we printed posters tshirts leaflets you name it!! once we did the tshirts late and when they go to Taita Taveta, they had the wrong message!!!! .......the climax of the campaigns was end of the year....the 16 days of activism campaign! that was something!!
In 1998...the year I joined COVAW we also marked 50yrs since the Universal Declaration of Human Rights - that was the first time I was hearing of the UDHR...and of course we marked it in a big way!!
such a roller coster of emotions working in the frontline! its intense...its sad....and there are numerous happy moments worth celebrating....
Cheers to all in the frontline!!
I reported to my first real job!!
anxious, excited, worried, anxious again
I walked into the offices on Ngong road, eager to start this brand new role....me, new and the first person to officially take up this task in this upcoming NGO. I had been told to report at 9am and there I was, I think earlier than 9am. I found this lady at the reception and she welcomed me and told me to wait for someone to come and talk to me. Another lady came, greeted me well, but wondered who had called and asked me to come that day! I told her the name of the person who had contacted me (mercifully I remembered the name) and she went back into the other room. My mind was racing....for all the celebration we had already done for this new job...how come there seems to be confusion as to whether I was to be here or not!! Anyways, said confusion ended and I started off!..with an audit no less!
I stayed in said organisation for a cool 6 years!! I would never have thought that I would be in this organisation for that long. I learnt so many new things and in hindsight, its best if your first job is in a small organisation since you do/learn e v e r y t h i n g!! you can pick calls, do proposals, do budgets, heck even do radio talk shows when the station calls for that slot you have pushing for and none of the program staff are around and the Chair tells you...well by now you know the issues, go and talk about them!!!! That was COVAW for you - Coalition on Violence Against Women!
However, the downside of being at the frontline, or so I call it, is that you see all the bruises first hand. It gets to you at some point....thats all we talked about...everyday....whole day....the stories even at lunch revolved around violence against women..and children....sad, agonising, shocking, amusing tales of what women/children have gone through.....you can become cynic number ONE even with the group counselling sessions we had. I had to leave.....urgently......I looked for an exit earnestly and finally was got my next job.
But COVAW has a special part in my heart!
I made lifelong friends who I cherish to this day. I worked with interns who I relate to to this very day!! Some got bored cutting out newspapers and filing them in the scrap book.....got bored combing through the newspapers daily for advocacy issues that we must respond to, and faxing endless press statements to all newsrooms..........while others did this with so much enthusiasm! no wonder they are successful now....A T T I T U D E is everything I tell you!!
I worked with at that time young women with fire in their bellies....full of energy and zeal...thinking of new ways of doing things, of getting the message across! we celebrated when the messages got printed in papers! its easier now...all you have to do is tag all the relevant media! We did campaigns all year round....its all about having the conversation going..once we did a silent march in Nairobi - i dont where someone got the idea...but the essence was that we shall not be silenced like the silent women walking along the streets!!......we printed posters tshirts leaflets you name it!! once we did the tshirts late and when they go to Taita Taveta, they had the wrong message!!!! .......the climax of the campaigns was end of the year....the 16 days of activism campaign! that was something!!
In 1998...the year I joined COVAW we also marked 50yrs since the Universal Declaration of Human Rights - that was the first time I was hearing of the UDHR...and of course we marked it in a big way!!
such a roller coster of emotions working in the frontline! its intense...its sad....and there are numerous happy moments worth celebrating....
Cheers to all in the frontline!!
Friday, 20 July 2018
Encounters, of a magical kind
So Obama was in town
briefly
and he went straight to rural Siaya to launch a centre that his sister Auma built
(photo credit Sauti Kuu facebook page)
for me, what was more amazing was the little children who got to meet him first hand, a man whose roots can undoubtedly be traced to the same rural village they call home and here he was, right in front of them, a testament that indeed anything is possible
i can only imagine their amazement
their curiosity
am sure, for many, they will never forget that day
and when the reporter interviewed some of them later, in their school compound
Senator Barack Obama Primary School, no less!
they narrated with childish innocence and wonder, at how he gave them tips on playing basketball etc
loved it!
there are many people, whom am sure, can narrate the details of such encounters in their lives, whether its a school mentorship function, etc....when a statement by one individual made a profound impact in their lives, lessons which they carry to this day!
may this be such a moment for these children
may they all soar higher than the skies
encounters
of a magical kind
are ....
magical!
briefly
and he went straight to rural Siaya to launch a centre that his sister Auma built
for me, what was more amazing was the little children who got to meet him first hand, a man whose roots can undoubtedly be traced to the same rural village they call home and here he was, right in front of them, a testament that indeed anything is possible
i can only imagine their amazement
their curiosity
am sure, for many, they will never forget that day
and when the reporter interviewed some of them later, in their school compound
Senator Barack Obama Primary School, no less!
they narrated with childish innocence and wonder, at how he gave them tips on playing basketball etc
loved it!
there are many people, whom am sure, can narrate the details of such encounters in their lives, whether its a school mentorship function, etc....when a statement by one individual made a profound impact in their lives, lessons which they carry to this day!
may this be such a moment for these children
may they all soar higher than the skies
encounters
of a magical kind
are ....
magical!
Sunday, 24 June 2018
Year of blessing
Saturday
Its June 23
I have like 3 conflicting events i need to attend to - how to split my self! decisions decisions!
and they are in different parts of this town
so decided early morning, will attend the Holy Communion mass for my lovely niece...and then head out to riruta area for baby shower and the third one, I give my apologies
the morning mass was lovely!! the children looked simply angelic! i loved it through and through! the sermon was on point and the prayer that that was said that 'may they always love Jesus in the Eucharist with the same innocence and eagerness of today..Lord here us!'....this touched my heart! Sad that we could not stay for lunch...next headed home to pick some things...then seat through the crazy Saturday Mombasa road jam.....and finally to naivasha road, again more jam...aii....by the time i reached second venue it was 4.30pm and i was like better late than never!
see this year has been grand in my view
i have attended more happy events than sad ones....and I thank God.....
so we are halfway through 2018 and heres to the rest of 2018
“Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old.
Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?
I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.” Is. 43:18-19
Its June 23
I have like 3 conflicting events i need to attend to - how to split my self! decisions decisions!
and they are in different parts of this town
so decided early morning, will attend the Holy Communion mass for my lovely niece...and then head out to riruta area for baby shower and the third one, I give my apologies
the morning mass was lovely!! the children looked simply angelic! i loved it through and through! the sermon was on point and the prayer that that was said that 'may they always love Jesus in the Eucharist with the same innocence and eagerness of today..Lord here us!'....this touched my heart! Sad that we could not stay for lunch...next headed home to pick some things...then seat through the crazy Saturday Mombasa road jam.....and finally to naivasha road, again more jam...aii....by the time i reached second venue it was 4.30pm and i was like better late than never!
see this year has been grand in my view
i have attended more happy events than sad ones....and I thank God.....
so we are halfway through 2018 and heres to the rest of 2018
“Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old.
Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?
I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.” Is. 43:18-19
Monday, 18 June 2018
Fathers Day
Fathers day was great fun!!
especially in organising for it
youngest is 5 and they had a school trip to Stedmak gardens
all he kept saying was a I SAW A LLAMA!! and of course the rest of us were like, llama in Kenya???? are u sure it wasnt a small camel??? Noooo...I SAW LLAMA!! and there is also a floating restaurant he said!
so when we were deciding where the surprise lunch would be, it was unanimous, Stedmak it was
The lunch was great
the food delicious (though got cold quickly because of the open air)
the air was crispy, mercifully we had warm jackets
they have a heated pool, but still i was feeling too cold to even let the kids in
the guy has a couple of animals for viewing, quite a site
and of course
we saw the LLAMAS!!!!!
Happy Fathers day!!!
(and yes, the young one kept it all a secret until d day! proud of him)
especially in organising for it
youngest is 5 and they had a school trip to Stedmak gardens
all he kept saying was a I SAW A LLAMA!! and of course the rest of us were like, llama in Kenya???? are u sure it wasnt a small camel??? Noooo...I SAW LLAMA!! and there is also a floating restaurant he said!
so when we were deciding where the surprise lunch would be, it was unanimous, Stedmak it was
The lunch was great
the food delicious (though got cold quickly because of the open air)
the air was crispy, mercifully we had warm jackets
they have a heated pool, but still i was feeling too cold to even let the kids in
the guy has a couple of animals for viewing, quite a site
and of course
we saw the LLAMAS!!!!!
Happy Fathers day!!!
(and yes, the young one kept it all a secret until d day! proud of him)
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