Emancipation

Freedom?
They question
Freedom
They say with disgust
Freedom!
I shout and chant it
Freedom!
That Sarafina fought for

Freedom!

My dream... As Martin Luther King Jr also had his dream

Freedom!
To attain self actualization
For I have liberation
That is not a limitation
To use my full potential

Am I not your equal?
Am I not supposed to breathe in oxygen and breath out carbon dioxide?
Is it not blood that is supposed to flow through my veins?
I may differ from some of you because of gender
Because of ideology
Because I lack a limb or two
Because I can't speak out my words as fast as you do
But I still ask...
Am I not your equal?
Do I not deserve to be treated like a human or a fellow animal?
Because under biology we are animal mammals.
I deserve respect the same way you do
I deserve to have a voice the same way you do
I deserve equal shares of humanity
In this company we call life.

Chains
Is what you have put me in
Chains
Both physical and mental
Chains
Of bondage
Chains
Of regret
Chains
Of "You can't do it"
Chains
Of "You won't do it"
"You won't make it"
"You're not worth it"
Chains! Chains! Chains!
I WILL BREAK THEM!!!

Liberate me
Set me free

Liberate me
I am your equal

Liberate me
Break these chains

Liberation
Is what I seek

Liberation
Is what I crave

Liberation
I shall fight
To attain it

Dear Son

Dear son...

I loved you so much...

That killing you was the only way to rid you of your pain.

I couldn't take it no more

To see you toss and turn each day

In your little bed

Crying in pain

Because of a disease that strove to gain

Its gain being to take your life away

I couldn't take it no more

To hear you cry out my name

For me to make the pain go away

I am your mother but ain't a doctor

I wish there would have been another way

To ease your pain

But I was left with no options my son

For the doctors couldn't help you

And I didn't have the money to support you

To buy you painkillers

Or take you to India for treatment

Forgive me son

For taking you to your grave

But it was the only way out

The single option I had left

To make the pain go away.

Noises from the neighbors 

To make you hush

So they could sleep at night

Annoyed me so much

Didn't they see that you were in pain?

Didn't they see how much I struggled for you to be well?

To cry in joy and not in pain?

They pushed me my son

I feared that they would take you away from me

And would never get to see you again

I thus had to send you to heaven first my son

But don't worry

I will be joining you soon

For the poison I put in your food this morning

Is the poison I have put in my food this evening

See you soon my son

In a land where we shall feel pain no more

Wangu wa Makeri

     When it comes down to history, fame, success, failure and events; it all boils down to individuals who shaped them and the magnitude of their impact in the society or better yet the peculiar attributes exuded by such people or events. Such people include Adolf Hitler, Dedan Kimathi, Ben Carson, Wangari Maathai and many others. Similarly, events such as the World War II, the fight for freedom by the MauMau, the fight to keep Uhuru Park by Wangari Maathai and many others.

     However, today's recap of history is not about any of those people or events I have named but rather about one woman who will not be scrapped out of history any time soon. She was born around the year 1856 to Mr. Gatuika Macharia and Mrs. Wakeru of Gitie Village in Kangema division, Muranga district. She attracted Makeri wa Mbogo of Ndorbo descent form Ethaga clan through her hard work on her parents land and soon landed herself a husband. History isn't clear about her status about having bore children as some claim she was barren others claim her children, born before she was appointed a colonial administrator, were named Nyakimotho, Nyambura, Wanguru, Muchiri, Gatuika and Mwangi. 

     Her appointment as the first and only female "headman", assistant chief, of Weithaga location during the entire colonial period took place in 1901 earning her the prestige of being the first Kikuyu female leader as well. She is well remembered as the woman who humiliated the menfolk of her time as she rode them like horses and quite promiscuous. Her downfall was led by the menfolk of Weithaga who were tired of her treatment and they revolted and plotted against her. It happened that fateful day when Wangu committed the ultimate insult against tradition and her office when she danced at an exclusive adult male dance, Kibata, as called by the Kikuyu, while she was naked. It is claimed that she saw her hero and lover, Karuri, dancing with youth and vigor, and couldn't resist the urge to join him and she joined in the dance  as she removed some of her clothing exposing her body, while others claimed that before joining the dance some of the men adjusted her ceremonial sword near her waist and it cut the strings to her traditional skirt, which dropped when it was cut loose exposing her nakedness as she danced.She became the subject of ridicule and forced to resign soon after.

***

Leading with an iron fist

Trouping over the heads of men

All done with a bigger cause

Or all for some selfish reasons?

Being a feminist

Or a chauvinist

Should we take two seconds to analyze this?

Leading with an iron fist

Riding over the backs of men

Free humiliation

For menfolk of Weithaga

At the hand of Wangu

Not “My” Wangu

But Wangu wa Makeri

Leading with an iron fist

Her downfall caused by the hand of man

Black History Month

The dream of one person is what started this

He did not intend to be a legend

Neither did he intend to be famous

Or get crowned as a hero

He simply intended to give his fellow black family

A sense of pride for being the people they were...

Black.

The Association for the Study of Negro Life and History (ASNLH)

That is where he started his journey

Founding an organization with his fellow black intellectuals

One dedicated to researching and promoting achievements by black Americans 

Not forgetting other peoples of African descent

This is the year 1915 

It marks the beginning of that revolution

State Department of Educations with considerable Negro population,

Churches,

Black press...

The public had to be informed and what better way to do so

The Journal of Negro History(1916)

"We are going back to that beautiful history and it is going to inspire us to greater achievements"

Wouldn't you be interested to read it?

Wouldn't you be interested in saving your race?

Wouldn't you want to be an ambassador of such a cause?

It is now 1926

The month of February

It is not only the month of love

But bares more history and significance than that

The birthdays of Abraham Lincoln (12th February) and Frederick Douglass (14th February), 

Two great Americans

That played a prominent role in shaping black history days

And black communities and other Republicans commemorated their birthdays each year

Even when they were long gone

Six feet below the ground.

Negro History Week 

The new name for the week in which these two heroes were born

Traditional and symbolic days of commemorating the black past.

"If a race has no history, it has no worthwhile tradition, it becomes a negligible factor in the thought of the world, it stands in danger of being exterminated."

This is what he fought hard to prevent

The extinction of the black race

The luck of pride

The luck of justice

The luck of acceptance

For the color the black man has

It was no longer about the study of two great men

But of a great race

One man's dream soon became a whole nation's dream

One step towards that journey became a movement

A one day thought became a whole week celebration

Soon it became Black History Month

Will it one day become a Black History Year?

Carter G. Woodson, the Harvard-trained historian,

Will not get to see if what he started will end up being a yearly celebration

Rather than the monthly celebration it currently is,

But he would be proud of what he has achieved

That black history is a field of serious study

From biographies  of famous African Americans such as Martin Luther King Jr. and Muhammad Ali

To milestones accomplished in education in historically black colleges.

It may be a celebration started out in the United States, that spread to the United Kingdom and Canada

But it is of impact to all Africans in every country in the world.

I am proud to be Black

Are you?

What matters most?

It is the little things in life that matter most

The first step of a baby

The first time he can call you mama or papa

The first time he comes home happy that he can write his own name, count one to ten and sing out the alphabets...

Go a long way to bring joy to any parent

It is the little things in life that matter most

Words like

Thank You,

I am sorry,

Welcome,

Please...

Go a long way to make this world a better place

It is the little things in life that matter most

Acts of charity like

Visiting the sick,

Taking food or blankets to street children,

Sharing a word of encouragement to the sunken hearted...

Go a long way to make someone else's life more worthwhile

It is the little things in life that matter most

Leading by example,

Being a doer more than a sayer,

Upholding virtues like

Honesty and Integrity...

Go a long way to inspire others to follow the same path

It is the little things in life that matter most

Taking the time to share your perspectives

Through motivational talks and blogging,

Fine Art and Music,

Poems and Dance...

Go a long way to inspire, motivate and guide

This is my sharing

The little things in life that matter most to me

Are you my readers

Thank you for being my inspiration:)

A Letter to my Son

Dear son,

I write you this letter to let you know that I loved you so much and that killing you was the only way to rid you of your pain. I couldn't take it no more to see you toss and turn in your little bed crying in pain. I watched each day as the disease  strived to take your life away and
I couldn't take it no more to hear you cry out my name for me to make the pain go away. I am your mother my dear son, but  ain't a doctor whose work ethics won't let him give into mercy killing. I wish there would have been another way my dear son, to ease your pain, but I was left with no options. The doctors couldn't help you and I didn't have the money to support you. To buy you painkillers or take you to India for treatment were deemed luxuries by the coins I had in my pocket. Forgive me son for taking you to your grave but it was the only way out, the single option I had left, to make the pain go away. The constant noises from the neighbours to make you hush so they could sleep at night annoyed me so much. Didn't they see that you were in pain? Didn't they see how much I struggled for you to be well? To cry in joy and not in pain? They pushed me my son and further aggravated me. They spoke as though I wasn't caring well enough for you and thus feared that they would take you away from me and I would have ended up never seeing you again. I thus had to send you to heaven first my son but don't worry, I will be joining you soon for the poison I put in your food this morning, is the poison I have put in my food this evening.
See you soon my son, in a land where you shall feel pain no more.

Signed,
Your loving mum.

My Wall

So I am seated 

Seated staring blankly at the wall

A physical structure built from concrete and stone

It's peaceful

But yet so cold

A chance to clear my thoughts

A moment of true shock

A chance to be true to myself

A moment I dread the most

Shhhhhh

Don't say a word at all

Can you hear it?

Can you feel it?

Can you see it?

Look closely

You will know it all

Don't stand in front of me

Don't take me away from my wall

Don't break it down for me

Don't give it the slightest dot

Don't crack it open

Treat it as the shell of a dinosaur's egg

Be gentle

Just STOP! Stare and Watch