Random Thoughts of a Girl in Nairobi

I haven't blogged anything about the Westgate attack in the past week. I think I was looking for the right words. How to express my condolences and try to comfort all those who were affected. How to explain the pride I feel when I open my wallet and spot my national ID: the one that says Kenyan. How to tell you that through every day as we were praying I always had faith in God, and I knew that the whole nightmare would end. Yeah, those are a lot of things to try and put into words. But if you're reading this, and you need a little encouragement, I'll leave you with this: Psalm 3:1-8 NKJV Lord, how they have increased who trouble me! Many are they who rise up against me. 2 Many are they who say of me, “There is no help for him in God.” Selah 3 But You, O Lord, are a shield for me, my glory and the One who lifts up my head. 4 I cried to the Lord with my voice, And He heard me from His holy hil...

I really wasn't planning on doing a birthday post or anything. But for the past 1 week as my 22nd birthday had been approaching, I found myself thinking about my life a lot. Thinking about things that I need to do not because someone's told me to, but because I'm a grown up and I have certain responsibilities. I've found myself waking up some mornings and going like 'No Val, you can't do this coz of A,B,C,D.....or Val today you're going to suck it up and to A,B,C,D because it needs to be done and it's going to set standards for the rest of my life. A friend of mine who I've known for a while is getting married this weekend so I'm just at the point in my life where I realize that We're all growing up and moving on and taking big steps. To some extent you get sucker-punched in the gut by the shock and realization of it all...but also I feel excited! Like I'm having some kind of adrenaline rush because I can't wait to see how it all o...

   I don’t pride myself in being a poet, or an expert in the workings of the universe. I don’t think that I have the answers to everything, In fact I’ll admit that there’s a lot of stuff that I really don’t know. A lot of stuff that I’m still trying to figure out in my life. But what I do pride myself in is the fact that I’m here. And sometimes that’s all we need. Someone who’s currently at the exact same place that we are or who has been in the exact same place at one point or another. Someone to hold our hands or pat us on the back and say that ‘’it’s ok’’ or ‘‘I know what that’s like’’ or ‘‘you’ll get through it’’. That way I know that everything that happens in my life might someday be an inspiration to someone or maybe even a lesson. It could be a friend or a sibling or maybe the kids I haven’t had yet.    I mean think about it. There’s this verse in the bible that says nothing new under the sun. Actually it’s:   Ecclesiastes 1:9   What has been...

The air around me drips with disappointment I can feel failure lapping at my heels like an ocean tide Patiently gently biding its time Building up to a crescendo that will overtake me and pull me in at a moment’s notice The panic in my head is inescapable I think that this is what is to be a gazelle Stalked by the inevitable with no end in sight Painfully aware of the end that awaits you Or maybe more like a train An out-of-control over-fuelled freight train Speeding along the track and seeing the break in the rails just a little too late But somehow I persevere I remind myself of all the good days I’ve had and realize that It was only a matter of time before I had a bad day Somehow I remind myself to see beyond the now To keep in mind that this too shall pass Somehow I suck it in and take life’s beating for the day Because I know that deep inside, tomorrow will come And it can’t possibly be the same as today This too shall pass

   It’s more than obvious how much the internet has changed our lives. People of my generation will never know what it’s like to completely lose touch with old classmates or spend hours looking for information in a pile of books because all of that is a click away and a seconds away ( Depending on your ISP speeds ). But today the one thing that does stand-out for me is the effect it has had on parenting. Apparently nobody saw this coming! ·          Punishment Remember those days when you’d do something wrong and your parents would lecture you or beat you or take away something you loved so they could teach you a lesson? Those strategies only worked to a certain degree because some of us zoned-out through the talks, developed immunity to pain and learned to survive without those things we’ loved’. What does the internet parent do for effective and full-proof punishment? They just embarrass you on social media. Take for example t...