maisha Architecture. . . A new way of life.

What kind of vision do you see for Kenya? For Africa? I say Africa deliberately because it is our motherland. I believe everything happens for a reason and hence we are not here to pass time, lament and continue tirelessly to harness our potentials blindly. We need to be very careful, and very intent.

At times I almost shed tears. My eyes are watery, mainly because of the picture painted about Africa. I am sad because of the negativity synonymous with our continent. At times I cry because we continue to dig ourselves pits that I know one day we will get out of. All this is partly because we are not proud of who we are, and no one can stand up for us as a people. Everything would be pointed down to leadership, if you look at this situation critically. And at this point then, we would have to ask ourselves who leaders are? Leaders are you and me - Leaders are the people in our societies who are privileged and who people look up to. By extension then leaders are the people in charge of public institutions, people who offer public services such as education, healthcare, policies and utilities. In Africa, all these institutions have failed. Miserably. They can barely keep up with the bare minimum of our expectations. The saddest thing is that it has robbed most of us our dignity, our voice of hope and lead-strong will of ambition. Worse still, everyone seems to be telling only THIS story - They only focus on what's wrong.

What would you be with only those 'bad' stories told about you? Would it describe you as a whole person or would it be just part of you. What then are we without our good and bad? What are the kind of stories that are only told from one perspective? What becomes of us then when we are only forced to think in one line of thought? Forced to follow a certain system?

Why do we not tell the stories of Heroes and Heroines? Brave acts of selflessness and strong characters and personas both in the present and in the past. Why do we not tell about Tom Mboya? Why do we not here more about young people, young Africans, creating change? About good case practices of good governance and accountability? Why not have daily conversations about our dreams and our ambitions? About the pictures that we paint, and those frames that we hide deep in our closets? About William Kakwamba who harnessed the power of the wind? About great business start-ups in the continent? Success? Hope? Love? Passion? Why should we keep silent about these?

My own perspective is that leadership matters. It matters a lot especially in places where our leaders are not responsible for their actions. Where we cannot even depend on them . . . So are you willing to become a leader? Are you willing to go out of your way to mentor? Are you willing to do something in your own capacity to make a change? Or are you willing to close your eyes, blame everything negative on other people and only take an account when things are all rosy?

At the end of the day, we will be older. We will pass on the baton to the younger generation to drive our societies and make strides. What kind of picture do you want to see then? We are those people now - It is our time, now than it might ever be. We have to look at these things straight in the face and provide solutions. More importantly, we need to protect those that are younger in mind, from these false pretenses, these negativities and instead, light up their candles, give them a slight nudge and make them feel like they can be all that they want to be. We need to create an atmosphere for them, where they will feel comfortable and appreciated. Where their dreams will count. We need to mentor them to uplift their dreams and hopes. We will want them to be so sure of themselves so that they don't need to go outside the country to look for greener pastures because Africa is the greenest. There is food. There are resources. There is abundance of diversity. There is a strong will and determination to defy the odds. It is our motherland.

Embrace yourselves as we take this journey because it will not be easy. We need to be strong, and sure of what we envision. Welcome to maisha architecture :-)

a bit more humanity. . .

I sit and ponder. I am all alone in this room. The ipod is on shuffle and at this moment there is some soft house music playing in the distant background. The walls seem bigger today, and I feel as if there is more to aspire for - Considering especially the tall roof. I think I am grasping the hush gradually now. I think I have limited myself, sort of. Hard to believe, but I think that's usually the chief cause of monotony, which I have been feeling quite a bit of late. Limiting myself in terms of dreams and aspirations. At times we do that - we limit our thoughts towards only one direction and we fail to reach the unthinkable because of that. We haven't usually thought that far.


It sounds very ungrounded but let's get it right. I have always thought big. I actually have a t-shirt on with "the next big thing" splashed on the front - And you can bet on that entandre {I think my ego is too big at times - I think it makes up for some things}. Anyway, I was saying - I have been feeling stagnant of late and so I have gotten this imaginary detective spectacles to solve that mystery. One of the easiest ways I have found to solve this problem in the past has been to go somewhere I can do some self - reflection. Last weekend I had some of that, although accompanied by a bunch of very interesting peoples to fourteen falls - true to the word there was a lot of falling and swimming, see some comments for further details. 


Just read a quote "You should travel to somewhere new at least once a year". New places seem to have this voice that almost challenges you to be adventurous and try out something different. But also, more often than not, we go to these places with our friends. That is my point. Being around people reminds you of being simply human. Around other people, you get to be stupid and silly, you get to have the most stimulating intellectual conversations and you get to learn different characters, moods and personalities. So I am pledging to be more human for the next few weeks. In that respect I will:

• Take a trip to shagz (rural area) and bond with the older folk - Also to have some peace and clean, pure oxygen.
• Listen to people on a deeper level, resonate with them a bit more. Really working on that because at times its usually very easy for me to hum some tunes when talking to some people. I am not perfect.
• Breathe deeply, and think good thoughts.
• Take daily sabbaticals - Spend a few minutes each day to come up with a daily mantra of sorts. Something small that I will be pondering each day to give myself some renewed focus (Today's was on "learning to say no gracefully").

I will let you know how all that goes. Besides that, I am celebrating each of you. You keep me thinking progressively. Oh, and do enjoy your week. 

HUSH

Embrace the silence. We always wait for something big to happen, some sort of chaos or drama. Some form of explosion to get you excited and carelessly cry out aha! As if you know all the answers. Today I think of why we do what we do, and why we believe so much in some things and less in others. This great thing called life always keeps us guessing. We never quite figure it out, and what I have learnt in the few years I have been kicking, is that we don't always have the answers - Because if we actually did, we would lose the meaning of life. . . So embrace the silence :-)

I have been in a very docile state in the past few weeks. I have been feeling as if nothing much has been going on, because there is no explosion! I mean, it feels like there is nothing much going on. I guess over the past few weeks I have shifted my focus a bit, and that is taking some time to adjust and actually click in my head. I am slowly figuring out the silence. Its been there before, and its just a matter of time before I realize the reason and I blurt out an aha! That's how it is. When we look at some moments in our past life, only then do we see the true meaning of each of those micro-specs of events in retrospect. They all seem to fit in quite perfectly. The next time you don't sense a big bang coming your way, breathe deep and embrace silence. Its your quiet way of figuring it all out. We all get the answers eventually, and then we learn from each of those experiences.

 Eat. Breathe. Smile.

Round a round we go

"My thoughts and prayers go out to Perez, and all other affected AIESECers including their families and my neighbor whose house was burned down"

My 2 days have been very worrisome. Fatalities have just hit near home. In life some things happen that live you pondering, especially if you are melancholic like I am. I tend to get very introspective with little stimuli and when you are with people for 10 days in a gathering and they get involved in an accident resulting in one fatality, you tend to ask why?

I was planning to go to the j-town for one of those familiar shenanigans. Just before I leave, my mum tells me to drive her to the airport to pick up a visitor. On the way there she receives a phone call from one of her friends in the neighborhood and you can hear her wailing and screaming, and my mum tries to console her. Apparently, there was a huge fire in one of the buildings, about 4 houses up. Close enough to home.

Misfortunes are a trademark to life, and we suffer small doses of that at times. Yet again, it shows me how fragile life is. I mean, that must have been years' worth of investment and it took less than 30 minutes to disintegrate it. Back to my other story, the accident involved some of my friends-People who are super great leaders in their own right. I begin to think of the consequences that the loss would have on their countries and it’s a bit over my head, not only in terms of leadership but also psychologically for the team. I have been in a 10 day conference for AIESEC, and some of the delegates were headed for the coast for a study tour just after the conclusion of the annual International conference. There was an accident on the early morning of 30th August. The conference was super awesome and the end equally tragic as if we hadn't had the time of our lives. In retrospect, the 10days will be a hallmark in my life - it’s a once in a lifetime opportunity.

That is life. One major thought in my mind has been that there has to be something greater and more satisfying than material things. . . Because clearly those can go any moment. Secondly, life is vain. 2 things I have concluded are:

• No matter where you are at, and what you are doing - Make sure you enjoy every moment.
• Do your very best, and live as if it were your last day.

That said, my belief is that we shall all realize that we live once, and that we will live for something bigger than our own selves. 

Believe in something | Fall for nothing

Inspired by "We all try"

I believe in God. I believe in progressive people. I believe in passion, happiness, humility, contentment, calmness and love. I believe in constant improvement. I believe in imperfection. Life is not perfect. I do believe there are some people who don’t want others to progress. I believe that there are good people. I believe in genuine friendships and true love. I believe in my family. I believe that life is not always simple. I believe that true happiness in life comes from intangible things. I believe that material things don't generate long lasting happiness. I believe that everyone deserves to be lost to find themselves. I believe that in life I have to make  a conscious effort to live. I believe that that there is a 'Heaven'. I believe that everything happens for a reason. I believe that we all have to live passionately. I believe that everyone is confused. I believe that we all have our frustrations and imperfections. I believe that we live our lives ultimately to find meaning and find answers. I believe that believing in something gives us comfort. I believe that we are all afraid . I believe that we are all afraid of uncertainty. I believe that at times I don’t believe in anything. I believe that I doubt myself at times. I believe that I live life fully. I believe I try to make things better. I believe that I have a good heart. I believe that we are all emotional beings. I believe that I am living an imprint. I believe that people are different. I believe that we don’t always have the answers. I believe that I don’t always know what I want. I believe that I appreciate both sides of the coin. I believe that I am aware of most things. I believe in myself. I believe in my friends. We all try to believe in something.

Of dreams and hallmarks.

Nothing comes easy. Freedom, chocolates, girls and super cars are all equally fought for. In this world you reap what you saw. That's the truth.

Another hallmark under the belt. It gets me thinking every time what success is and how do we know we are on the right track? Progress is gradual, and the most important progress is the one where those around you can feel it together with you. I create a world in my head, and a set of ideals and I define my own successes-I share it with others, and they chip in in little or major ways towards the collective goal and actually enjoy doing it. They discover more about themselves, and that fuels big dreams in their heads and they know that the world is theirs for the taking. Nothing can stop them. . . They in turn create their own perfect worlds, and get other people to chip in. The momentum creates a force and the strides get bigger and possibilities infinity. . . If that is not progress I don't know what is.

Back to my soliloquy. Where do I go from here? Honestly speaking, I set big goals and at that moment in time, I assume that that is the end. Funny thing is that there is no ceiling. We set our own limitations. At this point in time, I ponder on the long road that this has been. Its been TREMEANDOUS. That is even an understatement. Yesterday I also dreamt the next hallmarks for AIESEC JKUAT:

• Media coverage.
• Different and unique projects.
• Meeting a major leadership figure.

I say that with confidence because that is the next step. We have the abilities and strength. Everyone now realizes that we can achieve anything. The essence in life is always improving from where you are. As long as you are doing your best to get there, then have the confidence to know that you are on the right track. Most importantly, no matter what you are doing BE CONTENT. No matter your position or your achievements or successes, be content with your current situation. Strike a good balance. What will happen will amaze you. . . You acquire peace of mind, genuine friendships and a circle of good, positive energy. Contentment is not defined by what you do, but who you are. Be content with yourself right now.

And even as I gaze into the unknown future, I can feel it now. I am almost there. Almost near my big break. I dream big, and I dream all the time. We live our dreams, and if you are not dreaming then you are not living. Simply put, our dreams create that will power within us to go in a certain direction. I dreamt yesterday, and I smiled. I can sense it within me. I just need to open my eyes a bit more, and carpe dium.

International day of the African Child

Today I will proudly walk the streets as an African. I respect this continent as our Motherland. 

I am proudly African because her lands are blessed with resources,

From her oil deposits,

old as gold,

her beautiful diamond pearls,

and her elusive African curves,

her soils are fertile with foods.

I am proudly African because it is the symbol of black,

I am proudly African because of her deep heritage and traditions,

I am proudly African because her diaspora is proudly African,

I am proudly African because she is THE Motherland.

I will forever embrace my pride as an African because despite the odds against us, each and every day many of us defy the odds. Each and every day people get out of a warped mentality that faces us as Africans. I am proud that even as that happens, other people love spending their time empowering our fellow Africans and live to eradicate the poisonous cycles of poverty, lack of education, corrupt leadership and disease.

I am proudly African that despite our infested leadership, there are young people out there making a difference and exemplifying true leadership or should I say servant hood? 

I am proudly African because we continue to produce the best out there in different fields.

From Nobel Peace Prize Prof. Wangari Maathai, to writer Chinua Achebe. I will be forever proudly African because of our fallen heroes, those who have paved the way for us. This is because we are here in the present because someone else suffered/succeeded to lay a foundation for us. Be it our resilient Mau Mau fighters, budding leaders such as Tom Mboya, The great Nelson Mandela after his imprisonment and then to fight Apartheid. 

I will also appreciate the mama mboga and her vegetable stall. Our roudy touts, because they make life seem African. All the African women, blessed with that smooth black skin - You are beautiful in all ways.

And even as we continue to forge ahead, Let us all remember that we are African and we owe it to our continent to make a difference and to empower each other. Despite the fact that our roots have been uprooted, let us deeply remain bound to the true cause of our Motherland. Let us make our own definitions for being African.

Today we are celebrating our lives.

Yes we can

I have just had a very good night, I cannot remember the last time I had a clarity in my dreams. The weekend was very awesome and we had a very good conversation with one Mr. Selelo. What struck me most yet again, is that each one of us has that one dream or passion they would do for anything. Most young people actually do. Yet again, it is my view point that YES WE CAN. We especially have this tendency to have a crowd mentality, let that one be ours.

Indeed, we are currently doing stuff today, whether we like them or not. Whether we are passionate about them or not, each and every day we do stuff. Fortunately or unfortunately, we find ourselves in systems where we cannot change the way things really work but the Hope is usually following your heart and your gut, and through your passion, other people get to see that it is possible and in turn are empowered enough to ignore the norm. Moral of the story is that you owe it most importantly to yourself to follow your heart, to follow your instinct and secondly you it to every one around you.

It is a new day of the week yet again, but let us pledge to do it differently this week. Let us edge closer to our dreams. Today we will do what has to be done, and I say that with a lot of skepticism but the NEXT thing we will do will be to follow our dreams.

If you will need someone to tell you why, rather to REMIND you why-Talk to me.
Yes we can! 

We know where it all starts from

STOP!!!!

This is where we will draw the line - by force :-) Today, we are going to start afresh. We all know where it starts from - we all know the answers.

Lately I have been feeling a little bit bogged down with a lot of CLUTTER. I am doing quite a couple of things, and I will admit I am not as good a 'multi-tasker' as our female friends :-) Last week we had this session on time management that brought things to perspective - We know all that hullabaloo about time management, but we don't actually do it. So for starters, I have created my own priority list for this year - 4 things. I will tell you about that another time.

While I was on that DE-CLUTTERING agenda during the weekend, I stumbled upon a nook called 'The power of less' written by Leo Babauta {who also has a blog called Zen habits - check it out zenhabits.net/}.

I stumbled on another book however, called The power of your other hand. Now, it picks up on a theme I had started familiarizing myself with over the past four months. It expounds a bit on our right and left sides of the brain and the various cognitive, intellectual and artistic abilities we all posses.

I was starting to write some 'did you know' facts but it already started to look boring. One thing you should know though, we have a dominant hand and for the majority of humans it is right handed. Scholars continue to bit around the bush but one thing is clear - Using both sides of your brain makes you more wholesome.

Enough of that.

The intro starts with a brief background on how the author had a depression phase because of a lot of stuff happening in her life then she stumbled upon the power of the other hand. It briefly outlines how she had a dialogue between her right and left hand and for her (she is right-handed), her right hand represented her domineering personality, her confident self while her left, her hidden worries, long time struggles and emotional stresses. She would write the dialogues down on a piece of paper. I was brave enough to have a go using my left hand and 2 quick things gained some clarity.

1.  I had a pout while I was drawing/writing using my left hand :-) Took me back to the kindergarten days, remember? when we first disregarded our weaker hands because the drawing books looked terrible/or for some because we were told it is WRONG to write with our left hands. While I was doing that I felt a sense of renewal, like the world was before me and I had the ability to re-invent myself. Parallel to that, it brought back a few of my childhood memories, some struggles, a few disappointments and my childhood torments.

2. As much as my left hand writing cannot catch up with my mental processing (for now), I already feel like it is opening me up, and removing any mental barriers, reservations that I have - My first time and I am already feeling re-energized.

In conclusion, I am on this path of a renewed outlook to life and I encourage you to STOP!! and consider the unthinkable for once. Look at it differently. We all say think without the box, and I will re-iterate that - There have never been boxes, all the shapes are in our heads. I will keep you posted on any new discoveries I find along the way. You know what to do in the mean time, don't you?

Flashing lights.

Life as we call it, has its own unique sense of extremes. Life is vain, well most of the time. Funny thing is you have it inside of you, and somehow everyday you wake up, you get a chance to tread above the ground. We all go through different experiences, and at times we cannot make head or tail of whatever is going on. But the days progress, and life continues to move on as if to mock us.

There are times when you feel you are in control of every small fabric of detail in your life. The times we feel the energy within us multiply and explode like a grenade. Then you get that warm, fuzzy and certain feeling that you can accomplish all things. You can fight all wars. You can save the world :-)

Other times, the grim reality of life gives you an unexpected slap across your face. Times like these, we get to see the other side of the coin. Death could creep up on those we hold close to our hearts. Maybe that trust we have on something or someone comes crushing down, and you feel the dense weight of the world on your shoulders. At times it could be a failure in something you had gazed your hopes and dreams upon - When all guns are blazing, the engines are revving and our hearts palpitating with flashing bright ligths.

Doof!

You fall with a thud. Words that you are so comfortable with elude your lips. Ominous clouds of darkness suddenly creep up above your head. It could be family strife. You know family is the only real thing we have, and sad thing is only some of us are aware of that. Those deep things that you just don't want anyone to know. Not because you are embarrassed by them, but by the mere fact that people would remind you of your aching situation. I am going through one of those right now. It gives me great heart ache. At times you are forced to keep a straight face so that everything seems as if it is okay. You partially lie to yourself that its all good - But who knows? You cross your fingers, at times you pray. At times you want to shed tears even or go to the top of the Alps and JUMP.

We do not know about our future. We only have right now. The present is the only gift we have right now that we could open tomorrow. I honestly will not lie that I have all the answers about life or where the hell we are meant to get our directions from. But it is in such difficult moments that we have to be patient. We have to get out of our situations and look around. We have to go to that place where we can get some closure, where we get to ignore external stimuli and peruse deep within our skins.

 I will tell you what I have found out. It is the simple things in life. It is the soft breeze sweeping across our cheeks. It is the sky, azure with its invigorating colours, the sun and the night sky. For me, it will continue to be nature. It will continue to be the good times we have had and the smiles that are drawn by you. It will continue to be those treasured fulfilling conversations. It will be the music - The pounding electronic beats, Coldplay re-inventing the rock, Nodding hip-hop beats and stringing out those lyrics with venom. And I will continue to write about it because times like these are my closure. I will continue to be a realist. I will keep my head where it is meant to be.

One thing is for sure. I will continue to appreciate all that is around me, and I will not give up. Whatever it takes, I will keep my head up. I am not sure how it will all play out one day, when I have some white beard, rocking on my arm chair, enjoying the wonderful smell and sensuality of my environment but I will do my very best now - I will - I will celebrate life in all its moments.

I will go hard.

I got you :-)

Another 1

Rain with a soft patter,
The earth red and expectant,
Life is a slow snail,
Progress is gradual,
One hand vanity,
The other proceed. progress.

The money, the honeys,
protruding rooftops, big building blocks,
massive mansions, petty pensions,
friendly fiends, new fashion trends,
real niggas, fast cars,
cool demeanor, clubs on the minor,
friends and foes, ranches with hoes,
the glory and the pain,
fresh and clean, nasty incessant stain,
The secret, and the pretense,
fealthy rich, children to teach,
hearty hardworking, vanity consuming,
lucky escapes, grizzly deaths,
chilling escapades, glasses on the spades,
fat getting fatter, thin never better,
forced into a box, our eyes with padlocks,
keys open doors, ignoring status quos,
public enemy, rebel with a cause,
waking up, sliding down,
green grasslands, deserted deserts,
frying pans, juakali stands,
expensive malls, kiosks and shops,
religion fighting,
love with wrong timing,
sizzling syringes, sweet indulgences,
bright tall walls, shanties and stalls,
eluding hopes, steps on ropes,
classic thought,
just another note :-)

King's speech

The most sound advise that a father could ever tell his son. . .
"Your world is yours for the taking. You can achieve immeasurably whatever you dream"


Paraphrased from what my father has always told me since I was young. You see everything starts in the mind. We perceive whatever we conceive. We lead our lives according to what is in our minds. 


I just watched "The King's speech". The story is about King George VI who found himself in his position as King under  queer circumstances. What actually amazes me most is that he found a voice in himself despite the fact that he was a stammerer. 


Apparently no one is born a stammerer :-) and the story goes that he was sort of the black sheep, and his bigger brother was more adored. He gets a fantastic speech therapist, a visionary I would say, who enables him find his own unique voice. The most amazing thing is that King George VI becomes a voice of natural resistance that binds the people together prior to the World War II.


My lessons are threefold-Anything is possible. Anything. It is just how you see it and how you go after it. Once we are in a habit of convincing our sub-conscious minds that we can achieve anything, then our mind and bodily functions, our energies are tuned towards a certain cause. Practice practice makes perfect and working on it is drawing the final straw.


"You CANNOT be afraid of those things you were afraid of when you were 5"
The fact that you are still kicking now is because you came from somewhere. At times we get bogged down by our past failures, mistakes and fears. Alas! It is a new day, a new opportunity for you to rebuild and overcome. There are different circumstances now and the reason the past remains in the past is because nothing can be done about it and it ALWAYS has learning opportunities and occurrences to make us wiser.


Lionel Logue (the speech therapist) is also a true visionary. He did not have any qualifications but his innate talent to "give Faith to people's voices" enabled different people to discover their potential. In a world of warped reality we really need to know what we are good at and as we are billions of people with unique persona and abilities, then finding out exactly what works for each of us becomes prime. The truth is that at the end of all of it, we are the ones solely responsible for what we make of our lives.


Know today that you are powerful beyond measure, and what you WILL do will really shock you.


The Guardian.

THE BIGGER PICTURE

In the pursuit of opening the new year with a new post, today my thoughts wandered and settled at THE BIGGER PICTURE. I am loving the current progress of my life, the new people I am meeting, the new opportunities that are a grasp away-the abundance is just mind-blowing.

I work for a student's run organization where we aim to instil leadership to cause a positive impact to the society. To be honest at the very beginning I had no fire burning within me to join AIESEC, and I merely took it as a challenge and a way to break the monotony of my Engineering degree. In fact, my first 4 months in the organization were very lax. I could not have imagined an interesting journey and I can say so far so good.

I work with very many people and I therefore get to meet new personalities as well as stereotypes :-) And its wonderful to remain in your element and have a deeper understanding of yourself. And right now my fire is burning brighter and bigger, I feel a renewed sense of ambition and hope that abounds everything. Given the opportunity to do what I do, I do not regret a single bit. Everyday you follow a certain path with a certain aim, you find more and more meaning to it. Being aware of where you are and where you are going makes this picture bigger.

I foresee a very bright future ahead. I know that my efforts are creating a positive impact in my surroundings, my university and even within my friends and those I interact with. The bigger picture is that there is more meaning in a world which is ONE, unified through peace and where everyone feels fulfilled and useful. Empowering people is just that-Helping them find that inner talent, that inner strength, those things within them that can enable them to do more than just the ordinary. That is the BIGGER PICTURE.

At the end of the day, we should aim to be "Ordinary people doing extraordinary things". This is because none of us is really special. It is just that some of us realize that life is too vain and short for us to just accept the norms and do nothing about it. These are the people who realize that there has to be something greater at all times and choose to do something about it. We all have that ability, It only depends on how much we want it. It all boils down to you as an individual, and what you are willing to do with the situation that you are in to get to your goal.

Embrace the bigger picture and do something about it. All the opportunities are right in front of you, you just need to open your eyes and get out of your comfort zone.

The Guardian.