My birth certificate indicates I was born in a mission hospital in upper Murang’a, Kenya. Recently, I went to papa and mama to confirm how my birth took place. I’m told once I came out, extraordinary things happened. Even without strength, mum with tears from the labor pains held me up and said, his son would be a ruler, a great man, and that death from men who plunder would never come my way. She also said that there would be plenty of harvest in my fields even during famine years.

I was the first fruit of her womb. A child of my parents’ youth. When my father saw me for the first time, he raised his right hand and blessed me saying, “Son, be greater than I.” Immediately my father said these blessings, the heavens opened and a great rain like never before on February fell. Stars appeared at 3PM. A voice was heard from Nyandarua Ranges confirming that the Son of Muthoni would be a great warrior. 

I know you people from my village will not believe this, but ask for historical records, it’s there. All these happened! In fact, I saw the recorded accounts that are preserved by my parents last year.

Papa and Mama

You see, my father, had found this kagirl three villages away and started to wow her to be his wife. I hear he was a jobless young man who was very ambitious. Unlike todays’ slay queens, the kagirl had a kind heart. She was graceful.

My mother says she saw a future in this man. In deed a bright future where they would bring up kids with or without a job. They were just determined to start a family and trust God with their life story. For them, they would farm and do other “small jobs” to raise up a happy family. Finally, the kagirl accepted to be with the young man and the rest as they say is history and the process of making me begun.

They say a woman can see a man with a great future. Girls can smell a potential in a man without wealth, job or car. They know that this man would eventually be a great father, wealthy and prominent. But not all of them do. We will talk about them later. Mum knew this was the man she would be sticking with the whole of her life.

And they have managed to stay together. They have managed to bring up for adults in a closely knit family. Papa and mama are now raising up three warriors and one beautiful queen. The amazing thing is that she has never gone back not a single day to her people.

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Papa and mama just love each other even when it’s the hardest. Despite the fact that dad never went down on one knee to propose in a mall or put a ring on her finger like some of you girls, they are doing well. They have managed to stay together in poverty and riches for close to 30 years now. Mum has made dad proud to be her husband just like dad has crowned her for being his wife.

No Great men in my village

Back to how I was born. In my village there were less great people unlike Rwathia which is two valleys away that produced the ultra-wealthy individuals post-independent Kenya. Actually, the only two great men were my late grandfathers. Jeremiah Jr. who I’m named after who served the chief mau mau spy master but they did not recognize for his role during the war.

My second grandfather from mum’s side five miles away served as a soldier during the second world war in Italy. I would be told stories of how he walked all the way to Italy through Egypt and Libya, fought and came back alive by my grandmother who went to be with the Lord almost 3 years ago.

That is my village. Though isolated, it has beautiful great sunsets. It is fertile, serene, and productive.

When I was born, the gods rejoiced. Behold a great man had been born. My grandmother confirmed that when I was born, all cows in our village refused to eat or produce milk for a week. The calves were running around the village like mad people. Actually, on that day the sun did not go down until after 9PM.

And so after my birth, I started life like any other ordinary child in the village. While being the first born in a family you expect to be treated with preference, that was not in my home. I was soon joined by kid brother two years later. The attention of my mother now shifted to him and later to another great sister and later to another kid brother. I guess I didn’t breastfeed enough. I must have stopped breastfeeding within a year. My siblings came too soon.

I started to graze our cattle when I was 4 years. Yes, I would leave our home at 8 in the morning, head to our extended family forest and spend the whole morning until midday when I would go home to water them and take lunch.

I loved the forests and grazing lands. They were a beautiful part of this side of heaven. I really enjoyed the sounds of the birds, the many variety of birds, trees and shrubs. Most of the time, I would spend my days hanging on trees like the monkeys. Once on the top of a tree, I would have a better view of the cows as they grazed.

Then in the afternoons, I would go home to find my mother having prepared lunch which we would all share. Mum is a hardworking woman. Don’t listen to the slay queens who claim to be proverbs 31 women on Facebook and Instagram but do nothing on their own. Perhaps mum never claimed to be one, but she is. While my dad was the breadwinner and provider, mum cooked every meal with love.

Dad put a roof on our head and mum stitched our torn shorts like that was all that mattered to her. We did not grow up having a lot of new clothes or shoes, but we were grateful we had warmth and love from our parents. Mum is a hero but dad is a superhero. That was all we would ask for. Papa and mama live their life so perfectly just like what the bible says so that people may praise the Lord.

When my brother was four, he joined me in the grazing vocation. That was what boys would do in our village. But that was the best vocation. There was much fun, more learning.

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Occasionally, our friends would join us but when they did, we would end up forgetting that we were supposed to take care of the cows and they would end up in the farms. When they did, we would get a taste of our medicine from mum. Januarys were the best for us because we would go swimming even though mama had said that should never be done as she feared we would drown. Then Aprils because we would slide on the mud.

At 4 years, I joined nursery school together with my cousin. I thought this was a punishment but I loved to read. And I was a bright kid. Actually, I only attended half the classes in nursery. It was because I was sick half the time. Nonetheless, I passed with flying colors and joined primary school.

I think papa and mama always prayed that one of their children would become a doctor or nurse, another an engineer or teacher, another a preacher or lawyer, and another a journalist, accountant or architecture. Maybe she expected me as the firstborn to be one of them when I joined primary school. So unfortunate I never become any of them. I followed my heart and eventually ended in ICT. Today I’m an ICT Specialist and a writer.

Then I started reading. I think I read my first book when I was six or seven. Papa would “force” me to read English novels when I was in class 2. I read “King Solomon Mines” an awesome children’s book. Then I read “Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves”. I loved to read. I would devour books while I went grazing.

Later on, I was introduced to newspapers when I was 9. For some reasons, papa would collect all daily newspapers at work and bring them home every end of the month. And I would read them page by page. You would think I will be tested on them. I would sleep past 10pm reading them. My favorite writers were Whispers, Carole Mandi, Carol Njunge, and later Mutahi Ngunyi. They inspired me to write.

I guess I did not have issues like scandals with girls growing up. For some reasons I considered reading a better vocation than chasing girls. While my peers were busy “disturbing” girls, I was busy reading. And I read always being among the top performers in the school. Not a single time did papa and mama come to school to deal with indiscipline issues concerning me.

You see, I was a brighter kid. I won all the certificates and awards there were during my primary school days. I brought home certificates, umbrellas, cups, plates, books, pens, pencils, water buckets and such. That was all our school could afford. Anyhow, I felt motivated and would proudly show my classmates the pencils and exercise books I had been awarded. By the way we have a nice basin that we still use today in our kitchen that I was awarded in standard 6 for being the second best student.

My efforts were later rewarded when I was offered a scholarship to study, in a private school. People called this poaching. I guess I agree with them, I was poached so that I could shine and put the school on the map because they were desperate to have one of their students top the region.

Why Did I graduate

From the early beginning, I had set up my mind to graduate with a degree because I became envious of a relative who graduate when I was 9 years. This is the first graduation ceremony I ever attended in our village. I made up my mind to graduate like him and I graduated 12 years later with a bachelor’s degree in Business Information Technology.

Why did I graduate? Was it just to fulfill my childhood dream of having a degree certificate and wearing the graduation gown? Or was it because I wanted to make a point? Did I graduate to impress my parents because I was bright? Why did I graduate?

I think it is because of all of these reasons. While I’m grateful to God I went to the university, I never feel entitled to anything in life because I have the certificate. I don’t feel entitle to a job because of it. Yes, I don’t feel entitled to wealth, fine wife or good house and car because I possess a degree certificate. I don’t feel entitled to a pulpit because I have a degree certificate to preach to the “uneducated”.

In fact, I should become humbler. I have to work hard to get a job, wealth, car, or house like anyone else out there. To be “greater than my father” like he blessed me, I have to roll my sleeves up and get my hands dirty. While I pray and know papa and mama are praying for me to be successful, I must be ready to work. I must be ready to work as hard as an average kid. I’m happy about it. Work is never a punishment, it’s a blessing.

If I ever get tempted not to work because I have a degree or because I’m a “Christian” may the earth open and swallow me. So long as I’m healthy, it is wisdom to work!