BRIAN
BRIAN
EMILY
EMILY
SHARON, VALERY, WALLACE
On
Thursday the 26th, Frank, Henry and I paid the two new sponsored
children a visit. Our first stop was at Brian Barasa’s home. We had to wait for
about ten minutes to see him. A baby had just been born in the neighbourhood
and Brian, being the ‘older’ child around had been requested to go get some
flour from a posho mill (maize grinder) in Ebulechia Market. Luckily for
us, he hadn’t gone very far by the time we arrived. One of the children around
the home was sent to call him back the moment we arrived.
One
wouldn’t have helped to notice that Brian is a real survivor, just at first
sight. His unbuttoned, torn shirt looked perennially dirty and pale,
having lost its original colour through constant wearing and wallowing in the
dirt with it. His once cream pair of shorts extending below the knees was
in the same state, with patches behind it. His skin is slowly healing
from the sores that had taken a toll on his head especially in the areas around
the ears and at the back of the neck. The grandmother, Ms Getrude
Wesonga, said that the sores are the stubborn types, unexpectedly manifesting
when you first thought that they have healed for real.
The
sight of his feet would move one to tears. At that tender age, he has cracked
feet. Not just cracked, but badly cracked that they looked like scales on
the feet of a duck. This is the kind of life that this young man is used
to.
That’s
going to be history, thanks to the sponsor and glory to God. As he joins
the rest of the sponsored children on Saturday, the 4th of August
this month, the story will change. In less than three months, he’ll be
speaking the TGD language; the language of being presentable, healthy and
cheerful. We are looking forward to this. His guardian is anticipating a
big change on the boy too, gauging from the expression in her eyes the moment
we told her that Brian now has a sponsor and he is supposed to join his new
friends on distribution day. She couldn’t hide her joy, neither could the
neighbors. About ten of them had come to find out what information the
three motorbikes had brought in that seemingly “unworthy” looking home. I think
right at the back of their mind, the question was, “Can something good come out
of this poor widow’s home? Let’s wait and see.”
Thirty
minutes later, we are leaving for Nderema Primary School, Malaha, where Emily
is a pupil. The school is quite and three or four teachers are seated under a
tree near one of the classes. They are marking an exam. We are
informed that a regional exam has just ended a couple of minutes ago and pupils
are quietly seated in their respective classes, implementing whatever is
scheduled on their timetable.
We
are ushered in the deputy head teacher’s office. He sent’s for Emily and
as she sets her eyes on us, she’s all smiles, surprised at her visitors. I
wish the smile continues but unfortunately for me, it wanes off and it’s now
the Emily I saw when we went to take her photos two months ago. I’m sure one
day she’ll be a smiling machine. She reminds me of Shaline’s initial
days. Compared to now, its’s different. Shaline (and Fredrick too)
can now smile endlessly. It’s part of their lives. Emily will follow suit.
We
chat with her for a while and after a photo of her and Henry, she goes back to
class as we set off for Shianda. We want to see our three children namely
Sharon, Valary and Wallace at Mukambi Primary School.
THE
ART OF SHINING
We’ve
just entered the tarmac road and as we wait for the road to clear before we
take a left-turn and move south-east, we notice Phaice (guardian to Wallace,
Valary and Daisy) selling snacks (as usual) across the road. We branch in to
say hi. She ushers us to the house and even before we ask how the children are
doing in school, she’s already at it. “Wallace has improved tremendously. He
was the best in Mathematics in his class in an exam they did last week.” That
was Phaice speaking. “The teachers are really happy about it,” she added. We
have to find out if this is true so, no wasting of time. We head to school. The
head teacher is chatting with some of the teaching staff in front of the
administration block. “Welcome gentlemen. We are happy to see you.” That’s the
head teacher ushering us in. Now, this is amazingly strange. I have never
received this kind of reception from this gentleman and moreover, he is rarely
in when we pay the school a visit.
As
we take our sits, he calls the teacher in charge of exams and what follows is
just but exciting. The teacher takes us through the performance record of
the four sponsored children and I can assure you that our children have
perfected the art of shining in academics. Last month it was Beverlyne. Today,
Wallace is trending. I don’t have words to explain what the teachers think
about him. They are however, wondering when exactly did Wallace spring
back to life, especially in Sciences. Three months ago, his performance
was wanting. I think he had given up because he knows his family well
enough to pretend to work hard when he knows very well that high school is just
but a pipe dream, even if he qualifies. The sponsorship seems to have changed
everything, though. Wallace was back on track and not just that. He was
on track moving and overtaking others at an amazing rate that left even his
teachers flabbergasted.
According
to Wallace, he has no reason to fail his exam. “Someone is thinking about me. I
have all the books I asked for, am in uniform and I take breakfast every
morning. Why should I fail my sponsor? Tell Kevin thank you so much,” he said,
albeit nervous but more confident than am used to seeing him. He made my day.
The
teachers are very positive. They count on him to boost the school mean score
and secure himself a good place in high school.
May
God bless you, all sponsors and donors for making such a positive impact in the
lives of these children
Regards,
Joseph
Omuto.
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