***Snippets of my life after campus; (Part V)

 The Key lies within...

It’s been a journey that’s worth while a lot to be experienced, many lessons to be learnt and quite a number of wrongs to be made right. The excitement of looking for a job fades, when you realize that there’s a big difference between the picture in mind and the one in reality.

It becomes a struggle to accept the fact that it takes a while before all you had hoped for in school to manifest in reality.

The search for employment in our country has proved to be a daunting task that has persisted over the centuries and cannot be blamed solely on the economic downturn like many of us have often done.

To some extent it is true that our economy is failing to provide suitable jobs for young graduates at wages that they can actually live on and our leaders are slavishly adhering to a suicidal globalization agenda. Instead of dealing with this problem the unemployed, young graduates have resorted to destructive & corrupt tactics of survival.

However, instead of focusing so much on what the government can do for us, why can’t we do it on our own? The solution lies with us and not until we realize this, then we’ve got a long way to go.

Back to my experience; In as much I haven’t given up on my dreams, I decided enough is enough and tried to focus my energies on what I could do for myself rather than waste my energies and time looking for a huge career package. Life is a learning experience and with time we realize that having an open mind could be the key and plays a big role in the decisions we make, it is very important to embrace this so as to avoid frustrating one’s self and leading a stagnant life.

An opportunity presented itself; in as much as I was working then, I wouldn’t say it was what I had envisioned for myself. One Sunday afternoon while going through the newspapers I come across this advert on an innovations award by the United Nations Development Programme targeting youth between the ages of 18-24years.

My passion for writing was the key, in the midst of a busy schedule I embarked on a journey of research, writing and coming up with a whole essay package that fit the requirements. Due to limited time, I did what I could though I wouldn’t say I was very much confident that I gave my best shot and as I submitted my work I didn’t really expect much to come out of it.

God decided to surprise me though when I least expected it; several months later I receive a mail from UNDP informing me that my essay (Topic: In what ways we can use our cultural diversity to not only unify us as a people but to help us achieve our MDGs) had emerged among the best top 3 countrywide. This was going to be a launch of more surprises to come!

I write this, to encourage somebody somewhere who’s been frustrated by life, you don’t seem to get the job you hoped for. Sometimes the key lies within; it could be your talent, your ability to lead or your passion. Look deep inside and realize that you’ve got more to present to the world than you think and before you know it, all you’ve always hoped for will begin to fall into place one by one. It may take a while, but there’s always a start for everything!

On the night of the Awards Gala, I emerged first place and as I walked on stage to receive my award; my eyes and mind opened. It is possible, it doesn’t matter what, when, where and how you get there. I learnt that opportunities lie in the little things we take for granted, it is likely impossible that successful people hard a great start and if there is, it is a very small percentage.

Go for what you believe in, you never know! Do not underestimate the power within; you’ve got the key... use it!

Written By:

                  Dorcas Waringa

                  2nd September, 2013

>>.. Walked a mile in the shoes of a Kenyan Voter: My first, 2013>>

 <.. got a long way to go..>

We all get excited or anxious when we have to experience a first of some nature. It wasn’t any different at all on this particular day for me; as an act of patriotism I prepared myself for the day to decide a part of my future , the leadership of this country. Against all odds that most of us encountered on that particular day we braved our way to the ballot box and one by one each vote was cast.

 

 If there’s one thing that really amazed me, it was the passion exhibited by Kenyans during the whole process despite its complexity: the large numbers that turned out to participate in the process reflected it all! The same applied to the number of candidates vying for different positions across the country leaving us with tough choices to make.

The day was done and as expected it was time sit back relax and wait for the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) to announce the results. Some spent sleepless nights keeping vigil, analyzing, reporting and recording. We waited so patiently filled with so much anxiety and uncertainty going by the occurrences of the previous elections. We longed for normalcy; it was like for a moment everything was at a stand still! The date we all had been waiting for finally presented itself, with both parties hoping their respective candidates had won the coveted position after months of serious campaigning. The president elect was announced…finally.

I would like to commend Kenyans for the fact that we chose to conduct ourselves in a more civilized manner and with no blood sheds after the elections.

I write this with a heavy heart though, seems like we got the definition of peace all wrong! The results were announced and as some were busy celebrating, others were hurting deep inside. It is just normal for humanity to celebrate over victory and cringe or get heartbroken over the lack of it.

We all wished our preferred candidates would win; otherwise we wouldn’t have wasted our time queuing to go cast our votes. We have received and shared peace messages with one another, but without peace within our inner selves. These elections acted as an eye opener; I have witnessed a different side of humanity I have never seen before, it only took a few minutes and our hearts were overwhelmed by the wave of tribalism and resentment towards each other. Humanity against humanity, tribe against tribe has been the order of the day on social media; friendships have been compromised in the process. Is it really worth it?

As we feel good about ourselves for proving to the rest of the world at how peaceful we are; think twice we are not at peace at all! Prove me wrong, most if not all at this hour have logged in to the social media waiting for an opportunity to attack at the slightest provocation.

It is so nerve wracking to browse through the social networks and the atmosphere is filled with so much bitterness and insults. It’s just dawned on us that the fight against tribalism and regional discrimination in Kenya is far from over. It’s like what we are witnessing is something that had been enclosed within our hearts and minds for so long waiting for the opportune time to be unleashed.

That said; I thank the Almighty for the opportunity to participate and experience how it feels like to be a voter. I take it as a learning experience; I have learnt quite a lot but unfortunately decided it’s going to be my first and probably the last; I’ve got my reservations.

I am watching my country from a distance, as the events unfold with the hope that every sacrifice made by it’s people will count as for now the vision is blurred so much confusion in the air.

A few lessons I got from this:

v Never to involve my emotions into matters politics; only my brain.

v  Politics isn’t for the faint hearted, if you can’t handle it quit!

v  Always be prepared for any outcome, things don‘t always seem as they are.

v  Be ready and willing to embrace the opposing side when the situation calls for it, it’s never that serious after all!

v  After all has been said and done, life has to go on.

That’s it..! Have a fun-filled week!

 

Written by: Dorcas Waringa

                     12th March, 2013

The Tribal Scourge >> My Country's Dilemma (Part I)

More often than not I have always wondered when it all began. I love diversity; I actually believe it is one of God’s most beautiful inventions. When you learn to interact with people of a different kind, you realize just how rich our culture is and that each one of us regardless of our tribe has something unique to offer. I’ll take you back to the day you made your first cry: out of the womb into this world, we were all born bearing no name, no tribe without an identity.

 I choose to say: tribe is acquired not owned, for the few years I have spent in this continent and in this country, I have witnessed humanity grin at the mention of a different tribe that’s not theirs. Competition has become the order of the day; each tribe wants to position themselves as more superior to the other.

Tribal wars in Kenya have been in the recent past an issue that has destroyed our peace, our culture and our unity. We live in a society where; if we don’t speak the same tribe, then we’ve got no business whatsoever interacting with each other in a civilized manner. A world of “me, my, mine and our!” Kenya is a country of 42 tribes and it’s a complete fallacy if the dreams of a nation are housed in mere tribal groupings.
As I watched the just ended presidential debate, one of the aspirants stated that, (not in her exact words) ‘A poor man regardless of their tribe is still a poor man: there is no difference between them.’ We all suffer similar fate; go through similar experiences, despite our cultural differences.

Have you ever wondered when it all began? Humanity against humanity; tribe against tribe; we’ve fought each other I view my neighbour as my rival since we don’t come from the same tribe.

Distribution of resources, employment; have all been subject to conflict, reason being our reasoning/ thoughts have been clouded by this scourge. It distorts fair markets, denies rights of others and favours some group at the expense of others.  It also kills nationalism as some members feel that they are not part of the nation. It becomes important that Kenyans join hands together to fight this endemic devil.

That said: it’s about 17days to the elections, we’ve got our voters cards ready, a true sign of patriotism… but who will you vote for? Take a few minutes to think about it, what qualities does he/she possess? Write them down… and as you do so, I’m hoping that your conscience is clear.

The political sphere in Kenya has been corrupted by tribalism and even the elite have been blinded by this cancer… The fact is that most of us if not all make decisions based on tribe, we no longer look at issues! This notwithstanding, it has been engraved in our minds and thoughts; it’s become an issue that’s so difficult to deal with. Just as we came as infants and tribe existed, we die not with our tribe but our body.

Let’s get ourselves out of our tribal cocoons and stand together in unity with one another:  just as in the words of our national anthem: May we dwell in unity, Peace and liberty, Plenty be found within our borders....’ so be it!

 

Written By:

Dorcas Waringa

14^th February, 2013