Celebrating a Special Lady: Life With Maa

...

Quote of The Day: Proverbs 31:31

Give her the reward she earned,

and let her works bring her

praise at the city gates

Though Maa was illitrate, she valued education just like any other dotcom grandma. She encouraged everyone of us to go to school; and often attended all functions that required the presence of parents/guardians.

She wasn't ignorant either. I remember this particular day when she came to pick me from school. We were outside writing on the ground using our fingers when my teacher asked me to stop everything I was doing and go with her.
Maa took me to a place full of screaming children. Things happened so fast; before I could ask why the children were wailing, crying etc, I had needle piercing my skin and nasty drops forced down my throat. I guess my scream was the loudest and I kept on all the way home. I hated her for taking me to such a horrible place. Whenever I see a person with deformed limbs as a result of polio today, I look back to that day and thank God I had Maa then.

She let us be the children we were. Whenever there was nothing to do in the house, she could encourage us to go out and play with our friends. There were times when we could go fishing or mud-sliding and come back home messed up, but Maa never scolded us, not even once. She considered play as very important part of learning and development for us children.

We also had cooking lessons in the kitchen when Maa could take us through the process of making common dishes. She was so good so that at age five, I surprised everyone including myself by preparing ugali big enough for a family of six. This is how it happened:

Lessons at school were so boring. I told my teacher I was sick and not knowing that I was pretending, she allowed me to go home. There was no one at home; Maa had gone to the shamba. looking at the shadow I could tell it was almost lunchtime, so as a responsible girl, I decided to light fire to make it easier for whoever could come home first (my older cousins or Maa). I placed  sufuria filled with water hoping that by the  time the water boiled  Maa or any of my cousins could be home. Having waited for what seemed like eternity, I saw it wise to apply the acquired knowledge. It wasn't easy, I had problems but I was determined to make the best. You can imagine what followed.

My time with Maa are some of the most cherished memories. We had great moments together - some were  emotional and some just too funny: like when we could tease her about her unique hearing ability - she could hear a whisper two rooms away and could not hear a bomb explode in the same room. There were also times when during church services Maa could sleep the entire service and only wake up to sing hymns and ask about what the preacher was talking about. She had a talent, she could sing all the songs in the adventist hymn book off head.

Maa touched my life in a special way; much of what I am today I owe to this great lady. Through her I learnt that I can conqure the world with the right mind set. I am stronger  both physically and  emotionally today than I was yesterday, thanks to her.

Happy Mothers' Day Maa, RIP.