The Heroes in Our Lives

This is a tribute to my paternal grandmother. An 87year old woman who has survived all the heartaches life can possibly give to one soul. When people talk of icons, then she is one in my life and the lives of her children, grandchildren and great grand children. Born after World War 1, she has seen it all.She was a wife,a mother,a freedom fighter and has been the family pillar.

She is a survivor, a hero, a legend

She survived the 1^st and 2^ndworld wars

She survived the African Kikuyu tradition (remember she is a woman)

She survived jail term as a freedom fighter

She has been a widow since I was born

She has survived the loss of her children

Survived many illnesses, hunger and poverty

Indeed she is a survivor, a fighter and a hero.

 When she tells her story,it brings out her resilient spirit that I believe keeps her alive to date. She is a very entrepreneurial woman, despite her old age she always has something to sell: bananas, pumpkins, milk, coffee, firewood, goats; she never sits to wait for help.She has been a leader in the community, the church,the family,women groups;none of us matches her energy and strong will.

We celebrated Heroes’ day (Mashujaa day) recently and indeed we had a real one in her as a family. This woman works magic, in her wisdom she actually managed to gather all of us her descendents together for a meal she prepared for us. Imagine the nostalgia of seeing family you have not seen in the last ten years, seeing new members born in the recent years, we actually had to introduce ourselves to each other.

This woman had a gift for all of us;Cash awards to us her children;imagine having a grandmother whose generosity is beyond measure, you would expect us to be the ones given her gifts and money! Before I digress, for being a freedom fighter (Mau Mau),the British government recently compensated them and she received a cash award.This is the money she actually went out of her heart to share with us.She is not only a real hero but a generous soul to the core.Above all she holds family values highly and I hope we,her descendants will live her legacy.

I celebrate this woman,ooh I am actually her namesake and I pray that she is here longer so that we can learn much more from her.

''I think a hero is an ordinary individual who finds strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles.’’ Christopher Reeve