Scoring in Life

A True Story
by
Copyright ©
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This is me showing a software program of the '06/07 Premier League fixtures to some dignitaries during my institute days at Starehe.

When I joined Starehe Institute in January 2006 to pursue an IT diploma, I watched several Premier League and World Cup matches. It was then that I came to admire Ronaldinho de Gaucho, a talented Brazilian playmaker then.

Ronaldinho had charisma that made him stand out in the competitive world of soccer, what with the way he grinned from ear to ear. And I noted he liked licking his lips when Brazil was posing for a photo at the beginning of World Cup matches.

Because I rooted for Brazil during that World Cup, I became heartsick when France sent the team packing in the quarterfinals. But I still love Ronaldinho who no longer plays professional soccer. It kind of excites me when I watch clips of him in action in his heyday.

I now realize that while it's important for a team to have quality players like Ronaldinho was, its success will depend on how many goals it scores, not just how well its players dribble the ball and make slick passes. And that's how life is for everybody.

You see, people will not respect us if we eat healthily, read regularly and exercise daily but still struggle with poverty. We have to score in life to earn their respect. I mean, earning good money to lead a decent life.

As for me, I will grow in faith, hope and love as I believe they are the keys to gaining health, wealth and honor. God willing, I will start scoring in life like Brazil did when it had Kaka, Ronaldo, Adriano and Ronaldinho as its attacking force.
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Blooming Where Planted

A True Story
by Thuita J. Maina
on Dec 2, 2016
Copyright ©
Picture related to the title of the story
These were some of my Starehe Institute classmates.

Starehe Boys' Centre, my alma mater, had an institute where students from its high school division could enroll to pursue a course in accounting or information technology. I didn't want to join that institute when I finished high school in November 2005 because someone had led me to believe it was not for urbane young men like the one I was trying to become.

As fate would have it, I failed to get a job after high school and my attempt to enroll at the upscale Strathmore College in Nairobi backfired simply because my parents could not afford to put me through that college. So I had no option but to report back to Starehe in January 2006 to join the institute where I had wisely applied for admission in case things didn't work out.

And wow! Learning at Starehe Institute turned out to be a wonderful experience for me. To begin with, the institute had a commendable student-computer ratio of almost 1:1 that provided me with an opportunity to learn web design and computer programming, skills that have wonderfully enriched my life.

Then I kept aflame my interests in piano-playing and public speaking thanks to the pianos in the school and student meetings we had in the institute. One of the pianos was electric, two were grand.

But the greatest resource at Starehe Institute was time. The information technology course I pursued was relatively easy and our teachers were lackadaisical. A certain Mr. Kagete would, for instance, go for a whole week without turning up to teach us.

I took advantage of those free times to read, swim, play soccer, improve my computer programming skills and browse the internet where I learnt more about the top American colleges that I applied for admission in 2006.

And on Sundays, my house captain, Stephen Lenai, let me leave Starehe to be with the youth group of my hometown Catholic church where I almost fell in love with Gloria Thigwe, a charming and compassionate young lady. I was really smitten by Gloria.

Although I didn't realize it then, I bloomed at Starehe Institute where I found myself planted against my wish. And that's the kind of blooming I am striving to achieve here in Kiserian where I have found myself planted.

My beloved reader, I encourage you to also bloom where you are planted. If you are in a remote village school, study like never before till you become a master storyteller. And if you have been forced to go back to your rural home after you went broke in the city, farm with some passion. Bloom!
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Bible Quote

"Always be full of joy in the Lord; I say it again, rejoice! Let everyone see that you are unselfish and considerate in all you do... Don't worry about anything; instead pray about everything; tell God your needs and don't forget to thank Him for His answers. If you do this, you will experience God's peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand."

~Phillipians 4:4-7 (TLB)

About the Author

Name: Thuita J. Maina
Marital status: Single
Lives in: Kiserian, Rift Valley, Kenya
Mission: To inspire the world to godly living, one person at a time.

Just for Laughs

There was this drunkard named Azoge who loved drinking at Josiah's Bar. On being told a certain Hon. Nanga was flying to America to be conferred a law degree so that he could be admitted to the bar, Azoge replied, "Why fly all the way to America to be admitted to the bar while you can get into Josiah's Bar any time?"



The 7 Deadly Sins

  1. Pride
  2. Envy
  3. Gluttony
  4. Lust
  5. Anger
  6. Greed
  7. Sloth

Author's Note

I am learning to treat life as a journey, not a destination; I have therefore given up the things that weighed me down and I am now living my life to the fullest because the tomorrow I had always hoped to live my dreams may never be mine.

Fun Facts

  1. The fear of having no cell-phone service, running out of battery, or losing sight of your phone is called Nomophobia, reportedly affecting 66% of people.
  2. A single Google search needs more computing power than it took to send Apollo 11 to the moon. The Apollo computer was less equipped than a modern toaster.
  3. Besides being some of the biggest names in the tech industry, HP, Apple, Google and Microsoft share another commonality. They all started in garages.
~Extracted from Codingforums.com

Health Tips

"So many of us take for granted the wonderful construction of the human body and the workings of its various parts. Some of us even expect it to function efficiently with less than the minimum care and attention. Learn the much you can about your body and how the care of it can help give you that greatest blessing of all - good health."

~From Your Body (A Ladybird Book)

Wonders of the Modern World

  1. The Simplon Tunnel
  2. The Sky-scrapers of New York
  3. The Boulder Dam of Colorado
  4. The Panama Canal
  5. The Golden Gate Bridge
  6. The Taj Mahal at Agra in India
  7. The North Sea Oil Drilling Rigs

Great Example for Politicians

"My life in politics was a joy. I loved campaigns and I loved governing. I always tried to keep things moving in the right direction, to give more people a chance to live their dreams, to lift people's spirits, and to bring them together. That's the way I kept score."

~Bill Clinton

Scientific Marvels

  1. Space travel
  2. Heart surgery
  3. Fibre-optics communication
  4. Concorde
  5. Radios
  6. Computers
  7. Anesthetics

My Supreme Desire

To borrow the words of Elbert Hubbard, my supreme desire is to radiate health, cheerfulness, calm courage and goodwill. I wish to live without fear, hate, guilt, worry and jealousy; to be honest, natural, confident, clean in mind and body - ready to say "I do not know" if it be so; to treat all men with kindness; and to meet any loss, failure, criticism and rejection unabashed and unafraid.



Greatest American Presidents

  1. Abraham Lincoln
  2. George Washington
  3. Thomas Jefferson
  4. Franklin Roosevelt
  5. Theodore Roosevelt
  6. Woodrow Wilson
  7. Andrew Jackson

Making Peace With the Past

"Dwell not on your past. Use it to illustrate a point, then leave it behind. Nothing really matters except what you do now in this instant of time. From this moment onwards you can be an entirely different person, filled with love and understanding, ready with an outstretched hand, uplifted and positive in every thought and deed."

~Eileen Caddy

Toughest Colleges to Get Into

  1. MIT
  2. Princeton
  3. Harvard
  4. Yale
  5. Stanford
  6. Brown
  7. Columbia

Why You Should Trust God

"Men and women who turn their lives over to God will find out that He can make a lot more out of their lives than they can. He will deepen their joys, expand their vision, quicken their minds, strengthen their muscles, lift their spirits, multiply their blessings, increase their opportunities and pour out peace."

~Ezra Taft Benson

The 7 Greatest Scientists

  1. Albert Einstein
  2. Isaac Newton
  3. Galileo Galilei
  4. Nikola Tesla
  5. Aristotle
  6. Archimedes
  7. Charles Darwin

You Matter

"Always be yourself. Never try to hide who you are. The only shame is to have shame. Always stand up for what you believe in. Always question what other people tell you. Never regret the past; it's a waste of time. There's a reason for everything. Every mistake, every moment of weakness, every terrible thing that has happened to you, grow from it. The only way you can ever get the respect of others is when you show them that you respect yourself and most importantly, do your thing and never apologize for being you."

~Unknown

The Most Industrialized Nations

  1. United States
  2. Japan
  3. Germany
  4. France
  5. United Kingdom
  6. Italy
  7. Canada

Keys to Success

"...in his effort to withstand temptation, to economize, to exercise thrift, to disregard the superficial for the real - the shadow for the substance; to be great yet small, in his effort to be patient in the laying of a firm foundation; to so grow in skill and knowledge that he shall place his services in demand by reason of his intrinsic and superior worth. This is the key that unlocks every door of opportunity, and all others fail."

~Booker T. Washington

The 7 Social Sins

  1. Politics without principle
  2. Wealth without work
  3. Pleasure without conscience
  4. Knowledge without character
  5. Commerce without morality
  6. Worship without sacrifice
  7. Science without humanity

Cherish What You Love

"Cherish your visions, cherish your ideals, cherish the music that stirs in your heart, the beauty that forms in your mind, the loveliness that drapes your purest thoughts - for out of them will grow all heavenly environment, of these if you but remain true to them, your world will at last be built."~James Allen

The World's Largest Cities

  1. London in England
  2. New York in the United States
  3. Tokyo in Japan
  4. Berlin in Germany
  5. Chicago in the United States
  6. Shanghai in China
  7. Paris in France

Benefits of Optimism

"In terms of success, optimistic people out perform their pessimistic colleagues. Research shows that they are consistently promoted higher and make more money while working fewer hours than those who think pessimistically. Optimists also contribute more significantly to social progress. It is the optimists who start and run successful companies, who win elections and carry out reforms, and who make breakthroughs in the realms of science and technology."

~Pepe Minambo

The World's Greatest Lakes

  1. Caspian Sea in the Commonwealth of Independent States, C.I.S. (formerly U.S.S.R)
  2. Lake Superior in North America
  3. Victoria Nyanza in Central Africa
  4. Aral Sea in C.I.S.
  5. Lake Huron in North America
  6. Lake Michigan in North America

Demonstrating His Love

"Take your communication for instance - the way you address others. It ought to be with loving, gracious and edifying words. Never talk people down. Never use words that hurt and demean people. Communicate excellently with others without destroying their self-image or making them feel sorry for themselves. Talk to people in a way that they never forget the excellence of your words, the love and grace of Christ that you communicated. It's how God wants us to love."

~Dr. Chris Oyakhilome

World's Longest Rivers

  1. Missouri-Mississipi (U.S.)
  2. Amazon (Brazil)
  3. Nile (Egypt)
  4. Yangtse (China)
  5. Lena (Russia)
  6. Zaire (Central Africa)
  7. Niger (West Africa)