Practising Gratitude

That I attended Starehe Boys' Centre for my high school education is something I have said before on this blog. I have also pointed out that Starehe used to rank among the top high schools in Kenya during our time. And it did so not only due to the bright students it admitted but also due to the excellent facilities it provided for us.

After I finished my high school education in 2005, I proceeded into the institute division of Starehe to pursue a diploma in information technology. It was during my time in Starehe Institute that I learnt how to design websites and create computer programs. I also had the opportunities to hone my public speaking and piano-playing skills.

Given how blessed I was to have attended such a well-endowed school, you'd think my years at Starehe were the happiest of my life. But imagine during my days at Starehe, I never appreciated the fact that I was in one of the best schools in Kenya and schooling with the brightest boys in the country. Instead, I'd go around worrying about the confusion that some fellow students saw in me. At other times, I'd be jealous of the opportunities that some classmates had.

It wasn't until many years after I left Starehe that I came to realize how lucky I was to have been in the school for my high school and college education. That was upon reflecting on the fate that befell on some of my primary school classmates. Allow me to tell you of two of those classmates. Only two.

The first is Mwaura who was a classmate of mine in Standard Six. Mwaura was a gifted artist who used to draw impressive pictures of my classmates in his spare time. But even with all his artistic talent, he dropped out of school at the end of Standard Six and went scouting for work. For a number of years, he worked as a barber in my hometown of Kiserian. He used to shave my hair when I came for holidays during my high school years. Imagine as I was advancing my knowledge at Starehe, Mwaura was eking out a living as a barber. Wasn't I blessed?

Then there is Paul King'oro, the second primary school classmate whose fate I'll tell you about. King'oro was brighter than me given the way he consistently topped his stream during our primary school years. But I don't know what happened behind the scenes when we got into Standard Eight because I outperformed him in the 2001 KCPE exams by a wide margin. I made it into Starehe Boys' Centre while he was admitted at Olkejuado High School, a far less prestigious school compared to Starehe in those days.

King'oro must have worked fanatically hard in his studies at Olkejuado High School, for he ended up scoring an 'A' in the 2005 KCSE exams. One Sunday afternoon in 2006, he came home to chat with me on a visit he had prearranged with my mother. He informed me in the course of the visit that he was working as a teacher while he awaited to matriculate at the university. Though I can't remember telling him I was then in Starehe Institute pursuing a diploma in information technology, I tend to think I did, which must have made him envious of the opportunity that had come my way.

Imagine that while I had landed an opportunity to pursue a transformative diploma in one of the most well-endowed schools in Kenya, King'oro had been forced to look for work to fill up the one and a half year gap between finishing high school and joining university. Again I ask: wasn't I truly blessed?

Yes, I was blessed to have been in Starehe, something I wasn't consciously grateful about during my years in the school. If I could wave the magic wand and roll back the clocks of time to my days at Starehe, I'd delightfully think of what an honor it is to school with the brightest boys in Kenya in one of the best schools in the country. I'd walk around the school with a spring in my step and a smile on my face.

Now that I didn't feel grateful to have been at Starehe, I have resolved not to repeat the same mistake in the life I am living these days. From today onward, I will be counting my blessings. And I have a lot to be grateful for: food to eat, water to drink, clothes to wear, a room to stay in and most of all, good health to enjoy. I am also blessed to be surrounded by a caring family.

With such blessings, I have every reason to be happy at this time. I have therefore made up my mind to practise gratitude on a consistent basis. Every time I catch myself feeling guilty, bitter, jealous, worried, hopeless or annoyed, I'll quickly remind myself of all the things I should be grateful for. And when I wake up in the morning, I'll be thinking of what an honor it is to see another new day.

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RECOMMENDATION: If you've enjoyed the above story of mine on practising gratitude, you might also enjoy another one on "Choosing Gratitude" which I wrote more than three years ago. Just click on that link in blue to dive straight into the story.