It's years since I last saw any of my high school classmates face to face. But the memories of how they influenced me positively still enrich my life. Let me tell you of six classmates.
First was Lawrence Sikuku who consistently emerged among the top in our class. He had such a pleasing personality that you'd rarely hear him utter an unkind word about anyone.
A year after we finished high school, I found him working in a bank in downtown Nairobi. Though I didn't want to catch his attention, he spotted me queuing up, paused what he was doing and came to greet me. He then offered to serve me, saving me time.
Second was Wilson Chira who was selected to represent our school at a conference in America when we were in third form in 2004. He was always kind to me, so I'm glad he attended the coveted conference.
Third was Rocky Mbithi who became a good friend of mine in December 2005. A few weeks later when we joined Starehe Institute, he begged me for pocket change. We were such good friends that I couldn't miss helping him out.
Several years later when I was running for a political seat, I requested him to contribute to my campaign funds. And wow! He sent me KSh 1,000, probably without remembering the pocket change I gave him in 2006.
Fourth was James Wakyumbu who clarified to me the Earth looks flat because it is so huge that its curvature appears straight to the human eye. Unfortunately, he passed away in November 2008, most likely from the epilepsy he had in high school.
Fifth was John Njiru who had a fancy handwriting and a good command of the English language. I remember, but not so clearly, asking him to help me craft love letters when I became interested in having a girlfriend in fourth form.
Lastly was Martin Wamoni, the deskmate I had for the longest time. We nearly died laughing when we cracked some jokes in second form. But we drifted apart when we enrolled at JKUAT in May 2007 to pursue engineering degrees.
When he flew to London in 2011, I sent him a lengthy email, reminding him of our high school laughs and the way we drifted apart at JKUAT. He wrote back, telling me, among other things, that I was also to blame for our drifting because friendship is a two-way process.
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RECOMMENDATION: If you've enjoyed this story, you might also enjoy "High School Chronicles".
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Remembering My Classmates
A True Story
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