He Could Be Your Lucky Star💫

I have been careless a couple of times which luckily gave me an opportunity to learn and unlearn certain aspects about life. Firstly, my passport literally strolled out of my backpack in a foreign country with all the currency I possessed in life as well as my yellow fever card. A month later, I left my phone in the comfort of a public taxi where I was seated as I headed home after a busy and stressful day (like most of us have). On both of these days, I came face to face with my lucky star.

"In a world full of conspiracies, suspicions, dishonesty and unkind hearts, how can a man be all the good I have always wished for" my fast-pacing heart paused in wonder. In the first case, a gentleman called Chris(not real name) literally put all that was on his agenda on a standstill to look for me through all means possible until I recovered my property intact. When he broke the good news to me I was rather confused than excited because I actually had no idea how a passport in the innermost pocket of my bag had sneaked out leaving all my other useless belongings in it. In the second case, I noticed I had lost my phone at the point when I needed it to order for a safeboda home. The lady at the grocery store heard my despair and she reached out to me. After narrating my dilemma, she offered me her phone to ring mine. Honestly, I was hoping for a miracle that my phone rings from somewhere in the vicinity. Alas, a gentleman picked my call and asked me to meet him somewhere assuring me that he would gladly give me my phone. He was a taxi driver and according to my society  these men are always mean, abusive, vulgar, and often associated to crimes of any sorts.

I have never expressed so much faith in the human race like I did in that moment amidst the confusion and all conspiracy stories that entertained my beating heart. The lady at the grocery store immediately asked that I go after my phone claiming that that gentleman wouldn't have picked up if he intended harm. In fact, she had so much faith that she gave me her own phone to go after mine. I literally shed a tear, not because of my phone but at this lady's kindness without a second thought. It was about 8:30pm when I quickly rushed out in her faith and found the taxi man exactly where he asked me to. He handed my phone back, told me another passenger had come across it when I left the taxi and given it to him. Did I say I shed a tear earlier, now I completely sobbed in gratitude. These were so far three different stars shining bright in my dimming night.

I attempted to give him the money I was left with that evening as a sign of gratitude and he rejected it with a certain kind of grace and warmth in his voice. On my way back, I nearly run into cars and everything moving against my direction.

Later, I thought to myself how we have become so used to unkindness, bitterness and all the bad things that have robbed humanity of its face. A bit of my heart felt that these angelic behaviours were certainly not human-like. This altruistic behaviour really got me by surprise. And then I felt guilty of why I always have to expect the worst of people but I haven't known much better. Kampala is a place that suggests that everyone is always upto something usually corrosive. Probably, these amazing people have been sent from heaven to restore my faith in humanity and I challenge myself to be a clear reflection of the same. You too, could be an advocate for kindness regardless of how life has treated you.

One random act of kindness, could bless and change the world with a happier person at a time. Fortunately or unfortunately the kind ones don't always come in cloaks and veils, it could be that neighbour of yours in a taxi with bad breath, he could be your lucky star.

Mind your Mind

The world to me is as far as my eyes can go, as far as my mind can stretch me and probably as far as I'll ever go. This sounds like an excuse for my ignorance but who should tell me better!? Teacher Betty? Albert Einstein? or this computer right at my desk?

As a child, the spot where the tallest mountain touched the sky is where I perceived the world to end and the sky as represented by the clouds was the ceiling that in fact I thought separated earth from heaven. As I grew older, television and books expanded my imagination and knowledge of what the world really was. I also found the minds of others quite fascinating, a habit I associate with in my adulthood.

Accidentally sliding into the mind of a boda boda rider, a street dweller, a child, a farmer, a lady of the night, or any other stranger sometimes makes me want to stay. When it comes to family and friends, these have permission to opine and we take their minds for granted but now I recognise how they have shaped mine. I owe them my judgement.

Each time I think about my country which I am proud to say I have traversed mainly for political and social reasons, it aches my heart to imagine myself living here for majority of my life when the world is out there with plenty of space to accommodate me and mine. I genuinely love Uganda, Kampala to be specific and my entire neighbourhood but I must say that the nomad in me has got to be freed. I cannot help but wonder what lies beyond the skyline.

Rather than a battlefield with scuffles everywhere waiting on survival for the fittest, I see it as a playground with wonderment, adventure and happiness that calls out the childish spirit in me every single day I am blessed to live again. In the past few year I have been able to travel from villages to towns, cities, countries and continents for various reasons. One thing that I'd never forget is finding a kindred spirit in a stranger. The joy, excitement, curiosity, amazement and all the good feelings that came along to give me a sense of home. Sharing stories and different perspectives about life became a new craving my poor soul never had the luxury to dream about.

Slowly by slowly I began to desire more and more of the travelling like I had been overdosed with that dopamine. By the end of 2018, all my savings were bitten by that travel bug. It started with curiosity but ended up as a necessity. Each time my mind felt like crashing I only wished to escape it through geographical borders. It is only until later that I realised that wherever I went my heavy mind was the first thing I packed. I realised travelling was instead doing me more harm than good because wherever I went I never wished to come back. In fact coming back to normal got me agitated and literally depressed that I blamed colonialism for all the geographical demarcations I have had to deal with as a prisoner of these lands that generously gave me life.

I am training my spirit to have no mental nor geographical borders, like an eagle will soar so high through seasons and all calamities. When the Psalmist says "Who satisfies your years with good things, so that your youth is renewed like the eagle" I confide in that assurance. In the meantime home is where my heart is and I am steadily learning to dance in the rain with all its mud, joys, flaws (or flows) and anything in between. Travel won't heal my mental discontentment and neither will it heal yours; calling it a vacation won't change a thing either. I am only trying to mind my mind, you too can mind yours.

Digital quagmire

Lately, I have been having an emotional cloud away from the crowd which resulted into a bit of mental constipation and eventually failure to process my thoughts into words. I tried reading my favourite books, daily articles as well as listening to various inspirational audios hoping these would jumpstart this writer's dying heart but none of these would help.

I knew I had so much on my mind to write about, but it just wouldn't crystallize into any of the words you see right here. My heart skipped a beat each time I realised, that one second grew into a minute, a day, a week and finally months just gazing at a digital blank page. I lost my breath to these writing hiccups. Was it my craving for perfection or the many distractions around me or fear or maybe just procrastination that weighed in heavy as what they call a writer’s block? Or maybe my emotional compass just lost direction.

Overtime, I thought to myself, why the pressure to perform? What's the worst that could happen and why exactly writing even just a page was so important to me? I guess it's never too late to re-evaluate our commitments without seeming like we are cracking up reasons to abscond. I must say, this has taught me to breathe, focus on my breath and from it, to draw the true meaning to life, lest I sink in this fast pacing world.

It's very easy to develop a routine and perceive it as a short-cut to a happy life; Or view commitments as though they carry an assurance of happy returns. Well this is true for many but only to an extent. In the wake of tragic news last week, I started to question what if today was my last day? Would my inability to bequeath any properties allow my words to constitute my will? Why is it that we feel assured that leaving our homes in the morning guarantees us a safe return, that going to sleep in the night automatically cracks us up alive for the next day. Viewing life with such big lenses gave me a sense of satisfaction in the now moments and I am truly grateful just for being alive right now. I hope you too are.

One question that lingers on my mind a lot since then is what if tomorrow you wake up with only the things you are thankful for today? These questions have truly unclogged my emotions that I am finally able to latch onto this platform again. Your case might be different, probably work starts to slack or relations suck; I hope life's grand questions of what should matter most keep you on your feet. You don’t have to wait for the fog to clear, take that step anyway.