Of Curtains and Carpets

The other day we attended a seminar in a private school in the outskirts of Nairobi. And as we were having our lunch break, I noticed the school had all the classrooms fitted with carpets and curtains. This reminded me of my primary school in my days. Our classrooms didn’t have windows leave alone curtains. There were four squared holes on the walls that most students found as better exit points from the classroom. Why use a rectangular outlet when you have four square ones.

Thank God we didn’t have carpets because our teachers would have missed a motivational story. And how would you step on carpets bare footed? Actually I never heard any student regret not having curtains or carpets. Education was delivered to us as a means out of misery that we can get to buy ourselves all the things we didn’t grow up having. And if we had carpets I wonder if I would be writing this.

We had special days to play real football. Those were the days the deputy headmaster would come to school inspired, mostly after exams. On such days, he would let out the foot ball. I mean the leather one. Maybe it was plastic. I am not sure. And everyone in school would get in the pitch to have a taste of this ball. And honestly when you get a chance to just hit the ball just once. Your joy would be complete.

Last week I travelled to the eastern province of Kenya to visit an educationist friend of mine. And he showed me the place he was schooling and I was shocked. The classes are dilapidated, the facilities have been run down and the situation is not better.

Despite all these, such school have produced national schools materials, prominent and respected people in the society though a chuck of students end up staying back in the same village they were born.

I was not a national school material, neither am I a prominent person, but one thing that is clear in my mind is that excuses are lies. Most people live their lives wishing they had a better past. You can never have a better past. It’s past. But you can have a better future.

Carpets and curtains are good but they are not a life and death matter. Whatever life brings, let’s not compare to despair. Let’s compare to dare. I believe life will always get better, when we live in hope, when we pursue our dreams. And regardless of where you came from, if you know where you are going, you will surely get there. As they say, where there is a will, there is a way. And now I am on my way to tiles and carpets!