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             (MOTHER’S DAY DELAYED SPECIAL)

My mother,

The most amazing woman on the planet alive today. Many of you are going to roll your eyes or be convinced this all sounds so cliché. But if you have been reading any of my previous titles you would have noticed by now that sugar coating anything or anyone was left to Willy Wonker of the chocolate factory.

                                                 

Back to basics…..i have watched my mother touch thousands of lives every other day without asking for anything in return. I’ve watched scoundrels, strays ,hypocrites walk into her life in droves and misuse her and the resources she has to offer then disappear after wrecking havoc in her home. Leaving her to pick up the pieces and to repair her house alone. And she does it. ALONE.  Ofcourse she’s human and she hurts and she cries but she still gets up, wipes her tears and reconstructs her house and picks up the pieces of shattered glass and feelings left all around the house and compound.

My mother isn’t perfect. That’s one thing I need to establish with the entire world before I write anything else. She isn’t perfect! Far from it. She’s PHENOMENAL. My mother was blessed with BEAUTY. TIMELESS BEAUTY. CLASSIC BEAUTY. Which she inherited from her own BEAUTIFUL mother who was even crowned “Miss Machakos” back in 1957. A county now back in Kenya. We had the misfortune of losing her in November last year but her memory lives on for giving me my mother. Without her I would probably have ended up elsewhere.

My mother’s beauty is only a tiny part of her phenomenal self. She is INTELLIGENT. She doesn’t have 50 degrees under her belt but those mean nothing when it comes to dealing with everything I’ve witnessed her deal with. My mother is the 3^rd born of 7 children and she has lost all her beloved 3 sisters. As if that trial wasn’t enough…..she was left with the custody of their children and they are six of them. Now adding to her already four daughters…that equals to 10children and four of them are boys. A mother who had no idea how to raise boys and had absolutely no experience either but still she took it in stride. But as life might always throws lemons at us….my mother’s marriage crumbled. Still mourning her siblings and adjusting to raising boys plus helping the children in dealing with their mothers’ loss….she lost her marriage and us her children because we felt like we had lost our mother to our cousins. Personally, I Gertrude went literally bananas. My education suffered. I stopped caring. I started a rebellious stage and went all out!! Before we could digest our mother wasn’t going to be our mother alone. That God had given her more children to also be a mother to…my mother re-married. I totally lost it. I was confused because we hadn’t even gotten used to our parents living apart. It all happened so fast! It left us reeling in despair, confusion and hurt. I was embarrassed aswel. Then all my complicated feelings together with puberty turned into ANGER. All those other emotions were obviously way too complicated and too many for me at that time. I blamed my dad for letting her get married to someone else. I blamed my mother for being selfish and not giving dad a chance. Then I blamed my new stepdad for stealing any chance of my parents getting back together.

All this time my mother didn’t explain anything to me because it would have probably been useless. I was way too naïve to have understood but she had my back. She didn’t judge me. We quarreled ofcourse. She punished me a whole lot and when I kept getting suspended from school she always received me with open arms.  I realize now I didn’t make life easy for her when I should have. I was busy blaming her for being selfish yet I was the epitome of selfishness myself.

 Not long after; a close friend of hers passes on and leaves her beloved daughter in her hands……that brings us to 11 children. By this time I was settled in at campus and had my head wrapped around my neck tight! So as not to lose it again. I had my future to look forward to. My mother had lived her life and she was way too burdened to have me running amock again. My mother does all this not asking even for help from any of the other children’s relatives. And some even have their fathers alive. Now you tell me if that’s not PHENOMENAL in this day and age with such a lousy economy.

My mother never once sugar coated anything for me. At 8years I could cross the road with my younger sisters in my care. And we would get to the other side fine. Even if it took 5hours and my sisters got impatient or called me blind cause I have an eyesight issue. At 9years I could take public transport to and fro my mother’s work place and auties’ houses. By 10years I was cooking all sorts of meals and baking even for her guests when she’s just supervising with her eyes. Even laying the table and serving the guests without her lifting a finger. Why? Because she knew she had done an excellent job with her 1^st girl. Anyone who has tasted my cooking can certify I had the best teacher…mommy dearest.

She never ever asks for help. She has been hurt by people she trusted and even us her children and the adopted ones. She has been betrayed time without number. She has seen her businesses hit dead ends and with 15 mouths to feed she couldn’t afford not to revive them somehow. I have seen her hit rock bottom but for only 24hours max! She picks herself up knowing she is the engine of the family and can’t afford to sulk and throw around pity parties. She gets up early everyday and goes to sleep after ensuring no one has slept hungry or sick. And the best part about it is she NEVER EVER gives up on any of us!! For all of us who have failed in one aspect of our lives she doesn’t sleep until she’s gotten us an even more lucrative plan B. The way her brain shifts gears leaves me in awe. Her not backing down from all the challenges being thrown at her inspires me. Her industrious and innovative nature highly motivates me.

Iam who iam today because of my mother. Sitting around mopping and sulking?! It better not be around her because you will have an earful of facts you won’t want to hear or accept. My mother has made her fair share of mistakes no doubt but all I know is I’m abundantly BLESSED for having a mother like mine. Not forgetting the fact that she has never given up on me. So y’all best stop wondering where my huge take charge personality and boisterous self comes from. My mother clearly passed on some of it or is it most of it?! Hehehe.

My mother has even adopted 2 more children who aren’t family as I write this but she’s fine. She’s the epitome of STRENGTH. She’s AMAZING. She’s PHENOMENAL (I insist). The best part above all is she’s MY MOTHER.

I LOVE YOU MUM. I’m BLESSED to have you as my mother and totally proud to be your daughter. And not just any daughter but the 1^ST. You make life beautiful with your charm, unique sense of humor, passion for life, affinity to beautiful things, your obvious sarcarsm, generosity and selflessness.  

I wouldn’t be who iam today causing so much harm with my giant personality, strong mind, double edged tongue and zero tolerance for the people thriving on weakness and people throwing endless pity parties instead of doing something about it without your genes.

You will always be the envy of many because you did an excellent job here. And the fact that your way too awesome to be true. People will always throw stones at things that shine and you just shine even brighter creating blindness to their negativity.

                                            Uncensored with unbridled love, pride and adoration,

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