Five Things

Janet Mbugua (love her!), an extremely eloquent Keyan ex-news anchor, a mother of two and a champion for menstrual health has this series on her Youtube Channel where she occasionally talks about 5 things that are on her mind. She talks about anything and everything without limiting herself to a certain area of life’s happenings. I love her content but especially love the fact that she is championing for normalization of conversations surrounding menstrual health management, a conversation that is long overdue. I believe that we’re in a era where topics that were previously considered taboo are no longer to be shied away from. I have become more open to such conversations, sex education topping the list because I have been part of a community that turned a blind eye to such talks for as long as I’ve lived. Anyway, here are the 5 things currently on my mind.

JANUARY CRAZE is the no. 1 thing on my mind! At this time of the year everyone’s become a motivational speaker, lol. I scroll on my timelines and see quotes on quotes. Most people have dived right into their new year’s resolutions with a bang and I love to see it. While one is on their path to start living healthy and visit the gym frequently, another is working on building and strengthening their morning routine. While one is in talks to start off a new business, another is taking steps to save more. While it’s perfectly fine to do all this, I’ve realised that for me sometimes there’s pressure to begin in full energetic motion right from the start of the year such that when it gets to a point within the month and things aren’t going as you’d planned, you start to beat yourself up. My plan is to take it a step at a time. If I’m feeling like I don’t already have my ‘normal energy’ back, it’s still okay. 

EMPLOYMENT, evil & good at the same time. My 2nd thought has its source on my deep need for financial independence. I like that employment gives me income that caters for my basic living expenses but is it ever going to be enough to make me move to the ‘Esteem’ part of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs? NO. Will my life just be rotating on the 3 lower levels of the hierarchy? How long does a common Kenyan youth need to be employed/be dependent on others to finally set foot into a space where they can have a taste at ‘Esteem needs’ & ‘Self actualization’? This cheque-to-cheque life sucks big time. Businesses we’ll start will take us off the rotation, Inshallah.

BEING INTENTIONAL is thought number 3. I am taking time to figure out what that really means for me since it’s what I decided this year will be about. Will being intentional mean that I wake up an hour earlier? Will it mean that I take up challenging tasks and see them through? Will that mean that I take my friendships & relationships more serious? Does it mean that I step up my morning run with an extra kilometre? Read a book to completion? Better manage money? I am figuring that out and reading content surrounding what being intentional really means.

SOCIAL MEDIA PAUSE & PHONE ADDICTION. This 4th thing on my mind is largely influenced by my intention to be intentional. Get it? I was a twitter & phone addict for half of last year. There’s a video of Iyanla Vanzant on YT where she says that when someone says something about you the first time, listen but don’t put much thought to it. When a 2nd person tells you the same thing, now draw your attention to it. When three or more than that tells you the same thing, you are it, you are that thing! Don’t fight it. Accept it and work on changing it. In my case the first time someone mentioned that I was always on my phone I got so defensive. I told them off and asked that they mind their own business. I remember my words to them being “…it’s funny you say that when I’m still able to do everything I’m required to do in a day…so, please leave me alone.” The 2nd time I heard the same comment was from girls I’d just met and spent a weekend with. One jokingly said that i’d been on my phone a lot and others supported her claim. I brushed that off with a laugh but deep down I knew it was true and it bothered me. 3rd time and probably 4th were from my sister and you know what that meant, I had to take action. The pause isn’t only from social media per se, it’s from aimless surfing around the net. I realized that I wasted so much time looking & subscribing to stuff that really didn’t even give me joy. 

The last thing on my mind is the POLITICAL MAYHEM that is our country right now…but then when has it ever been okay since I was born? I am the last person to ask about political stuff though. Whenever people are talking things politics I’m always the dumb one coz I try so much to stay away from all that mess. Funny thing is, the mess is right on our faces every day, it’s hard to completely avoid or ignore it all. The news have become too messy, I seldom watch or pay attention to them. Stories mostly broadcasted are awful & sad. It’s either someone’s stole billions from a certain gov’t ministry, someone has hacked their husband to death or a murderous leader has been granted bail pending hearings which die a quick death and all is forgotten. I don’t want to watch and read sad stuff. I wish we all lived in harmony and love, like shut all that shit out. But here we are, in a world that isn’t ideal. This shouldn’t even be in my mind but it is….

I have a Youtube Channel btw (hahahaha). I uploaded some videos I took in 2019. Here’s a link = Mercy Kangsy