Currently in the heart of Busia. Why? Attending the traditional wedding of a friend.
Here’s the gist, when I say a friend we didn’t attend the same kindergarten, I haven’t known her for the last three years either. I knew her barely two weeks ago.
Then right now, I am here. Comfortable.
When you were five, what did you want to be when you grew up?
Believe it or not I wanted to be a journalist when I was five.
I’ve said it before, when everybody else wanted to be a lawyer, a doctor…I stuck with “I want to be a journalist when I grow up”
It stuck. It grew on me.
Many years down the line, I was in Uni studying communications.
What’s a secret skill or ability you have or wish you had?
I’ve thought so hard about this.
I read it in the morning then I figured, I might have figured something out come evening.
I have genuinely sat with this, but nothing is forthcoming.
So what’s coming forth is, I genuinely do not have any secret skill or I am just satisfied with the skills I have. The latter is an outright lie though.
I know there’s a secret skill I’d wish to have. I just really needed to think thoroughly over this.
Cheers🫶
What tattoo do you want and where would you put it?
Today’s prompt just brought a huge grin on my face.
I love ink. I appreciate tattoos.
I have tiny cute weird ones that I love love so much.
I’m still trying to figure out what my next one should be. I want it to be very very sentimental. It might be my offspring’s name, I don’t know.
What is one word that describes you?
Authentic.
What was the best compliment you’ve received?
I have been told a bunch of times that my presence is calming.
Hear this out,..
While other people appreciate how authentic I am, some have told me “Val you don’t have to be entirely authentic” This blows my mind every time. I would never ever want to torment myself like that. Genuinely, those are the people I run away from because how on earth can you advise a person, on not being entirely their true selves and somehow you manage to sit down with yourself and be okay!!!
I am still trying to find out why authenticity should be such a bother to people.
On Sunday, another sweet soul told me “you are overly kind, and you should change that” I lost it. I promise I broke down. Totally. I’m not daft, I know when to be chill and when to bring out my claws, I just don’t like reacting to things that are bound to disturb my peace. I choose my battles. Smartly. Most times I’m just chill.
In the last few weeks I’ve been told about a bunch of things that I shouldn’t be, and everything I’ve been told not to be, is what I love being.
Again, in the last four weeks alone I’ve been told by more than four people, “when you love, you love extremely and that’s where you go wrong”
In a world where I’ve been told, don’t be too authentic, don’t be too kind, don’t love extremely, I wouldn’t know how to exist I promise. So the smartest thing to do is smile at those remarks and rub them off as soon as they are thrown at me. It’s a messy world out here.
I’d love to protect my cacoon.
That was a whole rant I know, but the point is, the most rewarding compliment I’ve received is about my presence being calming.
Cheers🫶
I’ve been totally out of my flow in the last one week and a few days.
Presence. This is my new way of navigating friendships. I know my social life has been in the trenches for so long. I have awesome souls in my life, but besides interacting virtually, I barely ever make time for them.
Because of that, I have been trying to restructure.
My friend lost a dear person to her. On a phone call with her, she broke down and my heart crushed. My friend is the strongest soul I know. It crushed me hearing her break down on the other end like that.
Unlike me, she’s not mushy. We call her “gaidi” to mean rogue but in a good way. She’s amazing.
Apart from my family, I have never been around such a big number of people for more than a week. Most people would argue and say, I wouldn’t know how to navigate such situations, haaah! The joke is on them.
In as much as the circumstances that brought us together were sad, but I’ve loved, especially how beautifully human beings can coexist together.
I have never at any point enjoyed being the center of attention, story for another day.Â
Something about my walking style, I make calculated, graceful steps that seem to bother people more than they should. I have learnt to be entirely comfortable anytime somebody cracks a joke about my walking style.
I went on a break from my job hunt, because clearly a lot has been going on, still is.
In as much as it has been entirely rewarding just being there for my friend, I won’t lie I’ve had moments where I’ve felt guilty about not being “productive”. I always have that feeling any other time I’m not doing something “constructive”.
Social interactions aren’t a waste of time. They can be rewarding. Slowly, I am teaching my brain how to register that simple fact.
Major changes are happening and I hope it’s all for a good cause.
Cheers🫶
Who is the most confident person you know?
Yet to meet one,
I only know a bunch of cocky humans who mistake that for confidence.
Shadow to my light. 