Day 46: My Baba's A Museum

          Most kids feel like their parents belong right next to the dinosaurs at the Smithsonian.  Today I found the museum where my baba belongs: his old primary school  in Sakila (the second one he went to), where he attended standard 4 (4^th grade).
          My baba grew up in a lot of places all over Meru, and everyone in those places will claim that that is his hometown.  Sing'isi is one, Sakila is another.  Baba went to Sakila when he was 9.  Every day he would get up at three in the morning to hike up the hill to school.  By the time he reached the field across from the school at eight, he was already late.  Storing his lunch in the footlockers (a line of thick tress and bushes), he'd run the last hundred meters and line up to receive his strokes for being tardy.
          But I'm getting  a head of myself.  Let me start the day out properly.  From bed, of course.
          I'm often a little bit cold when I wake up at Shangazi Eli-aremisa's.  This is because Baba likes it really cold when he sleeps, and insists that all the windows be left wide open.  I've since gotten a second sheet for my bed, but some days it's not enough...  By the time I get up Shangazi Eli-aremisa, Baba Kitoi (her Husband.  In Tanzania it is common to be nicknamed after your first born), and Salome (Eli-remisa's last born) have already left for work.  Faraja (Eli-remisa's second born) will have come over and dropped of Jovin before leaving to go teach at a near by primary school.  I have to be very quite when I first wake up if I want to dress in peace, as Jovin will want to play with me right away.  I don't know why he likes me so much, as we can barely communicate.  One of us must be very strange.  Probably Jovin.
          I eat breakfast while playing with Jovin, then wait for us to finally get going to wherever it is we're going that day.  Sometimes we leave as early as ten.  Other times, as late as two.  Today we left somewhat early, around eleven.  Ino took us down to the main road where we met Shepard Isankiya.  It was he who took us to Sakila to see Baba's old friend, Eliudi, the Bishop.  He and Baba were childhood friends way back in the day.  Eliudi's wife had recently died, bringing him back home from the States.
          After talking with him for a while, Isankiya drove us to the place where Baba's old primary school had been.  Nothing was left, just a large empty field.  Then we found out that that wasn't where Baba's school had been.  Two old men came by and showed us where the school was, just back up the road a bit, still standing and in use.  Wouldn't you know it, one of those two old men was Baba's old school mate!  Better yet, the building that had held Baba's old classroom had been turned into a museum, and so his old classroom was still there.  The upkeep left a little to be desired, but Baba could tell where his desk used to be.  Baba also showed me the "footlockers" where he would store his lunch (and hope no wild animals got to it before he did), as well as the spot where he would get whooped everyday for being late (after which he had to say "Thank you, Sir!", or get more strokes).
          From the school we went to visit Ndevera Urio, Baba's sister (who had gone to school in Sakila with him), who lived near by.  Once again we had to get help from another old man to find the place.  You could tell not many people in cars ever came to his place, as there was no road, just a boarder between a corn field and a small drop off barely wide enough for Isankiya's truck.  Ndevera's husband and Baba chatted about old times, and how much their joints hurt, and who knows what else in Kiswahili.  Finally Baba asked to see Ndevera.  We were then informed that she was very sick with something (thought they didn't know what).  Ndevera was staying in a little crude shed outside, so we went out to meet her.  Ndevera was awake, sitting up in bed, and Baba spend a long time talking with her before he was finally ready to go.  Next stop, home (at Eli-aremisa's)!


E’ya! - Tate


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