We celebrate you Men…

Today I celebrate my love for you; it seems the natural thing to do…

There is a kikuyu Mugiithi song that says “… gutire mundu murume nyenje…” (that there is no man who is a cock roach) the song goes further to say that when the man is alive he feeds three families and even a concubine with his meager income and when he dies they will one day sleep hungry.

For a long time now we have assumed so many things regarding our men and boys we always think they were born survivals when they get hurt society tells them to suck it up! Men do not cry… we assume they do not feel pain or are not supposed to feel pain.  The small boys are told ihii ni ihii oana ciathe kuu (boys will always be boys wherever they go) granted boys are chaotic and very destructive actually when a boy comes near me I start panicking. I know when he makes his exit something will be broken or stolen, they do not leave empty handed there will be signs that a boy was in the house.

I believe our men and boys also need affirmation they have feelings and emotions just like women and girls and they also get hurt and feel pain too.  Men you have touched our lives we may not openly acknowledge it but you do. I will not discuss you negatives and they are many and besides it is what we use to hammer you with anyway. Today am giving you the benefit of the doubt and doing what Paul says, today love will cover a multitude of sins and I will celebrate you 1 Cor 13.

Men, we acknowledge you are gentle; you get so easily swayed when you see a woman in need and always go to her rescue and that is very sweet…although later we turn against you.

Men, we know women scare you- If a woman made a fire breathing prophet run for his life to God’s mountain “…may the gods strike me dead if by this time tomorrow I do not do the same thing to you that you did to the prophets…” 1 Kings 19:2. I know women can be scary first because they know and understand you hence able to manipulate you or any situation or even cause you embarrassment. Your fear of women is justified, I would be too. Women are very unpredictable.

Men, we acknowledge you are our protectors, killing of crawling reptiles or insects or anything that scares women, what would we do without men? One time a cartoon depicted an event that happened in Mombasa during the Kenya Bus Services (KBS) era that a mad man entered the bus and shouted haki ya mungu nataka mwanamke (today I must have sex with a woman) and all the women in the bus fled and hide behind the bus conductor. Thank God for men.

Men, we acknowledge you are strong and we need your strength when we want heavy things lifted or carried we look for men. Although we shamelessly exploit you by not paying enough, we bargain a lot and you take it without complaining thank you so much. There is a cartoon that shows a model trying to change a puncture and next her, there is man standing who has huge muscles that seem to be very amused and wondering what the heck she trying to do. Women why break your back when you can ask for help…actually if you are not a momo (a big mama) that man can even carry you. They are that strong…

We acknowledge that your presence in the home plays a big role in your children’s life. We all agree that when the kids are misbehaving and unruly and a father issues just a warning things change. We have a nephew when the grandfather tells him to stop doing something he obeys immediately, but when the grandmother tells him to stop misbehaving, he instead wants to charm her, befriend and hug her instead of obeying talk of men’s charms at two years old.

Men, we also know you get lonely since the society expects you to be strong 24/7. We know you sometimes do not have an outlet to share your feelings. If you turn to drinking it is an issue, if you turn to another woman it is an issue. Men I feel for you!

Men, I do not even think women have ever sat down and put themselves your shoes and wondered what you go through. But all the same do not accept to die before your time, please take care of yourselves. If you need to go for counseling, swallow your pride and seek help, but do it for yourself. Bear in mind that if you die before your time someone else will definitely come in to take care of your wife and children, because life must go on.

Finally men, if your women have not told you lately that they love you…am saying it on their behalf we love you…does not matter our agendas but we do. You mean so much in our lives….