I was born in the 80s.

Most people have interesting stories based on their childhood memories. The similarities or otherwise of such stories depends on the time when the teller was born and the places within which he/she was raised/grew up. I was born in the 1980s but since I was a late bloomer, I have no recollection of any events from the 80s. My oldest memories are from the early 90s and this is my story.

Being the son of a couple of high school teachers (who I love very much), I was brought up in the compound of The self acclaimed Top School East of Mt. Kenya. I was such a healthy boy that the high school students there dubbed me "tumbo tele". That might have been influenced by my mother's strict food policy which involved locking my big sister and I outside with our food until we cleared our plates.

I remember being so innocent (read stupid) that we'd actually eat it up instead of dumping it in the nearby thicket or somewhere creative like a smart kid would. I'd ridicule myself as well but back then, we didn't have sufficient access to information like the kids of today.

I remember our mother's regular deworming rituals which involved making us "go" on a newspaper to confirm whether the snakes had come out. I remember the first time mom sent me to the shop to buy meat..."nyama robo"...with instructions longer than the recipe for disaster.

I remember always running home from school to watch the Rambo cartoon on the only TV station on air back then. It took me several years to find out that Rambo's "black" head band bandana was actually red in color.

I remember watching Tahamaki, Derrick, Ramayan, Herbie, Super Grand, Mr. Bean and Tausi among other TV shows religiously because the kids who did were the coolest kids in school.

I remember repeating Nursery school because I couldn't reach to touch any of my ears with the opposite hand passing on the top of my head. I also remember doing my first school interview where I used my answer sheet to make a paper plane and against all odds, I qualified.


I remember all the good, naughty and unscripted experiences which I went through together with my childhood best friend although sadly, that imp doesn't remember any of it.

I remember inadvertently hurling gross insults to my school mates in public in the name of mchongoano. I also remember making my own functional/durable car toys and driving them to school everyday. I had one all terrain "toyota hearse" which i'd use to ferry dead frogs with during the rainy season. #Hides.

I remember the days when we were forced to bring firewood, live fences and water to school failure to which students would be canned and sent back home.

I don't remember what if felt like to have a seat in a public transport vehicle because seats were for elders only in those "face me" pick ups and Landrovers.

I remember the only fat man in the entire Division who was only reknown for somehow pulling off a "being fat". There were so many life related problems back in the day that getting fat was considered impossible.

I remember being paraded along the highway for hours simply because the president would be driven by with our milk popularly known as "Maziwa ya Nyayo".

I remember the news always beginning with a portrait of the president. I remember sneaking out of bed to watch the only TV station from back the days going off air at midnight and vice versa at six in the morning. Anyone who lived through that should be able to sing the national anthem of our beloved country in atleast 45 languages.

Bread was a delicacy, chapati was a Christmas Special while cakes and meat were common with birthdays and national holidays in that order.

What happened to Goody Goody?

Holidays were fun. Playtime had nothing to do with electricity. It was a time of general outdoor interaction, a group activity by all definitions. Every kid was involved and the variety was broader and more versatile than the crap in your play store today. In fact, I never played with electricity in the old millennium. I don't remember knowing the word mobile independent of the prefix "auto" before my teenage years.

I remember manufacturing gum from natural local resources and using it to trap birds for soup and ndege-choma with the boys. Shooting down birds with catapults. I remember fishing with worms as bait.

I remember how entire villages would travel the miles for a glimpse of helicopters that would land on rare occasions with politicians or tycoons' medi-evacs.

I remember when the country did not have any noteworthy celebrity outside the vitimbi crew R.I.P Mzee Ojwang.

I remember the first time I saw a water closet. I remember the first time I watched a colour television. I remember the watching my first movie in colour "Back in Action" starring Billy Blanks in 1994.

I remember when our aunt took us to see K.I.C.C and the parliament building. The flagging off of safari rally cars with Patrick Njiru being my favorite driver at the time.

I could have remembered so much more but unfortunately, I'm not very smart. I'm sure that you've got many childhood memories that you could share with your friends. I'm glad that I've taken a moment to share mine.

What's your favorite childhood memory?