Out of the Blue

No Balo, it happens to us all

Today started a lovely day. Though the July chilly weather is still making Nairobi seem like Siberia, I was excited for I was going to see someone special in the morning on the way to work. I did see them and headed into town to pick the bus that drops me at work, but then all hell broke loose. Well, not quite so for I believe hell is like nothing anyone ever imagines but still a place to not be scared about if you have a relationship with Jesus…but that’s a story for another day.

Yes, I need some tailoring classes

So, my trouser riiiiiiiped. Yea, it ripped on a major scale! Walking briskly, trying to dodge the oncoming traffic of people, I felt a ‘rrrrrrrr’ sound, like the one Mbusi and Bonoko repeatedly make on Ghetto Radio. Kumbe my very new trouser got hooked to a nail on a nearby kibanda and the seam just ripped apart from the waist down all the way to below my left knee. Boom! Disaster had befallen me though I must admit the breeze felt nice.

So I just stood still, if I wasn’t an African and thank God for this excess melanin that nullified sunscreen from my budget, I would have turned as red as a ripe tomato from Githunguri. To say I felt embarrassed would be an understatement. I contemplated three things. Either, go to work feeling like a boss while evoking all sorts of reactions and actions.  Secondly, looking all over town for a tailor who was open at that time (0630hrs) and the last one, looking for a new trouser to buy while I knew the cash on me wouldn’t be all sufficient. Was so confused that I didn't remember I had plastic money with me. The fourth and unmentioned choice was to will time and chance to rewind the whole situation, live in denial and hope all shall be well.

Well, I had to act and seeing the most sensible thing was to have the seam sewn (sounds like a tongue twister meant for our Luopean friends) back together, I set off, purchasing two safety pins on my way to look for the elusive tailor. The breeze felt better as I walked J

Woo Hoo! Getting sorted...

My feet took me all the way towards Gikomba, where the option of getting myself a new pair of pants would be executed. Frankly, my mind was quite blank. I just knew that I needed help, was desperate for help and I was literally clutching at straws. To cut the long story short before you get bored, dear reader, I found a dingy building where as if by chance, a tailor was just opening his clad laden store. I did not even care that it was dimly lit or the corridors even up the stairs were lined with bales of mtumba clothes. In a few minutes, my trouser was fixed as I stood there reflecting with just my boxers on. Eventually, I was able to get to work on time and it actually turned out to be quite a lovely day.

Where I found my Hope

Sometimes life will just surprise us. When the unexpected happens, most of us opt to live in denial. Some act, but albeit too late. And the course of life is an unpredictable adventure. A course into the unknown. Daily. It’s not always with bad occurrences. Scripture says in the latter part of Ecclesiastes 9:11 that “… time and chance happen to them all.” Sometimes, we miss the mark by a very small margin…like that Switzerland player, Blerim Dzemaili  who hit the post in the last minute of their World Cup game against Argentina yester-night. The ball ricocheted back, but he could only direct it wide thus confirming elimination of the European nation from the football bonanza.

 Take the chances that come your way, avoid standing on the same spot as life moves by. Ultimately, I think we should be frantic to determine our ultimate destiny. Life on Earth isn’t eternal. Accept Jesus and love Him, for this is by faaaaaaaaar, the greatest decision you can ever make. Heaven won’t be your destination by chance. Choices have consequences.

And yea, when you rip your pants on a nail, you might wanna enjoy the breeze a bit more than I did. Maybe for the rest of the day.