Category: Uncategorized

by Mariita J. Ongoro,

Nearly everyone has those days that they are the happiest, everything seems to go well as planned and more rewarding. Such times, you will feel like you own the space and life is running deep in your vessels. Times when you’d laugh loudly, share every bit of your experience, show much care, show up for you and them. I would say it’s intra-relation positivity era.

Days your business thrives with much profits, given stipends without delay so you won’t run late of paying bills, times when friendship soars and never lets you down. In fact, your relationship with your troublesome lover seems to have been renewed. It’s like a life full of hope and promises that come to pass without meanders and valleys. Long live those days.

On the other hand,  there are just normal days. Times when you’d surely have something eating you within, a little disturbance but manageable. You are functioning normally; at least you laugh or smile and never failing to attend to your important tasks. At such times you’d whisper, “Today I have migraines, somehow fatigued, feeling dizzy but I have to run errands.”

You’ll have a bunch of assignments awash but you’d still attend cinema, binge watch that series. Your friends would be asking you for help and you’d say, “Honestly I’m busy but I’ll try.” Everything you think or do is normal in a normal life.

Here comes moments of frailty. Days when your nerves are painful and horror-striken.

Moments of desperation, distress and for sometime, you’d think of leaving earth for mass. Mood swings atleast for ladies, and demotivation for nearly everyone. These darker days are a hell in a beautiful world.

Days of grief, constant failure regardless of tenacious trials, days of bumpy roads with your land lord, heartbreaks and jilt. Domestic violence, marriage separation, hatred and haunting, strikes and streets coated with bloodshed, heightened Gender-based violence, civil wars and post election violence, pandemics and terroristic attacks are all descriptions but not limited to several demonstrations of darker days.

Psychology reports that atleast everyone exhibits depressive symptoms once in a while. If these states are overwhelming and no point of escape, depression dares to sting men and women with a venomous defeat of stability. Unless help is given in due time, life then presents itself as meaningless kind of pursuit. Some would want to live no more.

How to live during the darker days; it all depends with the perception. That it is not how things are but how we think them through-argues psychology. In other words, we will always have brighter, normal and darker days but how they affect us, is determined by how we think towards them.

“Good or ill, life is life, you only realize that when you have to risk it” says a quotation.

By Joe Aura,

[aurajoe6@gmail.com]

 

As we celebrate Earth Day (April 22^nd), it is essential to remember that our commitment to environmental conservation extends far beyond a single day of the year. Earth Day is every day, and it serves as a reminder that all living beings, including animals, deserve our protection and care. Among these unsung heroes is the donkey, whose history in Kenya is deeply intertwined with the fabric of communities across the nation.

For centuries, the donkey has been a reliable companion, aiding in transportation, agriculture, and daily tasks that sustain livelihoods in Kenya (source: Brooke East Africa). Its contributions to these communities are immeasurable, yet often overlooked. From the bustling streets of Nairobi to the remote villages of Turkana, the donkey is a symbol of resilience and cooperation, bridging gaps between people and facilitating essential activities of daily life.

However, the very existence of these noble creatures is under threat due to illegal slaughtering driven by international demand for their skins. This illicit trade not only endangers the survival of donkey populations but also fuels other crimes and health issues within communities (source: KARLO Annual Report, 2019). The high demand for donkey skins in countries like China, where they are used in traditional medicine, exacerbates the problem, pushing these animals to the brink of extinction.

Recognizing the urgency of the situation, the Kenyan government has taken decisive action to prevent the mistreatment and extinction of donkeys. Measures such as the immediate formation of multi-agency teams across counties, tasked with enforcing operations against illegal slaughterhouses, demonstrate a commitment to safeguarding these invaluable creatures (source: Government of Kenya, Ministry of Agriculture). Furthermore, public awareness campaigns, media outreach, and stringent regulations on meat slaughter, transport, and sale aim to curb illicit activities and promote the ethical treatment of animals.

As stakeholders and earth lovers, we have a responsibility to treat animals with compassion and respect, not just on Earth Day, but every day. By advocating for animal welfare, supporting government initiatives, and making conscious choices in our daily lives, we can honor the spirit of Earth Day and ensure a sustainable future for all living beings on our planet. Let us pledge to protect and cherish the unsung heroes like the donkey, for they are integral to the delicate balance of life on Earth.

 

(Photo courtesy of Institute of Entrepreneurship)

By Nicole Waweru

You might be wondering, ‘Does this topic make sense?’ But in so many ways, it does. Failure can indeed bring success and shape our lives into something greater. I have had my fair share of failures in life, and as much, as I would like to give up every single time they come by, I am glad that I did not.

Failing can damage our self-esteem and in extreme cases, our will to live, but it all boils down to how you choose to come out of it, stronger or weaker. Failure is guaranteed and is inevitable, as long as you are striving for something, or if you have put yourself out there in one way or another.

Failure is often compared to defeat, I had a period in life where I said, ‘That’s all there is to it. Close the doors! I am not going to do this again. This is not meant for me.’ Failure does not spell doom, you just need to take a different path. We always put ourselves in a bad state of mind about failing when we should be asking ourselves, is this the end, or should we just try again? Consider your past mistakes, would you change any of them? What did you take away and discover from your mistakes?

More often than we would like to acknowledge, we have all failed at something in life, whether big or small. Most people only talk about failure when it is something really big that can drastically alter our relationships, financial situation, and mental health. However, failure can be seen in the little things, for example, if you had set out a to-do list for yourself, and you only managed to tick one box, you might end up feeling like you failed.

If you are anything like me, you have probably failed numerous times as well. Although we cannot claim that we especially enjoy failing, the challenges and lessons it presents shape us into better people.

We grow, mature, and improve as a result of our failures. We develop fresh viewpoints on the environment we live in. People are challenged to make big leaps when they fail because it knocks them out of their comfort zone. For the times I have experienced failure, I have found myself bouncing back stronger and attacking the situation with a better mentality because I have taken time to assess the situation and have a critical idea of how I want to take on the challenge differently. This is frequently the value of failing! Failure is a necessary step on the road to success.

All of our lives have been altered by failure. Failure has been the constant teacher of everything from puberty through adulthood. If we are constantly afraid of failing, we will constantly be on guard and lead unexceptional, unfulfilling lives. I know I have been a victim of this kind of thinking, I always thought that failing meant that you have reached the bottom of the barrel and that there is no hope for you. But, I was wrong, failure does give you a chance to recover and work on a better plan.

I always thought that all the great people I look up to, like Michelle Obama had not experienced any form of failure in their life, because as I said, I always imagined that once you fail, you stay down forever. I have however realised that even Michelle Obama, has had her fair share of failures, but the true strength comes from how she bounced back from it all, truly admirable if you ask me.

Sarah Dessen once said, ‘Life is full of screwups. You’re supposed to fail sometimes. It’s a required part of human existence.’

The range of your failure’s causes may be extensive, but it is learning from them that improves your outlook on life. Failure often leads to excellent learning; therefore, it is not always a bad thing. Having said that, nobody can escape failing, but nobody expects to succeed either.

Remember to not dwell so much on the idea of failing in whatever you are doing, instead, be kind in whatever comes your way. You never know when new opportunities to change your life will present themselves.

 

By Sharon Victoria

 

We recently celebrated world environmental day on June 5th and it was another opportunity to celebrate and appreciate the environment around us and come up with solutions to the current environmental problems. In light of that, we shall be talking about green washing, a big environmental hazard which has been a main concern of late.

 

In today’s world, environmentalism and environmental consciousness has been a hot topic of discussion that consumers are more drawn to sustainable products and companies. Due to this, companies have resulted to deceiving their consumers by green washing so as to still thrive in the market.

Greenwashing is the practice of misleading people into believing that a company and its products are sustainable and environmentally friendly when, in reality, they are not. This is usually done by placing misleading labels that claim the products are environmentally friendly, fake claims of supporting green initiatives.

 

Greenwashing has negative consequences for both the consumers and the environment. To begin with, it destroys consumer trust by manipulating them to take the sustainable route and in turn, the genuine sustainable markets face unfair competition and may also lose consumers on claims of greenwashing. The presence of these practices hinders the progress that many are trying to make so as to have a sustainable future thus derailing the plan of a better future.

 

The culprits of this vice are usually either in the food industry or the fashion industry. For the food industry you can get labels showing “organic” but you will miss the ingredients used or at times they omit the toxic chemicals used. In the fashion industry, fast fashion brands may promote clothing lines made from sustainable materials, but in turn it involves excessive emission of waste and exploitation of their workers.

 

To do away with greenwashing, companies need to practice transparency and accountability. Government regulations should also be strengthened and they should ensure that green claims are verified and standardized.

(Photo courtesy of Wikipedia)

By Caren Chelagat

 

Distant river banks and closed windows are witnesses

That pain cannot be written into lines

You’d probably misjudge my turbulent tides

A p0rcelain pottery it seems

Delicate and feeble art it portrays

Who can bell the cat?

Who can bound chains to the cat?

A fortitude threshold an intense pain

Everything looming bows down in the rain

We are tied to chains

The cat is having to its fill

While we are left with nothing to even quench our thirst

Deluge of information Flowing through

Conversations dripping too Sent by a deluge of mails

Flipping through the mail box

The rule had been passed through

Each and everyone had a say through it

But no thought was taken through

The top head belonged to the top dogs

As they sailed through their say throughs

That was implemented on their orders

The followers were just but a tip through

To convey information to jut but get a through pass

As they hailed to the top dogs

Without gaining truth

They just but followed with bitter truth through them

But their greed for promised toppings topped it all through

And they availed to follow it through.

By Wangui Njau

Njaucatherine3@gmail.com

Thumbnail Photo Courtesy of Christine Wambui

Pageantry, reverence, honor, and bliss dawned on the blazing 12^th of November 2021 in celebration of the 44^th Daystar University graduation ceremony and the class of 2021.

Graced by the presence of distinguished guests amongst them several Vice Chancellors of different universities like our former acting chancellor, Professor Kombo, now the Vice-Chancellor of St. Paul’s University, The President of the University of Northwestern, USA, Dr. Alan Cureton, The CEO of the Kenya Film Commission, a Daystar Alumni Mr. Tom Owase, few representative members of the diplomatic community and a representative Alumni’s of the graduating class 2001 amongst others.

Rising stars shining beyond all impossibilities was the theme for the day as Daystar accoladed all the Integral parts of the university who ensure the smooth running of Daystar as a whole and the 1400 graduates with their respective diplomas, Bachelor’s, Masters, and PhD’s.

The Vice-Chancellor professor Laban Ayiro left us with some powerful words “The people who change the world, the people who change institutions, the people who change homes are the people who, one, put God first and two, choose to be unrealistic in their approach to life,’’ said the Vice-Chancellor.

This was the most powerful and key takeaway of the day as truly the confidence you gain or perfect at Daystar leads you to a conviction that comes with your strengths, your character, and when you set foot in a room there is precedence all around you because you are a Daystarian.

All in all, the 44^th Daystar graduation ceremony was definitely one to be revered as the speeches were illuminating and thought-provoking, it was also a celebration of not only the graduands but also the people who mould us on our day to day life, the people who ensure we have a seamless learning experience, the people who work tirelessly and perform their duties that make our lives at Daystar simpler. However, the greatest acknowledgment is to God who has brought us this far and will continue blessing everyone especially our graduates in abundance.

To the graduating class of 2021– Go shine your light and remember you are unstoppable.