A Foreigner In Kenya, Chapter 16

 Ukatili - brutality

So the days go by. The long awaited

Rain has come, then sunshine came again.

I come back from my walk. Nobody there, everyone is gone. I am amazed, but do not attach great importance to it.

It doesn't take long before my phone rings. The monster calls.

"We are in the hospital!"

I am scared. "What happened?"

"Skydiver swallowed a five shilling coin!"

I'm not badly amazed. Have to ask again, I think I've misheard, but no, it's true. I have to laugh. Calm the monster and her daughter, tell them that this is not dangerous.

They come home after a few hours. They show me an x-ray. I look at it, have to laugh again. You can see Skydiver's stomach and the five shillings coin in the middle. Looks really funny.

"The doctor said she is very valuable to mom now."

That is nature, what comes in at the top comes out again at the bottom. And so it was.

A few days later. I read by the bed. Don't think anything bad, I hear a terrible noise. Skydiver screams, the monster screams. I storm out of the room, out onto the porch, see the monster skydiver beating. It's not just a slap, it's a heavy blow! I rush to it, push myself in between, shooter skydiver with my body. The monster is mad. I take Skydiver by the hand and take her into the bedroom. The monster follows us, roaring and screaming, at the same time trying to hit Skydiver, but I can prevent that. Skydiver's face is wet with tears.

I reassure Skydiver, tell her that her grandma won't hit her anymore.

In the late afternoon I ask the monster what happened that beat Skydiver like that. I can't believe my ears, what she's telling me is incomprehensible to me.

"I gave her one hundred shillings to buy me airtime. On the way back, she swallowed the airtime credit."

I ask Skydiver why did you put this strip in your mouth? Of course I don't get an answer. It would be too much to ask.

I'm trying to explain this thing to the monster. "It is like that," I begin. "You should really be hit on the head! Sending a three-year-old to go shopping is a tough job! Three-year-olds are not sane, you should be aware of that."

The monster cannot understand. It's annoying, but it is.

Brutality is rampant here.

Another day. Another brutality. This time it's Jigsaw.

I'm lying on the bed, writing. Scream! Suddenly Jigsaw storms into my room. Eyes wide open, full of fear.

"Save me!" She calls.

I realize immediately that it is very serious.

"Come on, go to bed, your mom can't hurt you here!"

The monster rushes in, a thick branch in hand. She charges at Jigsaw, tries to reach her, to hit her. I try to push myself in between. The monster pushes me away, hits Jigsaw. Jigsaw screams, desperately trying to escape the blows. I have to fight the monster. Ain't easy, the monster is strong and I am weak. Finally I manage to take the branch away from her. However, that did not bring the peace that I wished for. Now she is attacking her daughter with her fists. I have to step in again, push her out the door, lock the door, no one can beat her now. Now the work begins. Calm down, Jigsaw and the monster. The monster sits in the living room and breathes like a fire-breathing dragon. Jigsaw moans by my side.

I ask what happened that her mother is so angry. She tells me that her mother sent her shopping and on the way back she lost the change.

"How much is it?"

"50 shillings."

I go to the monster in the living room. Jigsaw trembles in the bedroom, the monster in the living room. I'm also shaking from anger.

"Are you completely out of your mind?" I yell at the monster.

As expected, she cannot understand.

"Are you freaking out about 50 schillings?"

"She lost the money!"

"That can happen. We've all lost around that happens!"

"That's 50 shillings, that's a lot of money!"

"Of course it's uncomfortable, 50 shillings is a lot of money. But the blows aren't worth it. You have to talk, explain, try to understand, brutality is completely wrong. It doesn't help! Makes things worse. If bJigsaw once grown up and has children herself, she will remember these blows. What children need is love and understanding, trust. Where should they turn when they have a problem? They turn to the person they trust. "

Only society, because only it and only it, has caused the existential imbalance that we try to overcome by walking upright. She and only she has robbed us of the world's trust.

We are all children of Christ and our Lord, instruments of his mercy and placed on earth to act as instruments of his grace, to sow the seeds of brotherhood and good works.

Brutality in upbringing is widespread. Brutality is easy. Easy to use. The stronger beats the weaker. This is how we pass it on to our children. They don't learn anything else, they don't see anything else. This is how the brutality is passed on from generation to generation.

I never hit my child, it never occurred to me. Brutality is a sign of weakness. This is now bearing fruit. Perhaps I may briefly mention it here, it has nothing to do with Kenya, but still very informative.

I was in South Africa. Had an accident, a woman caught me in the car. Hip was broken. The hospital wasn't exactly good, as birds were nesting in the room. The date for the operation could not be found out, in maybe 2 weeks, it could be longer, I was told. In short, it didn't look good, I felt like I was going to die. So I said goodbye to my child. "I come and I care for you!"

That was the reaction. My child is a doctor. After all, my child set heaven and hell in motion, I was transferred to a much better hospital, and the next day I had an operation.

My child saved my life.

You can only do this with love, not with a beating. Children do not forget!

I also think I can remember that these words are in the Bible: "Let the children come to me, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven ..."