Of course by now you very well know Mwacha mila ni mtumwa! I could end my diary right there; take out my snuff box and my three legged stool, and sit under the mvule tree sipping my traditional brew with fellow elders.
But because I am in no hurry, I will tell you one or two things. In my lifetime I have seen and done a lot. I have also traveled to see the world; and the world has seen me. In my travels, I have interacted with different cultures and admired how human beings are able to transmit that which they hold dear to their progeny.
One of the most important tool of cultural transmission is language. I will not belabor to tell you how important your mother tongue is. But if you lose your mother tongue and adapt strangers’ tongue, then you are no better than a robot moving with the commands of the programmer.
Maybe you have encountered modern parents who are so proud of their children because they cannot utter a single word in the native language of their parents. This malaise is not only with diaspora parents but also prevalent in many homes in Kenya.
Teach your children a few words in your mother tongue, and they will not need an interpreter when they meet with your mother! You will be surprised how fast a child learns a language. That child will thank you in adulthood for being multilingual.
Let your children learn our ways, that we respect elders, that it is not in our traditions for a three year old to argue with parents and throw a tantrum when the family wants to turn off the TV in order to say the Grace!
Tell your children your ancestry. Remind then from which community and clan you come from, show them pictures of your ancestors. Do not be ashamed that your grandmother was wearing traditional garbs; that your grandpa was walking bare chested, it is part of your legacy. Show your child that you are proud of your heritage as an African person.
You may have noticed how many African Americans troop to West Africa to reconnect with their roots. How the European Americans are proud of their sir names and can name six generations of their ancestors. It is so Biblical to know where you came from, read the book of Chronicles and the Gospels if you doubt me.
Finally, when you visit the homeland, do not hide your children in the city for fear of jiggers in the village. Show your children your derelict primary school and your local church. Show them the river where you fetched water as a lad, the thickets where you hunted wild quails, and the field where the whole village gathered once a month to watch Sinema Kwa Wote.
By Mzee Moja
