A Tribute To The Strongest Ladies

Single moms tell a story of sacrifice and patience. With more women opting to become single parents of late, it’s about time something was said. Anyone raised by a caring single mum will tell you they know what true love is. She is the person who will patiently listen to you despite her utter exhaustion. She is the gift that keeps on giving.

How are the children of single moms? It is a common belief that children raised in a family with a father and mother has some added advantage. That is the traditional way things appear. Unique situations where the child was raised by a single parent usually led to prejudiced judgments because it was synonymous with “broken” homes or “illegitimate” children

So let’s debunk this a bit.

The level of education of the mother actually influences the level of ambition and determination of the children. The child mirrors the success and efforts of the parents. And sometimes is compelled to do further. This can be driven by the parent(s). It is not based on the relationship status of the parents.

However, not to say single-parenting has no pitfalls, it has several. A single parent with adequate resources may provide a stable, nurturing home in which children thrive just as well as those who have two parents. On the other hand, a single parent who’s just scraping by and has little time, energy or skill for parental duties might have children who are at risk for a variety of problems which are mostly potential psychological effects and most single parents really struggle to steer their children away from these pitfalls.

Let’s face it, it’s a dog eat dog world. We are in a harsh economy where you must keep up to make it. Single moms would do anything to make an extra shilling. For example, in Egypt a woman pretends to be a man for 43 years to make ends meet. Sisa Abu Daooh wore a Taqiyah and went on her way to work. This devotion is not a calling. Her goal was to make sure that her children were fed.

But all in all, at the end of the day, she is both your parents rolled into one and in most cases, your best friend as well and that lady you absolutely love and admire.

It is quite remarkable what single moms do. It is quite encouraging. This was a requested post by one of our awesome followers. And single fathers, we really appreciate you too 😉

Much Love,

Steja.

Are You Getting It On?

It’s a bit late for this; however, let me comment about this issue. This is a special request from one of our followers… your wish is my command.

Via http://www.hercampus.com/

So on 18th Feb this year, our dear president Uhuru Kenyatta initiated a global campaign that is meant to curb HIV prevalence in Kenya. The president was adamant that safe s3x education is the best tool against this dodgy virus.

In Africa, HIV/AIDS is the leading cause of death. Our ladies are the ones mostly affected.

So the ALL IN initiative is meant to avail children with condoms… now this caught my eye.

Linda Wanyam, head of Austereo, was frustrated that maternity leave was affecting her business. So the solution? Deploy the condom jar in the office. She encourages people to regularly have sex with condoms.

This might seem odd but isn’t it the same as what the initiative is doing? Soon my 13 year old relatives will be asking if am packing…

NHS has been promoting condom for children as well… with the slogan: Get it on. Does it mean that we have officially thrown the towel on underage sex? I get that HIV infections are not reducing as fast as in other groups but it seems as though we are encouraging it…

I’m no economist but it seems easier to invest in wider access to HIV testing. It has been proven in UK to be a very effective tool in reducing the prevalence of HIV infection.

I also believe highly in the ABCCC prevention plan: practice abstinence, be in monogamous relationships, demand condom use, be conscious of your HIV status, or insist that male partners be circumcised.

As mentioned, the individuals highly affected are the ladies. This prevention plan mentioned may not work among women where gender roles impair their ability to negotiate especially for the first C.

In this world we live in, we find all sorts of errors that can not be justified. According to this report, and a few conversations, I was shocked to realise that some ladies opt to live for the moment. They tend to have multiple s3xual partners to make ends meet. So this means, economically we need a better support system for women and mostly single mothers.

This cuts arose all genders. There is a pressure, especially among the adolescents, to engage in this art from your peers. Now, when is the right time? That is a question only you can answer, though, such a decision should not be made under desperation.

Via imgkid.com

You have HIV.

I have HIV.

HIV is not the problem of those that have it in their blood streams. It is our problem as long as it is still looming. Create awareness, learn more about it and get tested even if you are not s3xually active yet. It is up to us the youths to come up with other solutions to this pandemic.

With no single solution for preventing HIV infection, I’m glad the president is doing something.

Much Love,
Steja.

Scratch My Back, I Will Scratch Yours

“I myself have never been able to find out precisely what feminism is: I only know that people call me a feminist whenever I express sentiments that differentiate me from a doormat or a prostitute.” – Rebecca West, 1913.

What happened?

Fight for what you believe in.

November 17th, women flock Uhuru Park and streets of Nairobi in protest. “My Dress My Choice” sparked an uproar in the capital. These events followed stripping of women by men who claimed that they were indecent in their dressing.

The morality and the cultural basis of all this has been discussed in detail. Interesting enough there is the side of the story J. Waititu might not like to hear.

24 days earlier, this text was sent to a certain S. Wambui: “Ulikataa nikule hizo vitu na vile nazimezea mate. Now i am employing another person on your behalf. Hii dunia kila kitu ni nipe nikupe. Ken will give you the other details on how  clear from the office. Goodbye”.

This was not the most elaborate termination of employment. But we can see what he was thinking with.

Let’s dissect this…

What does the Law say??

In a case where you are terminated from your job, you have the social right to enforce some laws.

Employers have a hard lemon to swallow when it comes to axing employees. Especially, when they are not 100% justified to do so. It is perfectly ok for the employer to terminate your employment when some grounds of misconduct are met 😀 .

If your employer terminates your employment because of age, gender, sex, race, religion, disability or infirmity, marital status, or sexual orientation, you can claim some legal action.

Few years back, the lives of women were limited to the house – which they couldn’t own. Now, the level of equality between the two sexes has been improved. Utopic idealists have driven the force of feminism in the past few years. This has been through creating awareness through the media and serious discussions. Some laws helped.

So we all have equal rights. Especially, when it comes to respect.

Hii dunia kila kitu ni nipe nikupe

“Men often act knowingly against their interest” David Hume, 1740.

Some believe that doing a good course and studying hard will get us the dream job. With salary for days! You can only be given that money if you offer a service.

Well you should not give so much you cannot feed yourself. However, sometimes the best incentive is happiness, and not pleasure.

This attitude might be a deterrence from effective youth philanthropy.

This guy

Firing an employee is very stressful. It’s like losing a friend. However, sometimes it has to be done. I guess it had to be done.

It is formal and very human to, at least, terminate someone’s employment face to face. Electronic methods tend to devalue the person. They might not be the best team member but they were in the team.

It takes courage to break up with your SO face to face… it also displays weakness if you use electronic means.

We need a witness! As we wait for the story to fade and details explained. We need someone other than the aforementioned to describe the employment termination. I believe, the situation looks grim for J. Waititu. However, not all the evidence has been displayed. We did talk about how selective the media is.

In this digital era, you have to be careful on your human relations. Otherwise a slip will have the office and everyone on a buzz.

What would you have done?

Much love,
Steja.