The last time we were in Kiambu I found myself in the company of people who had travelled from the US to hold a concert here. Soft music leaked ever so delicately from the Sony speakers and made itself at home in between our conversations. At some point in the evening, as basic social courtesies demand, we had to introduce ourselves. The host, resting on a single seat that must have been fitted specifically for his frame, raised his voice above the rest of us and said, “Uhm, I think it would be great if we got to know each other properly. I mean, nothing complicated. Just tell us who you are and what you do.”
Of course I knew what he meant. When someone asks you to introduce yourself, what they mean to ask is, fill in the following blank spaces, “My name is _________ and I am a ______ with _____ Company” and if you choose to go further, you say “I am a husband/wife to __________.” But really, it is never that simple. There is nothing simple about a person’s identity. At least when it comes my identity it is not, because that in itself is a story. If you are to ask me to tell you who I am, I would take it to mean that you want me to define myself. This here is what I will tell you.
I am a boy on his way to becoming a man. My story begins just the same way everyone’s story begins – with a pregnant mother. I was born in the morning of March 12th 1991 on a stretcher in the hallways leading to the Maternity ward of Aga Khan Hospital. I came out as a boy even though my mom had been hoping that I would be a girl. So it is safe to say that from the get-go, I have always been a surprise. An unexpected guest.
Since my mum was expecting me to be a girl, she had planned to call me Joan. You cannot really blame her for expecting me to be a girl because my mother is a very practical human being. Her first born was a boy, Nimrod. Then came a girl, Regina. Then another boy, Deogratias. So going by that trajectory, you can see the logic. You can see why she had started knitting little pink socks for her last born, donge?
March 12 also marks the day my father’s uncle died; George Magunga is the man who had paid for my father’s education, and to honour his memory in true African fashion, he decided to name me after him. But there was a problem.My dad had been greedy with the naming thing. He had named all the siblings before me and so when my mother was heavy with her fourth child, they’d struck a deal. She also had someone she wanted to remember for the rest of her life; her favorite uncle – John Opinya. ‘Our forefathers will have to share this one’, they’d agreed. That is how my birth certificate ended up with George Opinya on it as my official name.
So you could say that I was born a compromise; one that would be used as a constant reminder of dead people who meant something to those left living.
I never ended up using that name George Opinya. The day I was registered in school my father went behind my mother’s back and made sure that I was registered as George Magunga and I grew up knowing that those were my names. By the time Mother Karua found out about my dad’s cheekiness, it was already too late.
But then for the longest time I resented my surname. Magunga sounded too bush. Especially for a kid growing up in Kisumu where, by some unwritten ordinance, every other person had two English names. Like Samora Innocent Machel, Isaac Newton Omondi, Winnie Johnsons Madikizela Anyango, Alfred Simpons Otieno, Kevin Johnson Onyango, David Winston Churchill Ochieng’. Yet there I was. Stuck with a name that sounded like a brand of flour. It had no class. No eloquence. It did not evoke the kind of reactions I wanted it to. Many people could not even say Magunga correctly. It was too much work, that name. Everything was wrong with it. When people asked me who I was, I said George. But in this world, people never accept just one name. They always asked ‘George who?’
‘George Magunga,’
‘Ma –what?” and this answer always pissed me off because now I had to spell it out.
‘MA-GU-NG-A. Get it?’
‘Yeah. Maguga, yes?’
‘Just call me George.’
Imagine they never just called me George. They insisted on Magunga – or their different versions of it. All through my school years, I was called by the name I loathed. I hoped that when I got baptized, they would give me a different name, like it was the norm. I was wrong. At the end of my catechism classes at Kibuye Catholic Church, they drew an oily cross on my forehead, sprinkled me with Holy water, but then refused to give me a new name. They said George was a Christian name already. So I took matters to my own hands and baptized myself Patrick Williamson. Williamson meaning the son of William (my father). Patrick – well, I just liked that name Patrick and the way when shortened in the Kenyan lingo, it became Pato.
That is why the class six end of mid-term results of 2002 were delayed because my class teacher went through hell trying to figure out who the hell Patrick Williamson was, yet she had no recollection of a newly admitted student.
And so I for a long time, I was that weird kid who was trying to be another person.
In class eight, they refused to register us for KCPE national exams with just two names. George Magunga was not enough. So for the sake of the Kenyan government, I took my father’s names and I became Oduor George Williams Magunga. That is what ended up being on my National ID, and after this struggle with the Immigration Office at Nyayo House, that is what they wrote on my Kenyan Passport.
But then you see, I have never been the kind to believe that my name defines me. Because none of those four names are mine. They refer to me, yes, but they are not mine. They do not belong to me in as much as I respond to them. Come to think of it, William Oduor is my dad. George Magunga was my dad’s uncle. Opinya was my mom’s uncle. I do not have a name that I can proudly call my own. Patrick Williamson died shortly after he was invented. His tomb; M.M. Shah Primary School dustbin. So to say that my names define who I am is to say that I am nothing but my father and grandfather. Which I am not. I am my own person. They are just a part of me, that’s all. They are but two chips in an otherwise huge block of chips that make me who I am.
“My name is Maximus Decimus Meridius, commander of the Armies of the North, General of the Felix Legions, loyal servant to the true emperor, Marcus Aurelius. Father to a murdered son, husband to a murdered wife. And I will have my vengeance in this life or the next – Russell Crow.”
What I am is also part of who I am. You would know this if you have watched the movie, Gladiator, when Russell Crowe introduces himself to the butcher of his family in a voice heavy with grief and flaming anger, “My name is Maximus Decimus Meridius, commander of the Armies of the North, General of the Felix Legions, loyal servant to the true emperor, Marcus Aurelius. Father to a murdered son, husband to a murdered wife. And I will have my vengeance in this life or the next.” Similarly I have been a lot of things to many people. I am a distant memory to some of my exes, and an asshole according to others. I am a friend to bunch of drifters. I am a brother to a total of nine siblings – one of whom died too soon. I have been a son to one man and two mothers. Polygamous families are complicated.
I was supposed to be a lawyer. When you are an African child and you graduate with an A grade from High School, you are lied to that the world is your oyster. That you can be whatever you want. What they really mean is that you can be one of five things; a lawyer, a doctor, a businessman, an accountant/banker or an architect. They never mean you can be a poet or footballer or a writer. That would be a waste of a good grade. So when I graduated from Maranda High School with an A-, I went through the list and settled on Law at the University of Nairobi, from which I then graduated with a Second Class Honours, Upper Division (there was only one person with a First Class).
I was educated to be a lawyer. But then somewhere along the way, I changed direction and decided to become a writer. So in the eyes of my mother, I am a disappointment. That is why she never showed up for my graduation. In the eyes of other people, I am a rebel. I am also not currently employed. I am a freelancer, but when you ask the rest of the society what that means, it will tell you that I am jobless.
It is a very lonely thing being a rebel. Many people never understand it. They do not get why I can’t just tow the line like the rest. I have 5000 friends on Facebook. So you can say I am a sociable person, but the truth is, I do not know more than half of them. Being a rebel makes you lonely. It makes you miserable. Rebellion is exile – a cold place from which the warmth of a mother’s love is withdrawn. Sometimes all I really want to do is share a beer with my mother at Nairobi West, and tell her that I am doing just fine being who I am. I want to tell her that from the moment I crawled out of her on that Aga Khan stretcher, she should have known what an impatient and stubborn person I was destined to be. The moment I arrived into this world as a boy and not the girl she hoped for, she should have known that I was going to disappoint her so many times. I was literally born to do that. To be a disappointment to my mother.
So sometimes I sit and scroll through my timeline, looking at what my 5000 friends on Facebook and 2658 followers on Twitter are doing. It is impossible to miss the hiss of ego and vanity ringing on those social media streets. Lakini most of the times I envy my virtual friends. Especially this past week when Safaricom decided to reward every person I know with goodies to mark their 15th anniversary. I watched them happy, showing off their new tablets, phones, airtime, food and the free bus fare courtesy of Safaricom, and I smiled in their direction. I liked their photos and retweet their tweets. Their lives have been a party this entire week. And it is incredible to realize that Safaricom has been here for only 15 years when it feels like they are as old as breathing itself. Occasionally, I joined in the revelry of their celebrations because to them, I am a loyal customer.
But then there is this girl who wakes up next to me. She has dreadlocks on her hair, and when she holds them back, her face is revealed. Something of a rare beauty who wears her smile like lingerie. This jaber also adds another button to my coat. She makes a me a boyfriend. And for the life of me, I have no idea what is like to be my girlfriend. To be my woman. Sometimes I say something and she laughs, and I look at her and I wonder, “Damn. I can’t imagine I had something to do with that.”
Look, the point here is that I am a lot of things. I am everything. And I am nothing at all in the grand scheme of things. Human beings are never just about one thing. When you invite me to your home and ask me to introduce myself, I feel like telling you this story over again. We do not have time for that. So let’s just skip the introductions and dive straight into the part we open that 12 year old Glenlivet for you and a sweating bottle of cold Tusker Malt for me. At least those chaps think that I am a legend.
Aside: Shit man. This should be a TED Talk.
61 Comments
Beautifully penned, as always!
You know who you are, which is more than can be said about most people.
Sibuor, at least we share one thing; Both our Mothers consider us Disappointments. Not that it’s a Good Thing but we can Drink to that, No? Okay, My Tab?
You now what did you do to your mom?
Thought provoking…. I need to ask my dad who is Mboya. Needless to say it’s worth the read.
well penned. on being a rebel i totally relate
I agree. It should be a TED talk!
This is beautiful Magunga, really is…
I’ve always felt odd because I always feel like my story starts with the pregnant mother in 1988 which later led to my birth in 89′ you have taught me how to write my story and I’m really grateful. I also struggled a lot with my name growing but later on in life I let it go. Did you struggle to write about your girlfriend? It felt like a misplaced but I could be wrong.
Thank you for writing, I’ll be sure to follow you so I get to read much more from you.
No. It is usually more difficult for me to write about my dad. Now that is a struggle.
Damn, this was an amazing read. Fuck TED though, can’t we hook up our own gig?
Like what now?
“The Voice behind the words”
Every Last Friday of Month, Kenya’s bloggers speak!!!!
………………….something in those lines.
I always thought I had a pretty simple name. Shadrack. Easy right?
wrong.
It’s the hardest thing people have come across after calculus, algebra figuring out where biros cost 8700.
My grandmother was the first to butcher the name. Sh is foreign so it’s S for her. D is T. so for the better part of growing up I was Satlack.
then came teachers. They were better. They could pronounce it. until I said my second name. Landi. pretty easy. But, not until I was lightning – Radi. Even across ter spelling it explicitly they still got it wrong.
Mama mboga calls me by my short form Shady. only sh to her is Z and D is t. so I’m Zeti to her. I gave up trying to correct people. I just respond to the closest thing sounding like my name.
That part, about being the boyfriend, Oh its beautiful! Very very beautiful…
Wait, do all ‘dissappointments’ end up here! I have always been one. Not a rebel though, but a dissappointment all along…. This piece took some burden off my shoulder. Well-written G….
One word for this TED talk. INCREDIBLE!
Nice piece Mr. G hehehe that struggle is fucking real here in Kenya lol….
Jamaranda, I hope your mom is now okay with what you do.
That disappointment part is so sentimental
nice piece bro
If you had been born a Kikuyu,your name would have been decided by customs without debate.we are all someone.as for being a rebel, I think I would say you are courageous. You choose to define yourself and take your destiny into your own hands, that is something that most people will never get to do for themselves.
Great piece!
Keep doing it, keep freelancing. 🙂
Does your mum read your blog posts? Just curious
I loved it!! Beautifully written..
Aaaahhh…. YOU ARE A REASON JUTHURWA!!!! and a very good reason… 🙂
Clearly Im not the only one with a problem explaining who I am.
Nyasaye Ogwedhi….
omera si you can write nice definition of who are
omera si you can write nice definition of who you are
a TED talk? Now this is that a real one.
How many times i go through that, they want to know about the accountant who is no more. A disgrace when you chose the path of what makes you tick. But i have learn to live by it coz upbringing was all about helping me make choices, when i make them, they might seem a disappointment. Only because they make me, these choices define me, what you helped build, am my choices and a bit of your opinions.
You are an exception writer who enjoys his tusker malt cold..Cheers man!
Nice read. I bet, even your mum knows that you are a gifted disappointment{writer}
Most of us have an issue with our names thats why we can relate with this piece. Abt ur mom she might be dissapointed but she will always love you regardless. Niece piece.
I can relate on so many levels. Awesome piece. especially the introduction part. I find it so unnecessary because I forget the names instantly anyway.
haha Auto-Data wipeout! It just happens, when someone new introduces themselves to me, i forget immediately and sometimes i regret but it just keeps happening
The way you described your girlfriend is just beautiful.
Wow!..Great .You are also an inspiration
I like your introduction of yourself, very interesting
The only problem I have with is that is too much of what people think of you and too little of what YOU think of YOU
You are divergent in a convergent system. Unpredictable , hence untamed, a thinker, outside the box, a seeker of truth, trail blazer and unfortunately neither sheep nor sheepdog hence the Dilemma.
Sheep namely Convergents are led down a well worn path and live predictably, work, pay taxes and produce more sheep. Sheepdogs guard the sheep and are rewarded with a percentage of wool/meat,opportunities to plunder taxes.
Lonely is the path to true self actualization without patronage or debt corrupting the process and vicious are the battles from those who took the wide paved road of patronage, never to realize the peak of self potential.
Be brave and fight for the reward is priceless, the summit of whom you are born and meant to be. Cheers.
Nice piece. you do justice to writing as an art…plus many of us related to it well.
p.s A looooooong piece but didn’t tire reading it. waiting for more
Nice one. We all struggle more to find ourselves in the forest within than we do in the jungle without. If we decide to search for ourselves in the jungle out there, we will never have a shortage of people that we want to be like and just like that, we will have eased ourselves into the straitjacket of others’ expectations.
However, if we decide to search in the, sometimes, scary forest within and manage to get that one thing that makes us unique; that one thing that makes us tick, one that we can do it without expecting any pay or accolades, we find a treasure called FULFILMENT. This is the most important ingredient of life that is completely missing in many a lawyer or doctor.
I guess searching for yourself in the jungle within is what is called soul-searching. Nobody has ever searched for his/her soul in the world out there and found it.
You are on the right track man because you found something you can do for the rest of your life without tiring. WRITING. And you do a damn good job while at it. It will definitely take you places as you have fun.
I was educated to be a lawyer. But then somewhere along the way, I changed direction and decided to become a writer. So in the eyes of my mother, I am a disappointment. That is why she never showed up for my graduation. In the eyes of other people, I am a rebel. I am also not currently employed. I am a freelancer, but when you ask the rest of the society what that means, it will tell you that I am jobless.
I like this rebel part.
Keep on writing MAGUNGA, we will keep von reading. It can only get better.
True that, being a rebel is hard. Legendary to be precise. Sometimes we spend 6 years taking a degree, just to avoid the tag disappointment. Not like we really like what we doing…
But what are we if not rebels? Puppets? We need a post on rebels
Loved this post, identified so much with the reality of living with complicated names. Inspiring.
I love reading and this is a great piece of work. Thumps up
I love your writing Magunga. This was a beautiful piece. You understand very well who you are, and that’s all that matters.
Magunga, this is a very nice read.
I am everything. And I am nothing at all in the grand scheme of things. …. Magunga, this is epic.
Wuod Luo for how long have you been having this conversation with yourself about your true identity? I for one also subscribe to some of your sentiments. Parents just sitting somewhere and dishing names to their kids anyhowly is never a palatable idea. Take my case for instance. I was baptized collins odhiambo in Ahero Mission catholic church. Come confirmation time Bishop Zacheus Okoth stands in the front podium and announces that all of us will be called St. Aloys (I don’t even know if I have spelt that name well, I hope the owner of that name forgives me). Throughout my life I have never used that third name. Because come the time when I reached age 18 I was told by the principle immigration officer that I could only add my dad’s name as the third one.
Human beings are never just about one thing. I can’t agree more with you here. Most of the time I get really pissed of especially with the female gender colleagues. They like asking what I do for a living, that is the moment I crack them up and say am a cane cutter. One day one had to challenge and ask but your palms are so soft. then to get more creative I answered I have a contract with a local sugar company to supply them with manual labour of cane cutting. That indeed still makes me a cane cutter even in another name am still just a cane cutter.
#TakeMagungaToTed
Awesome piece.
I like what you did the blank spaces in the beginning, nice
And the how you describe her
Sometimes I say something and she laughs, and I look at her and I wonder, “Damn. I can’t imagine I had something to do with that.
Damn Mr Magunga you need no introduction, you sir are a true writer, full stop
I like what you did the blank spaces in the beginning, nice
And the how you describe her
Sometimes I say something and she laughs, and I look at her and I wonder, “Damn. I can’t imagine I had something to do with that.
Damn Mr Magunga you need no introduction, you sir are a true writer, full stop
FYI : this piece is better than any TED talk and I mean that
So its ma-gu-nga !i am reading this at 1am.Its that captivating .You have a fan in me.
Murgori.
what a gifted writer you are. Very beautiful. Tempted to say i’m glad you were a mistake, and for everything you’ve come across. i mean, look at you now. such a gifted writer.
This is a deep piece.love the way you put it. we are never just one thing but the sum total of all the different facets of our lives. I second and third the TED talk.
Writing is indeed a talent.How you do it I don’t know but I look forward to reading your piece whenever I can.Good stuff and keep it up.
Wah,Wah,Wah, too beautiful for words, all of it…what you said…I love the brutal honesty and open vulnerability…that is the essence of a man you knows the fragility of human nature…thanks, thanks a lot for sharing…in your words…I am a lot of things. I am everything…to add one…beautifully crafted in the hands of the Maker, the Creator, God.
Going to sleep now my phone battery is running low I just couldn’t put my phone down.Your posts are beautifully written its 4:30am my goodness!! been up all night reading ur blogs you are indeed gifted speaking as a mom, I know mother Karua is proud of you,I would be. cheers
When you are good you are good, and thats who you are.
A great piece and a hilarious one.
A very wonderful piece. One of the best I’ve read on recent times. I hope you find greatness in your rebelliousness.
laughable piece of writing,not less than any humorous description could be!…I enjoyed it.big ups man.
The part about the girlfriend made me blush so much even if it wasn’t about me.Very beautiful 🙂
I guess that I will read all your articles