The cold weather in Kenya

Its July again and I can’t help but talk about the way our “winter” affects us in Kenya. Believe it or not this is the time when many sick people especially those with HIV/AIDS related complications succumb to their illness. I have already lost a friend who was buried last weekend, another one is in hospital critically ill.

When travelling up country to attend a funeral of a relative some years back, who had died of HIV/AIDS complication during this time of the year (just one week after the wife had succumbed to the same). On reaching the town center, where I had to choose whether to go by boda boda (bicycle transport) or take a taxi to avoid walking two kilometers home, I looked around me and counted 6 to 7 carpenters, each with between 4 – 6 coffins. I could not believe it because I don’t think capenters up country make coffins to display in showrooms, hence those where orders meant for dead people lying somewhere.

While passing City mortuary on Ngong road last year at the same time, I would notice the carpenter was always very busy with many coffins compared to other months, by the way you will not see this now because City council has now put a wall around the mortuary so the workshop was demolished.

The weather can also affect normal people with pneumonia and asthmatic attack if one is not careful on how they dress, Metrological department warned people yesterday to dress well for the weather. One funny thing is you will notice some ladies (especially today being a Furahiday) wearing mini skirts, tumbo cuts and spagetti tops (shivering like hell and pretending that everything is ok). Some would even dress their babies in the same manner for outings, in the name of fashions.

My appeal to everyone is please watch out for the cold, ladies your kids need you healthy and don’t deserve pneumonia and asthma for the sake of fashion, it will not add any value to their life, better look a bit funny in a kabuti (jacket) than to be sorry.

Prevention is better than cure!