Today I want to share my story. When I share my story today, I must admit I feel skeptical, I was not always like u see and hear me today. When I was growing up I had a dream, I wanted to be somebody, and I wanted to create something for someone. Yet when I shared my dream like I know some of you here do, the pessimist said my dream was invalid. They said Wafula, you got to wake up and stop Dreaming. They said 'Kisaka' was no longer an instantly recognized Surname, they said I had no networks; they reminded me of so many past events in my life. They reminded me of my background.
So my dream was born amidst no hope, no encouragement, and no mentorship. They called it a tricky Situation. And I let it eat into my conscience. My self-esteem went down, and in my schooling, at Wekelekha primary I found solace in the company of other kids who were regarded dysfunctional like myself. We were used to be finger pointed all day long, corners became our favorite seating points, and we were always on the lookout for bullies. By the time I was 12 I had, had enough. I was ready to give up and when u grows up in such a situation, you learn 4 things; don’t talk, don't trust, don’t feel and pretend nothing is happening. My miracle came through scouting at our school, Namachanja High School. There was a student by the name Kennedy Opatta; I thank God for him, he was born to inspire. He used scouting as a training ground. Together we read stories of dysfunctional characters. To me, he was a brother I never had. God uses greatly those who are often forsaken; He used scouting to turn my Pain into Power, your wounds into wisdom. I began to understand that God could convert tricky situations like you find urself in today, That there was hope for you and possibilities, and when a child begins to understand the Love of God and the power of his words it changes everything, I say everything. I began to read inspirational books; I memorized over 1,000 inspirational quotes. I read Gifted Hands, a book that inspired me greatly.
When you put that kind of Word in a life, something begins to happen... My fears went away, my confidence shot up, I stood tall, even the "cool" kids sought me out for guidance. I joined Namachanja High as an average student, left as a top student. I gave hope to those students who weren't friendly with the library. I became the 1st Scout, noisemaker, joker and perennial absentee to ever top the school.
I became the 1st student in my village to get an 'A'. It became the village darling. This enabled me to be admitted to the University to study B.com (Logistics option).
While in 2nd yr, I re-discovered myself. God brought the right people in my life. I had a chat with Hon Nyenze, minority leader in National Assembly. His story was like mine. My political journey started from there. His words are still fresh in me, "Wafula, you can make a great politician.” Since then, my dream has always been to serve the people of Kanduyi constituency as their Member of Parliament come 2022 and as, governor of Bungoma 2027.
Everyone has his/her own path. The earlier you discover it the better. Everyone's dream is valid as long as it is the right dream. Make a habit of praying before you go to bed. Pray that when you dream, you dream the right dream. |
