Remembering Idd Salim

One year ago yesterday, Idd Salim passed on. He died of Tuberculosis.

Sadly, I must have been living under a rock at the time because I only got to know of his 'Disappearance Act' months later, in June 2014.

Thus Spaketh Idd Salim
To me, Idd Salim Kithinji was one of the outspoken tweeps I just couldn't ignore. I very frequently read his blog - Thus Spaketh Idd Salim. Inasmuch as it was the kind of blog you would never read aloud in the presence of your parents or impressionable kids, it was and still is such a joy to read.

Even from his grave, Salim still makes me laugh and reflect.

His opening lines and quips in most blog posts were salacious, yet funny. Salim was brusque, but based his assertions on fact (mostly). He would pontificate yet be profound. Consider the following:

On Robert Alai's arrest:

On the type of women to avoid:

On how Kenya cannot match Silicon Valley in USA:

On how local coders are conned by foreign 'investors':

Most Enduring Memories

What I remember most about Salim was his protracted beef with Robert Alai. At one time, Idd Salim and some friends planned to launch TechMataa to counter Alai's TechMtaa.

Introducing the TechMataa Tech Blog « Thus Spaketh Idd Salim http://bit.ly/q7u5rv
— Disappearance Act (@iddsalim) August 8, 2011

Also, there is this very deep post Salim wrote about faith, prayer, merit and their attendant problems. Too bad I cannot get this post on Archive.org. How I wish I saved it on my hard drive :-(
Last, and in no way least, he did this post about not being employed. This was in fact his penultimate blog post, and was inspired by a question raised by @RoomThinker.

It is a detailed post, and I urge you to go ahead and read it. Salim ends the post with the following timeless words:

“Employment is cool” I tell people, “especially when that is the BEST you can do”. But if you can do better, please never give up.

Chase your dream. Daily. Daily. Chase it.

Thus spaketh Idd Salim.

Fare thee well brother. I'll always fondly remember you Salim.

Grandma Transition Memorial... 2 Years On.

Two years ago today, my grandma passed on at the ripe age of 98 years.
At the time, I wrote an RIP Grandma post on The Walkabout.

Looking back, I can only thank God for all her days, which epitomized a life well lived.
At the time of her death, she was blind, highly dependent and quite immobile. I however believe that she passed on to a place where she would see clearly and no longer be subject to human frailties. As Hellen Keller said:

"Death is no more than passing from one room into another. But there's a difference for me, you know. Because in that other room I shall be able to see."

I also believe that grandma's life was a success, and in recognition, I share the following poem which is near always misattributed to Ralph Waldo Emerson.

To laugh often and love much;
to win the respect of intelligent persons and the affection of children;
to earn the approbation of honest citizens and endure the betrayal of false friends;
to appreciate beauty;
to find the best in others; to give of one’s self;
to leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch or a redeemed social condition;
to have played and laughed with enthusiasm and sung with exultation;
to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived — this is to have succeeded.

Here is a site where you can read more about who actually wrote the above poem.

For those who know me or otherwise knew grandma, please take a moment and join me in thanking God for all the days she walked this earth.
This year, she would have been 100 years old. I am however immensely glad that during her days, she was able to achieve so much, most of which some of us still living today can only dream of.

That said, kindly look back at the previous post and do the needful to make today a day well lived.

Discovering Who We Really Are

We're almost done with the first week of 2012. After this, the year won't be that new after all...

In the previous post, I mentioned a STOP DOING LIST that Jim Collins considers the best new year resolution one can ever have. Well, today's post further explores similar thinking, all in the spirit of effecting enduring change in our lives.

Yeah, change. You see, we do not change who we are. What changes is aspects of our lives. I can change much of what I say, do or think. I however remain Pete R Njenga. A recent update on Twitter by @Amasy got me thinking...

For many of us, we have many things we need to stop doing. In fact, most of these things are addictions and bad habits that have taken control of our lives. It should be noted that in this context, an addiction is anything one is compelled to continually do, even if it feels good [but ain't right], at a time for and using energies that should be directed towards other things.

Reading Safe Haven [PDF] which is part of the personal stories in the Alcoholics Anonymous Big Book, the featured alcoholic who lost nearly all continues to say:

Now willing to listen and take suggestions, I have found that the process of discovering who I really am begins with knowing who I really don't want to be.

I've realized that I cannot go back and make a brand-new start. But I can start now and make a brand-new end.

RIP Bob

Bob [foreground] and Amy [background]

In other news, one of my dogs died yesterday evening. He has been quite unwell since late last year and had lost significant weight. But he stayed strong till the end...
Despite medication, I bet that transition, much as I'd rather he didn't die, was for the best. Remember Steve Jobs saying the death is life's change agent?

I laid Bob to rest soon after his death just after sunset. I took time to recall all the good times we've had since I adopted him and his twin sister Amy in September 2010.

Bob, Amy & Fifi in Sep 2010

That was just a month after Locke died.

Locke and Fifi in August 2010

I then recited the following poem by Mary Elizabeth Frye, as I did when I buried my favorite cat Miau miau on a Tuesday morning, following his demise minutes before midnight on Monday, October 03, 2011.

 Miau miau [black] and Fifi [grey] 

Do not stand at my grave and weep,

I am not there; I do not sleep.
I am a thousand winds that blow,
I am the diamond glints on snow,
I am the sun on ripened grain,
I am the gentle autumn rain.
When you awaken in the morning’s hush
I am the swift uplifting rush
Of quiet birds in circling flight.
I am the soft starlight at night.
Do not stand at my grave and cry,
I am not there; I did not die.

Amy and Fifi are still around to keep me company and hopefully produce more offspring [they're both female].

Alright good people. Have a lovely Thursday!
:)

R.I.P. Grandma

"Death is no more than passing from one room into another. But there's a difference for me, you know. Because in that other room I shall be able to see." 

- Hellen Keller 

Transition Elevation

On Thursday, July 21 at 1830hrs, my grandma passed on.
She lived for almost a century, and what a life it was! I do thank God that she died of old age, not disease or any other agonizing and painful condition.
We laid her to rest yesterday.

I won't eulogize her on this blog, but will just share Mary Elizabeth Frye's Do Not Stand at My Grave and Weep poem and some photos of her resting place.
This poem is featured in Desperate Housewives s04ep10, where Karen McCluskey and Lynette Scavo scatter Ida Greenberg's ashes on a baseball field.

Do not stand at my grave and weep
I am not there. I do not sleep.
I am a thousand winds that blow.
I am the diamond glints on snow.
I am the sunlight on ripened grain.
I am the gentle autumn rain.
When you awaken in the morning's hush
I am the swift uplifting rush.
Of quiet birds in circled flight.
I am the soft stars that shine at night.
Do not stand at my grave and cry;
I am not there. I did not die.

Kwaheri

Fare thee well grandma. God be with you till we meet again [lyrics].



More pics