Kids do the darndest things

When I wake up in the morning, I want to be challenged into positivity that will last me throughout the day. I want to be encouraged that despite the chilly mornings and the drab weather, the day will get better. All this hope and enthusiasm is usually thrown out the window during the matatu ride to town every morning when the matatus insist on playing Classic 105. The incessant sex talk( as one Brian Koyoo puts it) is much more than I can handle. It usually leaves me drained of energy and by the time I enter the office I am a mindless zombie ready to do anyone's bidding. Today it particularly ticked me off. You remember how I said I detest Classic,well I stand CORRECTED. I loathe Classic in the morning, I hate it with a passion. I swear if I could develop an emoticon for a person strangling another,I would,then I would post it on their facebook page. It a shame that one of the most well respected Kenyan role models is part of this show. Anyway, my daily dose of ranting and raving ends there. At one point I thought to myself how I really need to get earphones for those long matatu rides to town.
The only thing that got me through it was the thought of the great day I had yesterday. Aaaaaah to be a kid again. I spent my whole day with 7 to 8 year old kids yesterday that left me with a lot to think about by the time I got home. Let me set the record straight first. Primary school teachers I salute you. You are the true unsung heroes of this country and we never give you enough credit. Dealing with kids that have impish energy is no mean feat. Those kids were truly a handful, forget the fact that we were trying to teach them the value of working as team.
I got the chance to play with some of them and interesting enough I saw some values we carry into adulthood portrayed in these kids, I guess the child is truly father to the man.
The objective of the game was to get a glass of water placed on an octagon shaped board with 8 ropes attached to a bucket about 20 meters away and empty it. Sounds easy right? Wrong! If one kid doesn't hold their string high enough the cup comes tumbling down.
Its during this exercise that I noticed certain characteristics that are usually found in organizations:

• The self appointed 'Team Leader'- This is the guy who always volunteers to head a certain task. There is this one kid who wanted to do everything, from filling the cup to emptying it in the bucket. This kid was there.
• The 'Weakest link'- The guy who everyone always complains isn't doing a good enough job. The kid who couldn't hold his end of the rope found himself as the object of constant shouts from the others
• The 'Know it all'-The guy who thinks he knows everything about everything and is only too happy to do some other person's job for them. I saw a kid who not only held his rope up but felt the need to hold another kid's rope up for them because he thought they weren't doing a good enough job
• The good employee-This is the one who always does their work as per expected nothing more nothing less. A little girl was content with holding her end of the rope,walk all the way to the bucket and go back for more

At the end of the day it was all about having fun with the kids and I decided to put away my harsh criticism, I mean, they are only kids. I got in touch with my inner 7 year old and just let loose. Who knew it was this much fun. The highlight of my day however was when one of the kids was counting tattoos on a colleague of ours and went something like " 1..2..3..4..5. You have five tattoos, my mom only has 2. We looked at each other in shock yet with a knowing in our heads that said, "hmmmm this must be the much criticized Generation Y parenting that everyone seems to be afraid of if the whole Mutunga ear stud debate is anything to go by"