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I promised in my last article to talk about ‘funk’. The funk I would like to talk about is the funk called ‘living in the past’. If you remember the Lion King, you will remember two clowney characters…Timon and Pumbaa. These are the two who found Simba in the desert after he escaped near death that was planned by his evil uncle Scar.

Now that you have a visual of the two characters, let me help you remember the time when Timon and Pumbaa were advising Simba.

Pumbaa: You know kid, in times like this, my buddy Timon here says “you got to put your behind in your past”.

Timon: No, no, no. Amateur. Lie down before you hurt yourself. It’s “You got to put your past behind you”.

In Pumbaa’s innocence, he highlighted a key human weakness… “put your behind in your past”. There are those of us who cannot let go, especially when it is sorely needed. Not all things of the past are beneficial to hold on to. Why do we keep a part of ourselves in the past? I hear you asking “WHO MEEEEE?” That outfit that no longer fits you but remains in the closet because it has ‘pleasant memories’, or you have the hopes of one day wearing it again. Have I described you? Let’s take a dream walk for a second…Imagine that that outfit occupying space in your wardrobe is essentially occupying the space of an outfit that could make you look your best…keeping you in the past…Imagine that that bad habit occupying space in your daily life, is essentially keeping you from progressing….Just imagine, that buying an identical outfit/car/house/tie is essentially choking your creativity at self-expression…just imagine…are you just ‘copy-pasting’?

Back to Timon and Pumbaa. In their comic exchange, there is food for thought…just ask yourself….are you putting your past behind you?…or are you putting your behind in your past?

Are you just copy-pasting because you are ‘comfortable’? Remember that when you sit on a comfortable couch in the same position day after day, you make a crater that eventually starts hurting your body!

While the past is a nice place to escape to, remember that you are robbing your present of the magic that it’s waiting to give you.

Is your behind in your past? 

Or is your past behind you?

Welcome to the ‘month’….muhahahahhahhaaaaaa! (insert evil laugh)..This month has lovers and haters! I will write a two-part series…ok..I will ‘try’ to write a two-part series! 

Let’s go!

If I could be anything for a day,

I would be your hairbrush. 

Built to polish your crown,

A visual reminder of your radiance.

*end of inspiration*

Let’s try again..

If I could DO anything for a day, 

I would love myself regardless of my flaws.

I would be gentle on myself when faced with obstacles/barriers.

I would know that I am born to be more than I am….

Love yourself. You cannot pour from an empty cup. How do you fill your cup? Are you aware when your cup is drained? 

Surround yourself with people who have you at heart.

Love is a verb.

Be flirty with yourself! DO!

January is the month we (well most people) love to hate. However, it does hold some lessons that just whack you in the face when you sit down to reflect. Walk with me..

1. Cabbage is the new chicken – When was the last time you had cabbage voluntarily? Hahaha! Anyway, the assumption in January is that we eat cabbage because we have not recovered financially after the festivities..at least for me! 

When your resources (apart from financial) are depleted, what do you do? When you are down to your last chips, what do you do?

2. Roast that spinach – when spinach is subjected to heat, it shrinks. When you boil it, well, welcome to slurp world! How do you react to the heat in your life? Do you shrink? Do you become a paste, or worse, slime? Perhaps changing your approach to the heat will create a different outcome. 

3. Guac that salad – Guacamole..smooth..tangy..a perfect accompaniment. What is the one thing you do that is a complement to everything? What is the one thing you add everywhere in your life? Which activity always leaves a pleasant aftertaste?

4. Just crunch that carrot – we are told that crunching raw carrots is good exercise for the teeth. In life, we go and grow through a lot of challenges. The process of crunching through the challenge, allows us to become resilient. 

Are you still with me?

With January coming around every year, we will continue to face the same challenges..unless we acknowledge and grow through them. 

We can not solve our problems with the same level of thinking that created them. (Albert Einstein)

So where’s the beef?

Once upon a time there was a little girl called…..(yawn!) .…..I could follow this route and narrate a tale full of the dreams and ambitions of the little girl. But I won’t. However, I will ask you to take a walk down memory lane…back to the time when all you wanted to do was to ‘grow up’.

The phrase ‘grow up’ implies reaching somewhere and saying ‘huh! I did it!’. It also implies that one has goals that are yet to be achieved. The realms of this ‘growth’ can be divided into;

1. Physical – your body is a machine that is capable of so much. So much more than you can imagine! Avid hikers love to say that the best views come after the hardest climb. I can attest to that (Elephant hill at the Aberdares allows you to be in the clouds both physically and mentally – and the view when you reach the summit is breathtaking to say the least!)

2. Emotional – within this realm, we have ‘emotional intelligence’. How are your interpersonal interactions? How well do you know yourself? Do you know what your motivators are? Do you manage your emotions well? “Emotions can get in the way or get you on the way” Mavis Mazhura.
3. Intellectual – “Intellectual growth should commence at birth and cease only at death” Albert Einstein. With the flooding of free courses and e-books on the internet, are you currently growing your intellect? If not reading, there are podcasts and audiobooks to help. The brain is a muscle. Make yours as powerful as possible!

4. Spiritual – “To realize that you are not your thoughts is when you begin to awaken spiritually” Eckhart Tolle. What is your anchor? Do you know what fills your cup when you are running on empty?

Are you still with me? 

As a child, one is not aware of the 4 realms, thankfully so. They come into awareness as one grows into adulthood. As an adult, what are you doing about it? Is your inner child buried and forgotten? Has the humdrum of daily living drowned the dreams/ambitions that you once had? Are you doing yourself justice by ‘growing up’ daily?

Don’t be afraid of saying ‘when I grow up’, because it means you are hopeful for the future!

To teach is to learn. To learn is to grow. To grow is to change. (Anonymous)

Have you ‘grown up’? 

…..A dog is man’s best friend…..If you want to know someone, look at their friends….A friendship is an investment….

These are all used to refer to the quintessential ‘friend’. I wonder what characteristics a dog – domestic dog if you will – could possibly have that we can emulate. Walk with me;

• Loyalty

This loyalty is as a result of reciprocity. Treat the dog well – feed, exercise and play with it, and it will learn to be loyal to you. 

• Trust 

This is the core foundation of any friendship. It is built on mutual effort, including the avoidance of permanent cracks – those that are irreparable. To err is human, however, some ‘errs’ are avoidable.

• Spontaneous.

Wiggle the leash of a dog and he will come running whatever time of day! (at least for the mutt I have grown to love!). Spontaneity is a special gift that rewards one with priceless memories. Besides, not everything can be planned to a T!

• Humble.

As handsome/beautiful as a dog can be, it doesn’t display any signs of pride (don’t count the cute round eyes asking for a treat, or the guilty glance after committing a crime!). A human being is weakened by his ego.

• Forgiving.

I am yet to see a dog that holds a grudge!

I can see you wondering why I have gone this route. The dog is a relatable and familiar animal. Perhaps I should repeat ‘domestic dog’ to rule out many others. The list is not conclusive nor is it exhaustive. However, has it sparked some thoughts on your current and past friends? Perhaps helped in choosing your future ones? I hope so!

Are you still walking with me? Let me ask some questions and in your answers, perhaps help you shine the light on who is a friend to you now.

Q1 – Who is the first person you like calling with good/bad news?

Q2 – Who is the person you can call your ‘cheerleader’?

Q3 – Whom can you rely on to tell you the truth no matter what?

Q4 – Who is the person who challenges you to be a better version of your current self?

If you have answers to the questions, you are very lucky. If the same person is the answer to all questions, well, you are in possession of a diamond! Perhaps being called a dog is not such a bad thing after all!

Lets engage in the comments!

Have a great week..

I could start by telling you how to budget well so that you avoid the usual pitfalls of the festive season. I could also recommend several apps that can help with financial planning (read ‘how to spend wisely during the holiday’). But I won’t. And this is why. When you are drowned by the same information year in-year out, you tend to block the information unless it is presented in a way that has a personal reference. However, let me try;

1. Have and maintain a hobby

Having a hobby helps in the redirection of energy plus also achieving mental and physical fitness. However, the hobby has to be a positive one. For example, while watching TV can be a hobby, the content of the TV programming must be constructive.

2. Become a local tourist

This does not mean travelling out of your town. If you are in Nairobi, there are numerous places that you can visit without breaking your wallet.

3. Read

In addition to reading the newspaper/magazines/social media feeds etc, one can also broaden their scope to include materials that are not always on their radar, for example, if you’re a lover of novels, perhaps you could explore the self-help section and vice versa.

4. Try new recipes

With January being the cabbage month, one can explore the different ways of cooking cabbage, perhaps in a mission to change its taste and appearance!

5. Go window shopping

While this might be counterintuitive, it could help with the required budgeting for the month of February. Go browsing through different retail outlets to see the best pricing options out there. It can save some shillings in February!

6. Learn a new skill

With the numerous YouTube channels out there, one has easy access to a lot of information and training videos.

7. Do and create crossword puzzles

These can be foraged from past editions of daily newspapers.

The above pointers are not exhaustive neither are they from an expert.

What would you like to read about next time?