Reflection paper 2

Running head: REFLECTION PAPER 1

REFLECTION PAPER 3

Reflection paper

Institution

Name

Date

My father was born in 1965 to share a cropper during the Jomo Kenyatta times, my grandfather was among the serious farmer of the time who had a large number of livestock you could not count. My father was one of the 9 children and my grandparents help raise family members that weren’t his children my grandmother was jovial and every smile could be seen on her face during my childhood and she was quite pleasant. My grandmother was a business lady. My grandfather suffered from a massive stroke and was bedridden for a year before dying when I was just in elementary school. My father would always go down the country as we called it which was only 32miles away from where we lived. My father would go to help his brothers and sisters care for my grandfather.

My father would tell us stories about how they walked also everywhere they went or rode on the back of my grandfather’s wagon since the invention of vehicles and other modern modes of transport had not come. It was interesting listening to what he always told us that he wanted more for his children to finish school, go to college, and have their things not having to wait to be given anything. Even though we didn't do like he wanted but we accomplished the goals he set for us. I could not imagine having to live in a world where I had to pick firewood, fetch water for people, or couldn’t do what I wanted. My uncles and aunties were the cutest and sweetest people you could meet also by telling jokes and making you laugh. They were experienced and had been schooled in the higher schools which were available during that time. My father’s family all lived close to each other within walking distance and this promoted cohesion and unity among the family members at large.

It was fun to visit them over the weekends because there were a lot of cousins down in the country. I liked going for walks with them and in fact, I can remember very well the day we went to watch a football tournament just a few miles. I'm sure living in the sixties had its share of ups and downs for a black family, but my grandfather was a true provider to care for his wife, children, and other family members. The farm produce he could sell and feed his family and besides, the livestock he owned played an important role in our life and his generation as we were able to be schooled through them and even provision of basic needs after his demise. His home made me want to have a home with big porch, big rooms, a high ceiling and always having a family to share your time with especially on the weekends.

I believe to this day that’s why I loved old big houses with porches because that what I encountered from my father’s family and now as an adult, I have an old big house that I’m fixing up so it will look like the one my grandfather had. I have been triggered by his character of being hardworking and caring for my family as he did. I have managed to marry a beautiful hardworking wife and we have sired beautiful children. Otherwise if it were not for the life I saw from my father's family I think things could have been that hard for me because I could not have experience of the hard life. I thank my father and his family at large for the experience I garnered during my lifetime.