It's that season again...

I have been thinking about the coming days that mark the beginning of the festive season. I am in a bit of a dread you see, this is when all those grannies (as an African you can have more than two ; anyone about the age of your grannie is your grannie) aunties, cousins and nieces etc. come visiting for those ohh so famous family get- togethers. While these fetes are opportunity to have fun with one's relatives, I realize now that only the children look forward to them. As children, we ate, we danced, we played, it was all so precious! But the domestic politics flying over above our heads was and still is profound. Now that I am a grown up, I have become part and parcel of the dynamics of that politics.

Aunties last seen when I was just but a wee child come in their droves, often in the same matatu. These then land in my mother's house and operate as a clique or a gang. They whisper, point and ask awkward questions such as "Bado hujapata bwana?". Yea...

My mum and I recently had to hold back my sister who has been married one year now. My darling grannie asked her when she was going to get a baby. My sister said not yet, grannie's face changed and with a scowl she asked why, what could they possibly be waiting for. Well... my sister's face changed too (and you know how it is when a Meru woman's face changes) and she asked my grannie if she would help with the expenses that accompany a child, to which my grannie held herself (in the way that only Meru women can hold themselves) and said, "I will be praying for you to get a child, children come from God and He will provide." This is where my good sense and that of my mother kicked in. My mum grabbed my sister, took her out of the kitchen while I was left telling the old girl that things don't work out like that nowadays. Needless to say, the conversation changed to my finding a husband. The question that made me leave the room too was "What happened to the nice Luo fella you brought home, he was really nice." There are some things we can't discuss with my grannie as much as I love her...

So it's that season again. My sister has invited me to her place for a "thing" that will be going down Jamhuri day (Dec 12, 2007). Her friends will be there, family and "others"; I've been told that I can bring "someone" along...Mishy, thanks for saying yes. It's not what they are expecting but it's all I've got...

When will the new year come along?