Dear 2021

It is safe to call you a noun because you represent time many are writing to you and iam sure you are tired but will be kind enough to read from all of us, you know a resolution for the year is like a crying baby in church,it must immediately be carried out

Your brother 2016 wasn’t kind to me it’s when the stroke struck, the first months were fairly well but life hasn’t been the same , I have maintained my humor and cynical self or perhaps increased it. One can argue that it is a copying up mechanism but all in all I am not about to stop. I now live love and laugh. So I have learned that a strong support system around one in such illnesses can help one get back up, it’s not easy but the one above sustains us and strengthens us . This whole time, I expect you to be a time to perfect the imperfections .Iam cognizant of the fact that recovery comes with imperfections and I am ready to live with that.

One of the greatest lifelessons I have learned from all this time is the difference between reaction and response to tragedy. The first years I was simply reacting and I even slipped into depression because my life was shattered, my dream was to complete a masters by 30 and to begin writing on a PhD by 35 and everything was in place or so I thought, life had other plans and the stroke struck . And in the same year the acceptance email came through but that meant nothing because I couldn’t talk or walk. But upon acceptance, I crafted a response well in my mind and things are falling in place. If I were to talk to my younger self, I would say,”life is not going to be kind to you always and you need to invest in the right people”. Indeed the Return on Investment in Friendship has been amazing I have written about how friends have stood with me and they tell me that I would have done the same if it were them in my predicament. So perhaps I am a good human or so I think.

So yes Physiotherapy is the only way out and it’s not cheap but again the one above sustains us and provides. It is supposed to aid in the neuroplasticity (rewiring the damaged nerves) and so far so good. It’s a long process infact recovery continues through life. So for the voice and speech a few elements like articulation are still lacking but with more practice we shall perfect the imperfection. Mentally one has to be ready for that as there’s no magic bullet to recovery. Patience is very key in all this. There’s a morning greeting we have at the rehabilitation center especially with patients who perhaps got a mild stroke and speech is not affected,they say, Roland olyotya? I reply, bulungi (though faintly and next is obuluma? and my faint reply is bujakuwona(meaning that I will be fine). Mushie I read your words daily and I will fight on . The Chinese flu seems to have mutated and we don’t know what you have in plans for us. My countrymen will in a few days go to the useless thing called voting, I think the EC is so prepared that even the results are ready.