My parents left Kenya so I could have a better education

My parents made the decision to move away from Kenya to America with no one but their children in mind.

They wanted us to receive a quality education, even though that meant leaving their comfortable home, the friends and family they grew up with and the businesses they had established and grown.

They did all of this so my sisters and I would be guaranteed the best education. They had no idea what to expect in a foreign country so far from theirs, but that didn’t stop them.

Kenya is experiencing its own industrial revolution

People hear I’m from Kenya and expect me to have stories about all the lions I’ve caught and the huts I’ve slept in, or have stories about the countless number of starving children that roam the streets. But Kenya is actually quite industrious. It’s the leader of the money mobile system worldwide and home to about two to three malls in almost every city – which explains why I go broke each time I visit.

We had it made in Kenya

My parents did a lot in Kenya. While my dad was coordinating plans for the next Sunday service at his church or taking care of the disease-stricken children at his orphanage, my mom was taking care of three girls back home whenever she wasn’t out teaching. So it helped to have some help around the house.

Therefore, while we believe it takes a village to raise a child, it also helped to have a nanny. And a driver. And a cook.

Kenya or Hawaii? I can’t tell the difference.

Nothing beats Kenya’s landscape. The palm trees, the vegetated mountains, the cumulonimbus clouds (Dr. Knox would be so proud) – all thoughts leave my mind when I look at Kenya’s beautiful scenery.

High standards are low standards

My parents didn’t travel halfway across the world for us to be unsuccessful. So if I told my dad I got a B in high school, I wouldn’t hear the end of it till I raised it to an A. And if I got a 99 on an assignment, I could expect to hear “why couldn’t it be a 100?”

And boys? Of course all parents say no boy is good enough for their daughter, but my parents mean it. That doesn’t matter anyway because according to them, I’m not dating until I’m married.

I couldn’t be more proud of my parents

As I visit Kenya and share warm hugs with family members, gaze at all the beautiful scenery and gain a better sense of where I came from, it gets so much harder to understand how my parents were able to leave. I didn’t want to leave last time I visited and I was only there for three weeks. I can’t imagine how my parents felt leaving a place they called home for over 20 years.

This just makes me more proud and appreciative to have selfless parents who yearn to see me succeed in every aspect, no matter the sacrifice. So here’s to my Kenyan parents, for thriving all across the globe.