A flooded house, a bouquet and a play – all in a day

Put your hand up if you have not returned home to a flooded house. Now, step forward, take the mic, and share your water management secrets with us!

Not to give excuses, but it was not my fault that my flat got flooded. I had a litany of problems with plumbing in my bathroom and toilet. I called the caretaker so many times over the issue. I was starting to wonder if God was showing me a sign I needed to move out of that flat.

I got solutions that would work for a day and then stop. And when I thought nothing worse could happen, I got a call that my apartment was flooded, and water was seeping out of the house. It was a Thursday afternoon; I was in the office.

I called my apartment agent to get a plumber. Next, I got someone to open my door. I calmly explained to the agent that the toilet had to be fixed immediately. Within minutes, a plumber was on site. I explained to my cleaner, who opened the door, to supervise the plumber, spread out any dump stuff and mop the whole house.

“Madam, aki pole. Nimeona shida iko kwa valve. Ilifaa niibadilishe last time vile uliniita (the problem is with the valve. I should have fixed it the last time you called me),” the plumber explained.

Turns out, the toilet valve was faulty and should have been changed earlier when I initially raised the issue. It failed to control the level of water in the cistern. This is what led to the flooding.

I was in between different sets of calls: To the agent to make sure what was needed for the toilet was bought, the cleaning lady to get a sense of the damage, and to my sis who had also arrived at my house to check on the situation.

Amidst this coordination, someone walked to my desk with a bouquet, a card, and a chocolate bar, a belated birthday gift from my friend Boera.

I excitedly took pictures with the bouquet, hid my chocolate so I didn’t have to share it with my colleagues, and happily chatted with my friend’s sister, who had been sent to bring the flowers.

I told her there was a flooding incident in my house which I was sorting, the reason I was on the phone often. Looking at me, she asked: “Your house has flooded, and you are this calm?!”

I then realised I had been too calm for a person whose house had flooded. My calmness came from the peace of God that passes all understanding – I mean it.

And from just asking myself: “surely, yes my house has flooded. But what is the worst that can happen?”

I don’t know about you, but I believe I have the power to determine how something affects me.

One of my senior colleagues in this office always reminds me not to worry about things I have no control over.

The house had already flooded and so getting upset and insulting fundis, or the caretaker would have messed up my mood and day. And not changed anything about the fact that the house had flooded.

PS: After work that evening, I went to the Kenya National Theatre to watch the staging of Betrayal in the City, a play by Francis Imbuga. This was the first staged production of the play in recent times. The last one was done 40 years ago. Legendary, right?

I had already paid for the ticket and not even a flooded house was going to stop me from watching the play. And guess what? Veteran actor, Raymond Ofula, was returning to the stage after a 24-year hiatus!

PPS: If by adventure, peradventure, or misadventure you do not know what Betrayal in the City is, here is what you should know. The play mirrors many of the political issues we face as a country today.

And as youth who are charged with making tomorrow better, having informed minds is an important place to start. So, consider buying and reading the play.

Meanwhile, whatever happens today, remember to be calm, to take a step back, and to respond, rather than react, to situations.

The writer is the Impact Editor, NMG; [email protected]