By Abraham O’Obunga
Kristie nearly lost her life while she was giving birth to her third child. It came with complications that unlike the previous ones which she had successfully carried out at her house, she had to be rushed to the nearest hospital. The doctors operated her to reduce chances of her having a still birth. Although she gave birth to a bouncing baby boy, she lost a lot of blood during the operation.
"Thank God," the doctor told her. "Your husband made the right move to bring you here. You both could have lost your lives."
She had just regained her consciousness and tears rolled down her cheeks at the doctor's mention of these words. She tried to speak but the doctor interrupted her, patting her forehead gently.
"Catch some sleep."
She made to move but her body was very heavy to her. She turned her head and looked at her baby and slowly went into a deep sleep.
"When will I get discharged?"
"Only after you show signs of normal health."
The bills were on the rise and the more she stayed at the maternity ward, the higher the bills rose. She tried pleading with the doctor, explaining to him her economic status but the doctor insisted on her stay. It was two days that she bribed a nurse who then helped her escape from the hospital.
Kristie lived in a small room at an estate with very poor sanitation. Their shack had no proper roof or floor except for the water and mud during the rainy seasons. The estate was within the main road reserve and when the roads authority resolved to expanding the highway, they gave no prior notice except for an announcement half an hour before demolition of the structures within the reserve. Kristie and a few of her neighbors at the estate were victims of such destruction. When they confronted the landlord on the matter, he claimed that the roads authority had promised resettlement benefits and that he too was on the waiting. It was Kristie and her friends' continued confrontations that made the landlord build the shacks. That was four months ago.
Kristie spent all the money she had saved on medication and maintenance of a balanced diet as was the doctor's recommendation. One day, the landlord, an ever cantankerous middle-aged man knocked at her shack and asked for rent. Kristie tried to explain to her urging him to extend the grace period.
"If you'll not pay for the last month's rent this week, then forget staying at my house." he said.
Kristie and her husband, a coolie tried all they could but all were in vain. Her husband asked for small loans from his friends but he couldn't find enough for the rent. The little he managed to get was spent on Kristie's food as she was still in the process of healing from the operation.
"Please help me with a small loan, I'll refund you once am in a better financial state."
"No. I'm sorry. At least not now. Besides, am also in the same sea of problems as you. Am in no better situation man." replied one of his close friends.
When he later asked his friend who worked at a kiosk, his friends reply was no better. As he was walking away from the kiosk, he heard him tell another customer,
"Huyu ni pombe anataka kuenda kunywa. Saa hii anajifanya eti mashida. Mashida wapi? Bora nife kuliko kumpa pesa zangu" (This one only wants to go and drink alcohol. He is now pretending that he has problems. Which problems? I'd rather die than give him my money.)
"You must know that you have lost a lot of blood. Maintain a well-balanced diet every day for not less than three months. Otherwise, you may not heal completely and high will be chances that you might suffer in the future. Eat liver, beef, eggs, green vegetables and milk; all fresh. They will help strengthen your bones, protect you from other diseases, give you energy and most importantly help you regain your blood." the doctor had told her.
And surely, the doctor gave her no cent.
Kristie initially manned a small grocery but it was no more then. She went to the women who also used to and still sold vegetables at the estate seeking help. None of them sounded friendly.
"If I give you credit every day, how will I develop my small business. I also need to cater for my needs using this very money I get from selling." a woman told her one evening.
Kristie got stressed at her health which was now drastically deteriorating. Most of the time she slept in her house. One Saturday evening, she was found dead in her house. The post-mortem revealed that she had a prolonged internal bleeding.
When the landlord heard of the news, he walked from door to door at the estate, calling upon all the tenants to a fundraiser towards Kristie's burial. Every night they gathered and prayed and sang gospel in respect to their late neighbor and friend Kristie, as they now referred to her. During such gatherings, others took the responsibility of bringing milk, sugar and snacks. Tea would be prepared and they rejoiced for three night while singing gospels and praising the Lord. They only went to their houses to sleep past midnight. During each gathering, they did fundraisers. The money raised was enough to buy an expensive casket which Kristie was to be buried. On the burial day, at the church, very many people attended the burial. All Kristie’s neighbors left their daily commitments to say goodbye to their ‘friend’. Kristie was given a decent burial. After the husband read the eulogy, the landlord took the microphone and congratulated everyone for their commitment towards Kristie's burial. Kristie's neighbors brought flowers and put on her grave.
"We loved you but God loved you more. After all, we have one destiny" the landlord said.
Abraham O’Obunga is a student at Moi University.
