My Valid Dreams: A child's struggle

Part 5: The conquest

The two days to the competition seemed like forever to Mwaura. He was excited to be part of the competition but anxious at the same time. Mwaura knew that he could win against Mwende and Kirimi who were the other two pupils from his school. But Mwaura did not know how other pupils in the other schools fared. Mwaura decided that it was not wise to ask anyone's opinion about the other pupils. He was careful not to be overly concerned with other pupils. Mwaura wanted to give the competition his best. He kept reminding himself about the title of the story book that Mrs. Mugambi had bought for him. Mwaura practiced seriously on the two remaining days. He worked hard on the weak areas that Mr. Kinja the trainer had identified. On Sunday morning, Mwaura got ready to go to church. He wanted to attend the service and also make a prayer request concerning the competition. After the service when prayer requests are made, Mwaura lifted his hand. Everyone in the church was amazed. What could such a little boy want? What kind of a prayer request does he have? Many unanswered questions went round the minds of many people in the church. Mwaura was called forward to mention his prayer request. He informed the pastor about the competition that he was to take part in. The pastor announced what Mwaura's prayer request was. Mwaura's mother could not hold her tears. She was greatly moved by how his son had grown up fearing God. The pastor and the other people in the church united in making the prayer request for Mwaura.

That Sunday evening, Mwaura made the final touches and ensured that everything was ready. His school uniform was already dry, neatly folded and kept in an easy to access place. Mwaura joined the family for dinner. Everyone wished him all the best. His father reminded him that he would be at the competition to cheer him up. Likewise, his brothers and sisters promised to cheer him up. After the dinner, Mwaura's dad said a prayer and Mwaura went to sleep. Mwaura had been advised to sleep early so that he could get up early and get ready for the competition. Mwaura lay on his bed and said a little prayer that went, "It is not much for a little boy to ask of you. I know that you can do anything. It is the little boy with a big God that killed the giant. There are many giants in the competition but this little boy asks you for victory, Amen." Mwaura was soon fast asleep.

At six o'clock, the alarm rang and Mwaura got out of his bed. He made his bed neatly and headed to the kitchen. His mother had already prepared everything. Mwaura took the water and headed to the bathroom. He showered fast, wore his uniform and got back to the kitchen for his breakfast. Mwaura's mother had prepared him some porridge and sweet potatoes. Mwaura ate to his fill and brushed his teeth. All that Mwaura needed to carry was a bottle of water. The interschool's competition gave all competitors a snack before the competition. Lunch was also catered for. Mwaura must have been as happy as a lark. Mwaura bid his parents goodbye and headed straight for school. He wanted to catch up with the other competitors from his school, the trainer, Mrs. Mugambi and the head teacher. To his surprise, Mwaura was the first to arrive. He waited and within no time, Kirimi and Mwende joined him. Mr. Kimathi the head teacher and Mr. Kinja the trainer joined them shortly. Mrs. Mugambi had not arrived by nine O'clock. But Mr. Kimathi and Mr. Kinja were doing their best to keep the pupils calm. By nine twenty o'clock, Mrs Mugambi arrived and informed them that her car had a puncture which took her time to change.

The team from Mitunguu primary school left for Muungu Primary school. Along the way, they found many pupils from different schools heading towards that great day's venue. The pupils from Mitunguu primary school saw Mwaura, Kirimi and Mwende. They shouted for joy. Mr. Kimathi waved at the pupils happily and with a huge smile. The pupils waved back as the car sped past them. By twenty five minutes to ten, the team from Mitunguu primary school had arrived at the venue. They saw other teachers preparing their pupils for the final touches. Mwaura's arrival caused some discomfort to the other teams. They seemed a little scared. The other teams had heard news about a boy who loved to read, to write and to engage in public speaking.

The bell rang ten minutes to ten o'clock and all the teams assembled in the hall. The coordinator made a roll call to ensure that all schools that had registered were present. After ensuring all was set, the public speaking guidelines were read aloud to all the participants and their teachers. The participants were informed that they would be called randomly. This caused chills of fear down the spines of most participants.

Mwaura wished he could be the first so that he could avoid comparing what he had prepared with what other participants presented. This time wishes were not horses and Mwaura was called as the first presenter. His heart raced a bit but he was all set. Rising to the occasion, Mwaura went straight to the podium. He stood straight, took a deep breath and began his speech. Words were gushing from Mwaura's mouth like streams of water. He narrated how teachers had been good to him and what teachers require from pupils. His speech was full of humour as he narrated how Mrs. Mugambi invited him to the staffroom and offered him a cup of tea and an andazi. Mwaura heaped so many praises to all the teachers even those from other schools. He stole the attention of everyone. All the pupils were tuned to his mastery and infectious humour that none of them afforded any funny gestures or giggles. Mwaura had stolen their hearts away. Mwaura concluded by reminding everyone in the hall that teachers are parents, brothers, sisters, uncles, aunts, grandparents and if it was possible to foster a healthy relationship with other members of the family, teachers were no different. Mwaura finished his speech by a quote that you cannot hate a teacher and love their subjects.

As Mwaura sat down, there was a standing ovation. The room was filled with cheers, claps and noise of every kind. Mr. Kimathi hugged him and took him out for a cup of water. His father who was waiting for him outside was very pleased with his son. He reminded him that life demands a bold heart and that what he had already done was a step in the right direction. Mwaura was very glad to see his dad honor his promise.

The public speaking competition went on well. Other pupils in the competition were also doing their best. Mwaura got back to the hall to hear what other pupils had to say. Mwaura wanted to learn as much as he could. Waweru, a pupil from Kaurone primary school gave Mwaura a great competition. Waweru had been last year's winner.

After all the pupils had finished taking part in the competition, there was a break of one hour so that the adjudicators could compare their results and announce the winner. There was a very tough competition and it was becoming hard to rank the students. Mwaura and Waweru were competing for the first position. To their surprise, the adjudicators realized that Mwaura and Waweru had a tie. Since they had to announce the first position of one pupil, they decided to do further checks. They enquired and were informed that Mwaura was in class five while Waweru was in class eight. The adjudicators agreed that at his age and class, Mwaura had done a better job than Waweru. They settled that Mwaura was the winner and that Waweru was second.