Nairobi, Kenya
It was 20 minutes to lunch, and I was sitting in my Kiswahili class waiting for time to pass. Ms P was writing the assignment on the board when the Head Teacher walked in. “I have a very important announcement and will require all students to gather in the assembly hall”, she said. For a moment, I felt a sigh of relief that I was clear of being asked any questions and possibly homework too! We got up from our seats and walked in a single file line to the assembly hall. Once the room had settled, the Head Teacher began to speak. “Today we will talk about the Coronavirus,” she said. “Coronavirus?!” My friend and I looked at each other and giggled at the name. It was quite strange and sounded like a bug’s name. As the Head Teacher began to explain I didn’t quite understand all the details. The only thing I clearly understood was that I needed to wash my hands, A LOT.
In the coming days, our school was closed and we were told to stay at home. “School’s cancelled!!” This was the best thing that could happen to me! I was so excited! However, little did I know that my mom had other plans. It was 9:30 am on a Monday and while I was making plans to eat pancakes and watch Jonny Test all day, my mom said: “it’s time for homework please come to the table”. “Homework” I thought! This was the worst. At first, I struggled with the idea of doing homework during the holidays but came to accept that it was a non-negotiable in my house. Although my mom did try to make things fun by using videos and other household items to keep me focused. My mom’s great! You could see how serious she was about my learning. The best part of all of this was making You Tube videos with my dad! He was home too and we did lots of experiments together. I seriously think I could be a scientist at this point! No need to go back to Grade 2.
After two weeks of being stuck at home, I really started to miss my friends. It just wasn’t the same without them. I asked my Mom if we could please go and see them, but she said that it wasn’t safe to do so. I still didn’t understand what the fuss was all about. Life was boring and that was my biggest issue. In between my homeschooling, I had lots of opportunities to catch up on Netflix, dress up like superheroes and practice my singing skills. I really like to sing! My favorite is I Just Wanna Run from Flash. Everyone tells me I sing like an angel. Although I’m not sure how angels really sound?!
In these three weeks, I have started to understand that coronavirus is not a joke. It’s a real emergency. This realization also came from the fact that I got into trouble several times for wasting the hand sanitizer. I thought to protect myself I should wear it all over like a cream! But my mom didn’t seem to think so. I still remember her face when she found out what I was up to!
So guys, this is it. This is my story over the last few weeks. I hope things get better soon and I can go back to seeing my friends, teachers and family. I say a prayer every night with my parents but have also asked all the superheroes to help. I secretly think Batman and Superman are already working hard on this (and maybe the Ninja Turtles as well).
Well, that’s all from me!
Check out my chemistry video to see what I’ve been up to! Remember to keep washing your hands to avoid Corona Corona (as I like to call it)!
The Lockdown Lens 