Beautiful 1.68m tall, light skinned, long face, cat eyed, round nosed, poppy eared girl of calm demeanor. Magdaline ” Darina” Wanjiku. Mother of 1 daughter. My Residence Director. Yes. Promoted from her previous role of House Manager. With over 10 years of passionately managing our house, my boys and I, sacrificing her own and moving with us thousands of miles away from home to pursue our dreams & careers.We are grateful for this great gift.
Today we celebrate her.
She turns 33 years and ran 33kms. Yes 33@33
She has a will power to light a village.
She has learnt, acquired and supported the fabric of me and my troop. After weeks of training, overcoming the fears of seeing broken toes nails, swollen blisters, broken spirits, eavesdropping on pace, elevation discussions with mister She did it.
We had this discussion a few weeks ago, she came home after her college classes and told me she wants to run 33@33 for her birthday. I give her a boss lady look incase she has forgotten she has morning duties. Luckily, boys are bigger and can fix a cup of hot chocolate and fry eggs so incase she goes rogue am kind of covered. I lighten up, my light bulbs all on, that excitement when someone says she wants to dare achieve a dream. We chat, its news in the house, sounds like a breaking 2 challenge, and a technical team is formed. 4 self made coaches. 1 support staff. The 4 legged pacers – Ginger and Oakley. Yes the little coaches reckon short runs/walks with the dogs in the evenings will help her gain speed. They do eavesdrop.
The rest flows easy. The food, she knows why chapos must be in the menu on Thursday night. To fuel my Friday long runs. This one knows in precise detail why I use the pink shoes on Wednedsday and not on Friday, why Mister’s NIKE Pegasus shoes, a favourite must never be rained on, cover them with an umbrella if you must. Why shoes must be raced once dry. And why my black mesh tights are for Friday long runs and the no pockets tights are for my easy runs on Tuesdays. She loathes the day I woke her up at 4am to look for them, amidst her frustration to convince me to pick another pair of tights. What she knows now is that, I needed that specific tight because of its non-chaff fit, the deep pockets for my gels and well I just needed that one. A similar fate befell me a few sundays ago. I looked for Mister’s team Kenya t-shirt for hours. And he wasnt relenting with my other option. What was with this specific t-shirt for this Sunday run? I was convinced he had lost it in his travels, as I hadn’t seen him don it for a while. That day I wished there was a “clothes finder” app.
She knows our running schedules. Me, an early morning, mister, unpredictable but often, an evening runner. Realising some key decisions, activities in the house revolved around the passion in running – family discussions, running lessons, family menu, documentaries, kids schedules, shopping. Not to mention discussions around the house with friends, family always somewhow referred to our running lessons and experiences. The discussions more intense now as the boys have participated in casual runs – kenya Colour run, the Ignite new year family run and Miles4Shs Faraja run. I never doubted it, She would do it. She has grown out of society walls, where you’re limited by what people label you. She has reared chicken, she has a herd of cows, she has owned a butchery, she cooks like a master chef, she plays with my little boys and puts on them the biggest smiles, She packs our 4 lunch boxes with healthiest treats, she has changed diapers for both boys, she has watched my boys on swings, at the pool, outside as they play. She is a hero, no national awards, no sub 5, 4, 3 marathon achievements, no medals (oops she was best female 10km at the 2020 Ignite, yes she was, the whole house was at the start line) she has lit her family, seen her brothers through university, an education she didnt get through herself. She is giving her girl the best education. This girl’s dreams shall come true. Today, she is a few COVID days away from being a great chef – Chef on wheels – Specialising in healthy menus. She tells me. Before you know it she will have your fridge packed with healthy treats. Then your resident manager can focus on housekeeping roles. Story for another day as we wait for Darina to graduate. God bless this unsung hero. I celebrate you.
And yes, the coaches say you can do a marathon 42kms before the year end. “Auntie, Just drink that drink mum takes before her runs, and borrow her gels, you will run a marathon”
She inspires doesnt she. She does. I am.
