Then Saul clothed David with his armour; he put a helmet of bronze on his head, and clothed him with a coat of mail. And David girded his sword over his armour, and tried in vain to go, for he was not used to them. Then David said to Saul, “I cannot go with these; for I am not used to them.” And David put them off. Then he took his staff in his hand, and chose five smooth stones from the river, and put them in his shepherd’s bag or wallet; his sling was in his hand, and he drew near to the Philistine……(1st Samuel 17:38-40) with his five stones David accomplished what many termed as impossible-killing Goliath.
A debate once emerged in a certain class when one student suggested that young guys ought to engage in more beneficial activities like knitting instead of resorting into drastic activities like raving so as to kill boredom. Other students felt that knitting was outdated and being young people opting for it as a kill time activity would attract some unusual if not peculiar attention. Well maybe if you were in that class you would go with the idea of bike riding, playing video games, FIFA, a more dot com kind of thing right? How about; card making, eyebrow shaping, plaiting hair, pottery not so dot com hah!
Well for Ndanu Mbunja a forth year student doing Business Administration and Marketing, Knitting and Card making is the ‘it’ activity for her. She enjoys it and can do it any time more so during her leisure. It keeps her busy and relaxes her brain. Knitting is something she started two years ago when she was just a freshman; she had been taught how to knit by her grandmother from a young age but only utilized it years after.
The amazing thing about her hobby is that she gets paid for doing something she loves, doesn’t that sound great? Well for Ndanu, she manages to get some extra cash from making people scarfs, hats and seasonal cards are you smelling some independence? Some extra pocket money right on. Apart from selling her work, she opts for handmade gifts for her friends and family and also participates in charity work by making scarfs for ‘shoshoz’ from her church. Just to keep them warm. Her passion for what she does quite evident from the way she displays some of the pieces she’d worked on in the past. picture:
displaying a beret.“Wow! Those scarfs are beautiful can I have one? How much is the blue one going for?” asked Judith Mbogo, Ndanu’s customer and a student at Daystar. “ksh400 only,” “ Wow, and the berets?” “ksh300, if you want, I can give you matching scarf and beret at ksh700bob.” “Ok then, I will have the blue ones.” Ndanu carefully packs the items in a black polythene bag and hand them to Judith with a big thank you smile on her face. In return Judith cashes in Ksh700.
Well that is what practically goes on on an ordinary day, she explains. Apart from knitting scarfs, berets and marvins, Ndanu also makes seasonal cards. From; birthdays, weddings, funerals to graduations and exam success cards. Her custom made cards go for Ksh130 only. In as much as she enjoys the activity, she mentions that she faces some major difficulties. Not many people are into the idea of custom made cards especially when they can get other cards at a cheaper price from the supermarkets or other retailers. (image adopted from google.(african cards.)
However, Ndanu indicates that despite this minor set back, today’s society is going for a more African look. Especially in ceremonies like weddings more people are opting for an African drop a move she terms as music to her soul. She gets orders from couples to make cards for their weddings with an African touch. From such orders she is able to make good profits and more marketing for her work.
In one instance she recollects, she had to make 100cards in a week, the tricky part was outsourcing the items she would need that is; the Maasai beads, manila paper and some threads etc etc. she managed to get the beads but not the amount she required, by the time she got some matching ones, there was only three days left to the deadline. Good news is she was able to beat the deadline but only after days of burning the midnight oil.
(Both images adopted from Google.)
As she continues to display some of her work, Eileen Atsenga a third year student passes by looking quite depressed. As it turned out, she had been looking for a success card for her small sister. She had been to the shops but could not find the card that said exactly what she wanted. Looking through some of the displays, she learned that she could order one that was written in her very own words. And just like that, Eileen got what she wanted Ndanu on the other hand got some cash.
In terms of capital, Ndanu hasn’t gone large scale. She only sells to such customers as Eileen and Judith, her fellow school mates. Apart from them, she also sells to her pals from her home area. She is however planning on expanding her market more so next year when she will be through with her studies.
Besides knitting, she is a singer. A talent she explains as being more demanding. She is a lead singer in her choir group called Voice of Worship. From time to time they get invited to gigs and churches just to sing and the best part of it all is that they are paid. She shares an instance whereby each and every one of them was given a thousand shillings after leading praise and worship, pretty good money for a students don’t you think?
“It is very hectic doing what I do. But I love what I do, and that’s why am going to keep doing what I do best.” quoted Ndanu. Well, maybe you are in need of some extra cash or perhaps whatever you’re doing now does not bring you joy or happiness. Maybe like Soul your parents cliques and the society, have clothed you in their armour; made it mandatory to have a degree on your head, and dabbed you to look like or be like so and so. And just like David it just doesn’t work for you. Well, do yourself a favor and pick your five stones.
Word count: 1084.
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