A year ago I left my job to simply cool off in the red dust of Kajiado South not bereft of any city memories but thrilled that I am about to do something worthwhile.
Something that will give me total satisfaction in life. Something that will help me connect with the core of my being and I did it again. Again because I boldly face the thorny fences of failure, again because I dare and again because I wanted to live a bigger cause than me.
In 2021 I farmed onions and I lost quite a fortune. Actually, a neighbor was selling prime land at the same amount I wanted to invest my money in and I chose farming instead.
I lost all of it.
Five years later, I went back, bought a new pump, did crazy investments and this time round, I wasn’t just doing it for me, nor for the money. I was just having fun.
I wanted to learn through nature, through growth. I wanted to understand how a seed dies, rots and takes shape. I wanted to understand the pests, the pressure and the diseases that threaten it. And above all, I was doing it for God and rural youth.
I studied hard, got those honors, went to the workplace, worked hard but there was no fulfillment. I knew I wanted to live for something greater.
I constantly asked God what my purpose was and I realized that I had something with the young people.
I mentored interns in the workplace - taught them the skill, how to earn from it and how to sustain it.
I taught those young souls soft skills to give them an edge and more so, I imparted in them the greatest wisdom of all - The Why!
I challenged their thinking. I asked them hard questions like
“Why did you go to school?”
“Why are you in this internship?”
“Why a journalist and not a painter?”
“Why do you want money?”
“Why believe in a God you do not see?”
And I saw their eyes. I had unlocked something deeper in them, a quest of finding self and discovering their purpose.
And they always filled my inboxes with questions. They always came to work early, worked hard and lecturers during their assessments frequently told me, “This student is now different.”
I constantly found myself in youth spaces, helping them, guiding them and challenging their thinking. Most thought I was nuts. Nuts for not thinking of myself highly than I ought to.
Nuts for laying my life down for others. I was ridiculed.
But I still did it. I built a FREE online academy for tech students that couldn’t afford university -
https://academy.digitalmoran.africa
And a platform where they could earn FOR FREE from anywhere in the world -
https://talent.digitalmoran.africa
I went to the village to farm because I realized not every rural youth is techy and I used what I had learnt to teach them what I know through my social media channels (Moran Farms).
I got countless of overwhelming inboxes from both young and old acknowledging that I had made them make great strides in their personalities, farms and mindset.
You see, I have never won any award. On one random evening, ETA Awards called me to tell me my fans had nominated me and gave me a voting link which I shared online.
I won.
But I don’t think I solely did. The rural youth I strongly advocate for won. The underserved youth I taught simple stuff like etiquette and hygiene won.
I went to them with the slogans, ‘The future is built, not given!’ and ‘You can make it from anywhere!’
This award is a testament that indeed any rural youth can make it from anywhere and that consistency and resilience births something great.
Indeed - You shall know them by their fruits.
Dear young man reading this, simply do, don’t really care where you start from - simply start. Ask yourself, ‘What do I have in my hands?’
Even if you have nothing, hands are the greatest gift from God. Imagine having everything you desired but no hands?
Start doing today!
Again, The future is built not Given!
Check out what we do here -
https://digitalmoran.africa
Check out my website -
https://siloma.co.ke