David woke up quite late this morning - 7:31 AM to be precise. The weather was cold, and he would have loved staying in bed. Unfortunately, life is life; one has to get up and face it.
His love for physical exercise was one thing that often amazed others. He showed no greater commitment to anything in this world than his dedication to exercise. A few months ago, he had rejected a good opportunity that promised to double his earnings on the basis that he wouldn't have time for workouts. Nothing was more valuable to him than the work-life balance that Kisumu offered. At his age, he knew that only a substantial offer would lure him away from Kisumu.
The only thing on his mind now was doing two hundred reverse lunges and coupling them with several other calisthenic techniques. He cleared space for the workout, removed his vest, and wore only his shorts. David walked confidently to the center of the space, placed his hands on his waist, and started doing reverse lunges. Gosh, this guy loved activities that made him sweat and breathe heavily. He believed that sweating was crucial to health, considering it an important way of removing waste from the body. Thus, he pitied those who passed their days without breaking a single drop of sweat.
David loved his body and was proud of himself. The fact that he wasn't potbellied at his age was one of his greatest achievements. A few weeks ago, a girl he had met had guessed that he was twenty-eight. The thought of it flattered him so much that he stupidly grinned to himself. He was strong and lean, an amazing feat for an African man in his late thirties.
An hour and a half later, David finished his workout. He walked into the bathroom to take a shower. He loved water too; he bathed twice a day, a habit that made him the subject of ridicule from his brother Jacob, and Benedict, his colleague at work and his roommate a week ago during the CBET training.
Benedict had declared that he was too clean to be married. "Now, if you keep clean the way you do, what's the need for a woman in your life? You have to be untidy for a woman to find a place to fit in your life," Benedict had proclaimed.
David responded meekly that he had reached a point in life where marriage was out of the question. It was a dream that eluded him.
Water scarcity had hit Nairobi. Being aware of this fact and keen to maintain a good reputation as a visitor, David ensured he used the minimum possible amount of water. He didn't want his host begrudging him for wasting this resource that was increasingly becoming valuable all over the world.
He half-filled the basin with water and began to bathe, implementing the "dry" bathing skills he had learned in the water-deprived Maranda High School, where five cups of water were enough to wash the whole body. Even though soap irritated his eyes, he had to tolerate it until he scrubbed his whole body and then rinsed it off.
Twenty minutes later, he walked out of the bathroom feeling clean and fresh. He passed by his mattress and reached for a clean T-shirt on the simple African-style sofa. This T-shirt held cherished memories of his grandmother, Alfreda. The front side had a large mural of Alfreda printed on it. The back side had a verse printed on it, which he couldn't remember at the moment.
He had worn this T-shirt during his grandma's funeral. That day was fateful as he gave his last regards to one of the few people he had ever loved wholeheartedly. Now he was using this T-shirt to blot water from his well-toned body.
David put on a vest, short, pair of trousers, and a sweater, then sat on the sofa. It was a cold Monday morning, and this reality struck him. Willy, his cousin, had rushed out of the room to open his clothing business, and Donna had gone out to meet a client who needed her hair done.
David realized that his time as a guest was up. He had to move out the next morning and start facing life again.
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