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When Christmas No Longer Brings Us Home

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When Christmas No Longer Brings Us Home There was a time when Christmas meant one thing: going home. Whether you lived in the city, campus, or worked miles away, December was the season of return. Families reunited, meals were shared, stories were told, and laughter filled homesteads. Christmas was not just a date on the calendar—it was a ritual. But today, that ritual is slowly fading. Increasingly, many people no longer travel home for Christmas the way they used to. Villages that once came alive during the festive season now remain quiet. Parents wait, relatives hope, but the compound stays unchanged. Ironically, the same families still manage to gather—just not for celebrations. Funerals and burials have become the moments that reunite families, not joy, not festivity. This shift raises uncomfortable questions: What changed? And what does it say about our relationships today? The Silent Change in Expectations Traditionally, coming home during Christmas was almost automa...
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FROM PROTEST TO POLICY

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From Protest to Policy: Why Youth Anger Rarely Becomes Law In recent years, Kenya has witnessed repeated waves of youth-led protests sparked by issues such as the rising cost of living, unemployment, taxation, and governance concerns. Streets fill, hashtags trend, and national attention follows. Yet once the protests fade, little changes in actual policy. This raises a critical question: why does youth anger so rarely translate into laws, reforms, or lasting political outcomes? One major reason is the absence of structured leadership. Many youth protests are deliberately leaderless, driven by decentralised online mobilisation. While this makes movements harder to suppress, it also makes them easier to ignore. Without clear representatives to negotiate, engage institutions, or follow up on demands, governments face little pressure to act beyond short-term appeasement. Secondly, protest demands are often broad rather than policy-specific. Calls to “reduce the cost of living” ...
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KENYA’S YOUTH PARTICIPATION GAP

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Loud Online, Quiet at the Ballot: Kenya’s Youth Participation Gap Kenya’s youth are among the most vocal political actors online. From trending hashtags to viral political commentary, young people dominate digital spaces whenever national issues arise. Yet when it comes to actual participation at the ballot, the numbers tell a different story. Despite forming the largest voting bloc in the country, youth turnout during elections remains relatively low compared to their online activism. Political conversations flourish on X, TikTok, Instagram, and WhatsApp groups, but this digital energy often fails to translate into voting, party membership, or sustained civic engagement. One reason for this gap is growing political disillusionment. Many young people feel their vote does not lead to meaningful change. Campaign promises around jobs, cost of living, and governance are often repeated election after election with little visible impact. Over time, this creates apathy — not silen...
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LIVING FOR THE CAMERA

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Living for the Camera: How Social Media Has Turned Life Into a Performance In today’s world, life feels like one long audition. Every moment looks like something we could post, and every memory acts like content in waiting. Somewhere along the way, social media stopped being a place to share life — and became a place to perform life. It’s wild how quickly we learned to curate ourselves. Perfect angles, perfect captions, perfect lighting… and if it’s not perfect? Delete, retake, filter, or pretend it never happened. The pressure to be “put together” online is so heavy that most people only show the shiny parts. The Rise of the ‘Online Character’ Let’s be honest: many of us have two versions — the real us, and the online us. The online version is confident, attractive, unbothered, and always living their best life. Meanwhile, the real version is figuring things out, doubting, struggling, or simply living a normal life that isn’t always post-worthy. This constant push to impre...
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SITUATIONSHIP NATION

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Situationship Nation: Why Commitment Feels Scary in This Generation Relationships are different these days. We’re living in a world where people love deeply but fear labels, where connections are strong but directionless, and where situationships feel safer than relationships — at least on the surface. Situationships are the new default. Two people vibe, talk daily, maybe act like a couple… but without clarity, structure, or long-term plans. It’s love without rules, comfort without commitment. Why Are Situationships So Popular? A few things created this shift: 1. Fear of Vulnerability Opening up fully feels risky. Many young people have seen breakups, betrayal, disappointment — or dealt with personal trauma — and now avoid anything that requires real emotional investment. 2. Freedom Culture There’s a strong desire to “stay free,” keep options open, avoid being tied down, and protect independence. Labels feel like chains to some people. 3. Distrust in Modern Dating Ghosting,...
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DIGITAL OVERLOAD

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The Digital Overload: How Constant Connectivity Is Rewriting Our Attention Spans In today’s world, our phones have become extensions of our hands — and honestly, sometimes extensions of our brains. Notifications, endless scrolling, 15-second clips, trending audios… it’s like the internet never stops calling our names. And the crazy part? We always answer. We’re living in a time where being offline feels like falling out of reality. Every app is fighting for our attention, and most of us don’t even realize how much of our mental space we’ve signed over. The result? A slow, silent rewiring of how we think, learn, and even relate to people. The Short-Form Era Platforms like TikTok, Instagram Reels, and YouTube Shorts have changed storytelling forever. Everything has to be fast, flashy, and instantly satisfying. Our brains? They adapt. They start craving quick hits, quick answers, quick entertainment. The downside is subtle but real: long-form reading feels harder. Concentratio...
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RISE OF LIFESTYLE JUSTIFICATION

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 “ Lifestyle” Becomes an Excuse The Rise of “Lifestyle” Justifications In today’s world, almost anything can be justified as a “lifestyle choice.” Behaviors that were once frowned upon, questioned, or considered morally wrong have quietly slipped into the realm of normalcy. And what’s more surprising is how effortlessly we accept them—sometimes under the banner of “vibes,” other times as a way to fit in. "Peer pressure is subtle, but its impact can be profound. What seems like fun today can shape what we accept as normal tomorrow.” Take a moment to look around: social media posts, viral trends, and casual conversations. Peer pressure isn’t always loud or aggressive; often, it whispers. What was once clearly labeled “bad behavior” is now celebrated as confidence, boldness, or simply “living your best life.” Chasing clout, flaunting excess, or normalizing dishonesty has slowly woven itself into the fabric of everyday culture. Why We Accept It Humans are socia...
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