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Endurance is the ability to tolerate an unpleasant or difficult process or situation without giving way.
“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters.”
Colossians 3:23 New International Version (NIV)

It is such an amazing feeling being on this side of the world ( I mean Kenya ), and alive at this time to see the world shine a spotlight on my motherland, Being celebrated for the right reasons because sometimes we can be a tad extreme. There are so many lessons to learn from Eluid Kipchoge the man who proved to the world that indeed “ No Man Is Limited.” I believe with God All Things Are Possible.

So over the last few months, I have affirmed that I am a First Move Advantage Person ( Go Figure ), and that means I am a trailblazer.

As I was watching in awe the documentaries and videos of Kipchoge over the last few days to the Ineos Challenge, I saw that there was a team of “ endurance experts” ( Google what they do ).

I remember asking, “ An endurance what? “ It was quite an interesting question since I am often on the receiving end of this question. Often when I introduce myself as a Family IT Consultant, people follow the introduction with a “What do you do” question, but that is a blog for another day. haha

I am encouraged that No Human Is Limited because our limits come only from thinking that we cannot accomplish something, and that is often dictated by a fellow human being.

The temptation of putting my alarm off as it blasted my ears this morning at 3:55 am was incredible. I mean, it is raining outside and the bed is so warm, I am sure I can pull 2 more dreams and 2 more hours.

But, I remember – Whatever I feed my mind, feeds my heart and eventually my hand ( I quote this in my training all the time ) and I told myself it is in the endurance that we find what we asked for.
So I get up and do what I do each morning at 4 am – work.

Eliud Kipchoge and his team put in work for years to be able to achieve the great Ineos challenge. It did not happen in their dreams. It happened in the tolerance of an unpleasant and difficult daily routine.
It takes discipline and agility. It requires constant affirmation, and it demands consistency especially when everything is working against.

A good friend told me that opportunities come disguised in overalls ( I associate overalls to work). That means If you are not willing to get dirty or uncomfortable YOU WILL NOT ACHIEVE ANYTHING . You will probably find yourself saying “ boy that was damn luck”

I have made a conscious decision to compete with myself and It is one of the things I learned from Eliud. Competing with other people is a huge distraction and a waste of time ( Aren’t we all paving ways for ourselves? Our visions are totally different)

On July 20, 1969, Neil Armstrong became the first human to step on the moon. I was not alive to see this but I read and watch the stories written by people who witnessed this. In October 2019 I was alive to see a record being broken and I will encourage my Whiz Kids Africa children to write the stories with me because we were part of history, to change the narrative of consuming stories of Africa told by other people – We are owning our stories and we are telling them and coding them and animating them ( Name it )

I will teach our children the benefit of the “ First Move Advantage” and help them make those moves. Through technology it is possible. My dream is to see African children use technology and the Internet Safely, Effectively and Optimally.

I cannot end without celebrating the following people.

1. Brigid Kosgei for setting a new Marathon in Chicago – Go Kenya
2. Tyler Perry – Actor and filmmaker Tyler Perry made history by being the very first black person to own a major film studio.
3. Abiy Ahmed Ali of Ethiopia for getting a Nobel Peace Prize “for his efforts to achieve peace and international cooperation, and in particular for his decisive initiative to resolve the border conflict with neighboring Eritrea.”
4. Rwanda – For opening a Homemade Smartphone Factory.

There is a lot to celebrate and I have to celebrate myself for not snoozing the alarm. I am awake working on my dream. Arise and shine. Let God be your anchor this and every day.

Evelyn Kasina.