Letter to my Children
Kenneth Kaunda
Veritas Trust 1977
139 pages
One of the things that I and my fellow boarders at Kafue Secondary School looked forward to during our meals in the dining hall was receiving letters especially those from our parents and guardians. These letters were important in maintaining connection with our families as we got news of what was happening in our families as well as get advice on how to conduct ourselves at school.
The book 'Letter to my children' by Kenneth Kaunda, the first Republican President of Zambia was written to his children as a kind of public apology for neglecting his children so badly by putting his political career before his family. This book is dedicated to his children and the youth of Zambia.
Some key highlights of this book are:
Faith and values. Here Dr. Kaunda discusses issues of power. He states that the earliest form of power that he encountered and had a lasting effect on him was the power of the gospel. He further says: “above all my belief in God gives me a feeling of unlimited responsibility. What a terrifying thing that is! I am a guardian rather than an owner of such powers and talents as I possess, answerable for my use or abuse of them to the One who has loaned them to me and will one day require a full reckoning”. He also notes that “there was power in my mother’s prayers and in my father’s preaching and in our lusty hymn-singing. When those Lubwa Christians sang the old chorus –‘There is power, power, wonderworking power in the blood of the Lamb’ – they meant it.
Education and humanism. In this chapter Dr. Kaunda mentions how many in the colonial days could not advance their education due to the challenge of getting funds to pay for it. He notes how he was privileged to be born at a Christian Mission with a primary school and Teacher Training Institute. He also mentions how is one of the lucky twenty-nine boys from all over the country chosen to be the initial intake at Munali Secondary School. Dr. Kaunda notes that because of the privilege that he and others had, it motivated him and his Cabinet to invest on construction of the University of Zambia and the policy of providing of free education. He concludes the chapter by calling n youths to have an education that enables them to achieve overall harmony in their lives – intellectual development within a framework of strong moral values, aimed not merely at job-success but social usefulness.
Music. Music played a great and central role in Dr. Kaunda’s life. He is known for the song “Tiyende Pamodzi” that speaks of walking together as a united people. He says “A world without music is unthinkable”. I agree with him on that 100 per cent. He also writes “I find that I am at my most creative and reflective when my being has been suffused with beautiful music. I could not agree more to this statement as I can relate to it a lot. He also writes that music is the soul of the nation. It is no wonder that at the time Dr. Kaunda was President of Zambia he did a lot to promote local music to the extent f having at least 80 per cent of the music played on the airwaves being local.
In the chapter on Self-fulfillment, Kaunda warns young people against falling prey to modern society’s trend to dress like their favourite pop star or read what everyone is reading and instead urges youths to harness the aptitude that resides uniquely within each individual. In the chapter on the Spirit of Youth, Kaunda urges young people not to be anxious to put youth behind them but instead keep alive the spirit of youth as long as they can.
I recommend this book to youths in Zambia and beyond. It has some wise counsel which is not just useful to his children and youths then but is relevant to youths in modern society. You can read the book from cover to cover or select chapters or topics you want to read about in any order. Older folks like me can also read the book and find it useful as a way of reflecting on their lives but also as a way of structuring their counselling of their children and young people.
Gabriel Konayuma
7 July 2021
Comments