"I hereby order that the nationwide dusk to dawn curfew that has been in effect from March 27, 2020, be and is hereby vacated with immediate effect."
These were the words of President Uhuru Kenyatta during the Mashujaa Day celebrations held at the Wang'uru Stadium in Kirinyaga county during the Mashujaa Day celebrations...the words every Kenyan was waiting to hear.
Kenyans had yearned to see that day come to fruition as life was getting tough with industries, businesses greatly affected due to Covid-19.
On March 25, Uhuru announced a nationwide overnight curfew which came into effect March 27, between the hours of 7 pm to 5 pm to prevent the further spread of coronavirus.
Only medical professionals and critical and essential service providers were exempted from the curfew.
This was something very new to many Kenyans who had never in their lives thought there would be a total lockdown.
No flights were allowed in or out of the country apart from cargo planes.
This meant that Kenyans had to change their lifestyle, just to survive or rather try and understand what was going on.
Up to date, there are people who are still struggling to make ends meet even after the curfew was lifted.
Of course, things are not bound to rise or get back to normal in a day, but it will take a while before things are stable.
Raising children and running your homestead plus trying to make ends meet has been a hustle for many and Naomi* says she has seen it all for the past one year.
She says Uhuru's move to lift the curfew has opened doors for many but has it made a difference?
"I must say I was among those who shouted at the top of their voices once the President announced the great news. I saw it all last year and at one point I almost gave up. I had just started my first business selling sausages and bacon and things were doing great until the country was locked down," she explained.
She says business was really slow and she opted to do more house calls than being physically at the shop.
"Doing house calls was the only idea I had left that would at least put food on the table. I am a mother of two and I had to do whatever I could to make sure my children are fed. The house calls worked for two months, but after that, it was just downhill.
"Calls stopped coming in and I was left with so much stock. This forced me to sell the remaining stock I had at a throwaway price just to get some coins for the never-ending bills."
Naomi says that she is hopeful that she can revive her business after such a crazy and unexpected turn of events.
"I'm now in the process of doing my research because it would be ignorant for me to just up and start the business as nothing happened. I'm checking how the market is fairing as well as if the prices have gone up or maintained. But I'm also considering venturing into another business," she said.
For party-goers/lovers, the lifting of curfew has come at a better time.
Muriuki* says that he's happy because he can now comfortably go out to a club, party till 11 before the club is closed.
He added that he had fun while drinking at home but it's time to leave the nest and hit the club.
"Life has changed after the whole announcement and if you have paid attention, you'd notice that so many people are now. Clubs, restaurants and other sectors were really suffering during the lockdown, but they now have a reason to smile again.
"I'm personally happy I can now go to the club freely without having to gulp my beer in a hurry because the club is almost getting closed or I'll not get a cab home because the cab guy also wants to get home before curfew.
"I'm a party animal and spending the bigger part of last year at home almost made me go insane. For once I can say the President gave Kenyans the best gift," he explained.
Some people are still finding it hard switching back to their former lifestyles and Kim* is still trying to make sense of the new changes.
"We were on lockdown for a long time and I must say the stay at home directive worked for me. I love my space and working in an environment that will boost my creativity and being home was doing just that for me. But things have changed and I'm still struggling with the new way of life," he said.
"I'm still struggling to work in the office because it's crowded and I was used to working alone with no distractions. Maybe things will get better as time goes by, but until then I'll accept the situation currently."
As Kim tries to make sense of the whole back to office thing, Maggie* says she hasn't changed her lifestyle.
"Everyone is excited to go clubbing, visit all these places they dreamt of going, but I think I'm just wired differently. I still get to the house before 10, something I found was working out for me perfectly. I have become so disciplined with my time unlike previously when I never cared what time I got home.
"I'm planning on keeping things the way I have been running them for a while longer. Maybe I'll grow into something new, but for now, I'll stick to this," an excited Maggie said.
Different sectors in the country are hopeful to make a comeback and recover the time lost, the time we will never get back.
In as much as we all want to seek to get our lives back on track, a lot of work has to go into it. Taking care of ourselves and others will get us there.
Just because the doors are open doesn't mean we should be reckless and not mindful of our health.
The economy is not that great, but with the lifting of the curfew, things may take a different.
A turn that will perhaps shock us. In a good way though.
Edited by D Tarus
