Betty Kyalo’s Ben-10 thought he was dropping nuclear wisdom when he roasted his own age-mates for losing their minds over Speed’s Nairobi takeover. He thought he “ate”.
He genuinely believed those few smug paragraphs would fast-track him to the imaginary council of elders - proof of his superior maturity, his “elevated” perspective.
Here’s the quiet psychological trap he walked straight into, and most young men in similar situations never see it coming:
Dating a significantly older person means you’re almost always the one who has to shrink.
You dim your natural light, mute your genuine excitement, suppress the things that light up your peers - because anything too “youthful” now threatens the manufactured compatibility you’re both clinging to.
You trade authentic joy for an illusion of maturity.
You step onto a fake high ground that feels safe in the moment… until it starts feeling like exile.
The irony is brutal: the phases you’re proudly skipping today - wild hype, silly memes, chaotic group energy, being unapologetically 20-something, you will still have to live through later.
Only then, you’ll be doing it alone, or worse, resenting the person who made you fast-forward your own life.
Psychology calls this delayed individuation - postponing core developmental experiences doesn’t erase them; it just relocates them to a more painful chapter.
So here’s the gentle, brutal truth, kijana:
Negotiate with your mumama for occasional “visas.” Permission slips to go be young with your age-mates, to scream at concerts, to run through the streets hyped over internet legends, to look foolish and feel alive without judgment.
Don’t rush to get grown.
The grown-up costume fits better when you’ve actually lived the ages underneath it first.
You’re not missing maturity by celebrating Speed. You’re preserving your right to feel things fully - something far rarer, and far more valuable, than any borrowed “wisdom” from someone else’s timeline.
Stay young while you still can.
The high ground you’re standing on today might just be a ledge you’ll have to climb back down from tomorrow.
Ruto you are the devils mission! Your days are soon coming to an end, the devils evil is always stopped by Gods good, we shall triumph over you heathen! Ruck Futo!
On page 2, two independent investigative journalists from the UK, Namir Shabibi & Claire Lauterbach, offer five tips you should know about phone surveillance in Kenya.