At 100 he can still thread a needle
WHEN the old man Semu Mayanja read the Bible without glasses during the thanksgiving service to mark his 100th birthday, many of his guests were amazed and when he threaded a needle, they were left speechless!
By Gladys Kalibbala
WHEN the old man Semu Mayanja read the Bible without glasses during the thanksgiving service to mark his 100th birthday, many of his guests were amazed and when he threaded a needle, they were left speechless!
“What magic is he using at his age when I have just turned 40 and cannot read anything without the help of my glasses?†asked John Muwonge from Mukono.
A lady who had remained open-mouthed, composed herself and said: “He must have been taking a special diet all his life because I am just 35 have to ask my daughter in P.7 to help me with the needle.â€
By the time he finished reading, he must have sensed that many guests had doubts about what he had read.
Mayanja, whose senses are all seemingly intact despite his advanced age, called for a needle and thread to be brought from his house.
“You seem to doubt my sight and may think that I crammed that part in the Bible. To prove to you that God has really preserved my sight, I will show you how I always mend my clothes without assistance of either glasses or anyone,†he remarked.
Guests gave him a long round of applause as others ran to congratulate him.
Mayanja further entertained guests when he called for someone to bring him his flute, to accompany the choir from Kisowera Church of Uganda. He would stop in the middle of the song to explain how the flute made music sweet.
But what is the secret behind his longevity? Mayanja, a resident of Nama Village in Mukono district, said to be like him, one must avoid any form of alcohol and make katunkuma (sour berries) part of their daily meal.
“I do not think many people can live to be my age. Today, youth abuse alcohol, which is the surest ticket to the grave,†he said. This he attributes to the fact that he grew up in a home where morals were highly treasured. (Mayanja grew up in the home of the former katikkiro of Buganda, Apollo Kawalya Kaggwa).
His guardian never drank any alcohol and there was no way anyone in the homestead would be forced to take up the bottle.
But what about his sight? How does he manage to read a Bible without glasses at that age?
Mayanja has no clear explanation for that amazing phenomenon. He attributes it all to God whom he says maintained his good sight. He has led such a healthy life, he claims he has never had any serious sickness except four operations for hernia, which still disturbs him.
“I have never suffered from malaria and have not had a tooth removed. However, recently, my teeth just started falling out one by one without any pain,†he says.
Mayanja’s rare thanksgiving service was presided over by Rev Fred Muligisa from the Anglican church, Sheikh Mohammed Wasswa from Kisowera Mosque and a representative from the Catholic Church.
Rev. Muligisa prayed that God grant Mayanja another 30 years and cautioned Christians to avoid living careless lives if they wanted to be like Mayanja.
At the end of the service, two of Mayanja’s grandsons - Kenneth Sekitoleko, 9, a P.3 pupil at Kisowera Primary School and Jordan Selule, 9, a P.4 pupil at Buddo Junior School, handed their grandfather 100 red roses. A visibly excited Mayanja later cut a cake, which he served to his.
But Mayanja is not the first in his family to out-live all his contemporaries. Mayanja’s father, Tunabiwulira, died at the age of 85, while his mother died at 84. His sister, Nakabugo, died at 99 in June last year.
It may be difficult to believe, but the old man seems to remember most incidents by date and years.
Semu Mayanja was born on July 26, 1907 at Mengo Hospital to Kezekia Nakabale Tunabiwulira and Yuliya Bukirwa of Mengo Buttikiro. Rev. Miller baptised him on October 26, 1913 at Namirembe Cathedral on Ticket No 7610.
He went to school at Kinejjulira Madda Day School at Kayanja’s place in 1920.
Mayanja, who now moves with the help of a wheel chair or a walking stick, says he never fell sick until 1975.
“I started feeling pain in both legs and with time, it disabled me. But, I request President Yoweri Museveni to avail me with a small car to enable me to move to and from hospital and church.†Mayanja added that it is not an easy task getting to be 100 and so the President should be kind enough to assist him.
He said he was a brilliant boy at school, but then he started working for Mikayiri Kawalya Kaggwa (son of Apollo Kawalya Kaggwa).The Kattikiro got attached to him so much that: “He got me out of school to care for his children and run errands for the home because he was impressed by my brilliance,†Mayanja said.
But what Kattikiro made Mayanja miss out in his childhood, he made up for in his adulthood.
“He organised my marriage to Florence Eloni Nansubuga in 1935 and bought me my first vehicle (a box body) which I used as a taxi and managed to buy two buses later.â€
Mayanja recalls, with amusement, how he was struck by Nansubuga’s eyes and her voice the first time he set eyes on her. “Oh! She was a beauty.â€
He, however, said the first girl he wanted to marry was very short and when he presented her to his boss, Kawalya did not approve of her.
His aunt, Keziya Miti of Kapeeka, then match-made him with Nansubuga, whom he wedded in 1935. She died in the 1990s.
Mayanja has 14 children - six boys and eight girls. Most of them live abroad. Over the years, he married another wife Paulina Nnalongo, who died in London last year. Mayanja stays with housekeepers at his home in Nama-Mukono.
On February 13, 2000, Mayanja visited London where his wife Nnalongo was being treated at the home of their daughters, Margaret Mayanja and Rebecca Nakato. He describes his experience in the plane as normal because he did not get any upsets as he had been warned before he travelled.
Margaret said he shocked many people in London. “My father stayed for seven months and never bothered about heavy coats although he came during winter.â€
She added that her father would even open the window of his room to look at the snow.
Mayanja said he enjoyed attending Sunday service at Waterloo Church where a Luganda service was held every first week of the month. “I met Prof Kirya, who, at the time, was the High Commissioner and we shared a cup of tea.â€
When I visited Mayanja after the birthday celebrations, I found him having lunch with katunkuma juice. He copied the tradition from his late grandfather, Yakobo Guweddeko Mulira of Bulemezi.
“Instead of drinking water or passion fruit juice with food, he would drink a glass of katunkuma. Whenever I feel thirsty, I take a sip of katunkuma from the big bottle which I keep in the dining room instead of mere water,†he said, adding that this is his vaccine against malaria.
Although his favourite food is sweet potatoes and chicken, he always includes a lot of green vegetables in his meals. Unlike most Baganda, he hates matooke and feels comfortable with a plate of good sweet potatoes, which he enjoys sharing with his dog.
He said due to the weakness of his teeth, he prefers to eat broiler chicken, which he has started keeping at home.
Mayanja boasts about having seen the first car in Uganda, the Ttinga-Ttinga, which was brought in 1912. “It was first used on Entebbe Road, but it failed to reach Entebbe in one day because the people who were testing it arrived late and had to spend the night at Kisubi. We only managed to see it the next day.â€
He also remembers the introduction of the gomesi (a traditional dress) and the hoe. “The gomesi was introduced by Allen, a white teacher at Gayaza High School. People christened the new dress bodingi because Gayaza was a boarding school. The name later changed to gomesi because the tailor who made them was called Gomez.â€
In 1910, the hoe was introduced and was first used on a tea plantation at Kireka. “Ladies hated this hoe. To them, the hoe belonged to men. If a man gave it to a woman, she became his servant,†Mayanja said.
On a cheeky note, he says: “I still have the potential to bed any woman if I want to, but I fear AIDS. Today’s men lose their sexual prowess because of drinking too much alcohol.â€
Additional reporting by Grace Ndagire
WHEN the old man Semu Mayanja read the Bible without glasses during the thanksgiving service to mark his 100th birthday, many of his guests were amazed and when he threaded a needle, they were left speechless!
“What magic is he using at his age when I have just turned 40 and cannot read anything without the help of my glasses?†asked John Muwonge from Mukono.
A lady who had remained open-mouthed, composed herself and said: “He must have been taking a special diet all his life because I am just 35 have to ask my daughter in P.7 to help me with the needle.â€
By the time he finished reading, he must have sensed that many guests had doubts about what he had read.
Mayanja, whose senses are all seemingly intact despite his advanced age, called for a needle and thread to be brought from his house.
“You seem to doubt my sight and may think that I crammed that part in the Bible. To prove to you that God has really preserved my sight, I will show you how I always mend my clothes without assistance of either glasses or anyone,†he remarked.
Guests gave him a long round of applause as others ran to congratulate him.
Mayanja further entertained guests when he called for someone to bring him his flute, to accompany the choir from Kisowera Church of Uganda. He would stop in the middle of the song to explain how the flute made music sweet.
But what is the secret behind his longevity? Mayanja, a resident of Nama Village in Mukono district, said to be like him, one must avoid any form of alcohol and make katunkuma (sour berries) part of their daily meal.
“I do not think many people can live to be my age. Today, youth abuse alcohol, which is the surest ticket to the grave,†he said. This he attributes to the fact that he grew up in a home where morals were highly treasured. (Mayanja grew up in the home of the former katikkiro of Buganda, Apollo Kawalya Kaggwa).
His guardian never drank any alcohol and there was no way anyone in the homestead would be forced to take up the bottle.
But what about his sight? How does he manage to read a Bible without glasses at that age?
Mayanja has no clear explanation for that amazing phenomenon. He attributes it all to God whom he says maintained his good sight. He has led such a healthy life, he claims he has never had any serious sickness except four operations for hernia, which still disturbs him.
“I have never suffered from malaria and have not had a tooth removed. However, recently, my teeth just started falling out one by one without any pain,†he says.
Mayanja’s rare thanksgiving service was presided over by Rev Fred Muligisa from the Anglican church, Sheikh Mohammed Wasswa from Kisowera Mosque and a representative from the Catholic Church.
Rev. Muligisa prayed that God grant Mayanja another 30 years and cautioned Christians to avoid living careless lives if they wanted to be like Mayanja.
At the end of the service, two of Mayanja’s grandsons - Kenneth Sekitoleko, 9, a P.3 pupil at Kisowera Primary School and Jordan Selule, 9, a P.4 pupil at Buddo Junior School, handed their grandfather 100 red roses. A visibly excited Mayanja later cut a cake, which he served to his.
But Mayanja is not the first in his family to out-live all his contemporaries. Mayanja’s father, Tunabiwulira, died at the age of 85, while his mother died at 84. His sister, Nakabugo, died at 99 in June last year.
It may be difficult to believe, but the old man seems to remember most incidents by date and years.
Semu Mayanja was born on July 26, 1907 at Mengo Hospital to Kezekia Nakabale Tunabiwulira and Yuliya Bukirwa of Mengo Buttikiro. Rev. Miller baptised him on October 26, 1913 at Namirembe Cathedral on Ticket No 7610.
He went to school at Kinejjulira Madda Day School at Kayanja’s place in 1920.
Mayanja, who now moves with the help of a wheel chair or a walking stick, says he never fell sick until 1975.
“I started feeling pain in both legs and with time, it disabled me. But, I request President Yoweri Museveni to avail me with a small car to enable me to move to and from hospital and church.†Mayanja added that it is not an easy task getting to be 100 and so the President should be kind enough to assist him.
He said he was a brilliant boy at school, but then he started working for Mikayiri Kawalya Kaggwa (son of Apollo Kawalya Kaggwa).The Kattikiro got attached to him so much that: “He got me out of school to care for his children and run errands for the home because he was impressed by my brilliance,†Mayanja said.
But what Kattikiro made Mayanja miss out in his childhood, he made up for in his adulthood.
“He organised my marriage to Florence Eloni Nansubuga in 1935 and bought me my first vehicle (a box body) which I used as a taxi and managed to buy two buses later.â€
Mayanja recalls, with amusement, how he was struck by Nansubuga’s eyes and her voice the first time he set eyes on her. “Oh! She was a beauty.â€
He, however, said the first girl he wanted to marry was very short and when he presented her to his boss, Kawalya did not approve of her.
His aunt, Keziya Miti of Kapeeka, then match-made him with Nansubuga, whom he wedded in 1935. She died in the 1990s.
Mayanja has 14 children - six boys and eight girls. Most of them live abroad. Over the years, he married another wife Paulina Nnalongo, who died in London last year. Mayanja stays with housekeepers at his home in Nama-Mukono.
On February 13, 2000, Mayanja visited London where his wife Nnalongo was being treated at the home of their daughters, Margaret Mayanja and Rebecca Nakato. He describes his experience in the plane as normal because he did not get any upsets as he had been warned before he travelled.
Margaret said he shocked many people in London. “My father stayed for seven months and never bothered about heavy coats although he came during winter.â€
She added that her father would even open the window of his room to look at the snow.
Mayanja said he enjoyed attending Sunday service at Waterloo Church where a Luganda service was held every first week of the month. “I met Prof Kirya, who, at the time, was the High Commissioner and we shared a cup of tea.â€
When I visited Mayanja after the birthday celebrations, I found him having lunch with katunkuma juice. He copied the tradition from his late grandfather, Yakobo Guweddeko Mulira of Bulemezi.
“Instead of drinking water or passion fruit juice with food, he would drink a glass of katunkuma. Whenever I feel thirsty, I take a sip of katunkuma from the big bottle which I keep in the dining room instead of mere water,†he said, adding that this is his vaccine against malaria.
Although his favourite food is sweet potatoes and chicken, he always includes a lot of green vegetables in his meals. Unlike most Baganda, he hates matooke and feels comfortable with a plate of good sweet potatoes, which he enjoys sharing with his dog.
He said due to the weakness of his teeth, he prefers to eat broiler chicken, which he has started keeping at home.
Mayanja boasts about having seen the first car in Uganda, the Ttinga-Ttinga, which was brought in 1912. “It was first used on Entebbe Road, but it failed to reach Entebbe in one day because the people who were testing it arrived late and had to spend the night at Kisubi. We only managed to see it the next day.â€
He also remembers the introduction of the gomesi (a traditional dress) and the hoe. “The gomesi was introduced by Allen, a white teacher at Gayaza High School. People christened the new dress bodingi because Gayaza was a boarding school. The name later changed to gomesi because the tailor who made them was called Gomez.â€
In 1910, the hoe was introduced and was first used on a tea plantation at Kireka. “Ladies hated this hoe. To them, the hoe belonged to men. If a man gave it to a woman, she became his servant,†Mayanja said.
On a cheeky note, he says: “I still have the potential to bed any woman if I want to, but I fear AIDS. Today’s men lose their sexual prowess because of drinking too much alcohol.â€
Additional reporting by Grace Ndagire