A Solitary Tower at Age Nine: The Day I Chose to Stand Alone

Growing up in Kenya, my family was quiet and insular. When I was nine, we went camping on a beach in Mombasa with two other families, and the constant games and laughter felt overwhelming. I spent my days bodyboarding, watching crabs scuttle across the sand, and climbing rusted cannons in the old fort. One afternoon, my father insisted I join the men on a canoe trip to a reef a mile offshore. Terrified, I clambered into the wobbly boat and clung on for dear life. But later, left alone atop a stone tower on the shore, I felt a profound peace. I decided then that life might be best on my own. That thought has shaped my travels and relationships ever since.