Christmas, for Kenyans, means above all going home.
To one's home, the one where one was born and where childhood relatives and friends still live.
Given the Christian background, both Catholic and Protestant, the call of childhood is also a call of church, where well or poorly everyone (except the Islamic minorities, of course, who are more present on the coast, and Kenyans of Indian descent) has gone since childhood.

Almost everyone tries to be home for at least the eve so that they can make preparations for their family or, depending on their economic status, for the entire village and local parish.
This is often the only opportunity for relatives and their families, located not only throughout Kenya and Africa but also on other continents, to gather and reunite.

Homes and churches are often decorated with colorful balloons, ribbons, paper decorations, flowers and green leaves. In Kenya, and this is a peculiarity, the most commonly used tree for Christmas decorations is the cypress tree.
Many people, especially Christians, go to the midnight church service to celebrate Christmas. A real "vigil" called "Kesha," with hymns, carols and Christmas songs and often nativity plays, poems and dances.

It is traditional to wear a new dress, for Christmas, especially to mark the passing of a year by one's children. If you really can't bring yourself to buy a new dress, you will use the most sumptuous and important one. Christmas gifts also follow this view: those for children are mainly clothing and shoes. In second order are chocolate and sweets.
Some people even go to church on Christmas morning, if they have not overindulged in the festivities, because homemade alcoholic beverages are also prepared during Christmas.

Christmas Day can hardly go by without a lunch that lasts until dinner and the dishes are almost always meat-based: cows or goats have been sacrificed for the occasion, but chickens also make a fine display on a grill. "Nyama Choma Krismasi."
The accompaniment is rice, fried potatoes and chapati.
Even the poorest families, do whatever it takes to have a day with meat and some signs of comfort, and if they just can't make it, they receive gifts from other communities or missionary organizations.

This year in particular, the economic crisis and inflation have forced many people to limit themselves to the trip, which is also more expensive than ever because of the record increase in fuel, arriving empty-handed at their village. The important thing, however, is to make community, to be together and to share what one has.
What will never change, in Africa, is the desire to shake off thoughts, praying and starting to sing hymns to the Lord all together, stuff that in Italy now only the elderly or small groups of pure souls do, which almost everyone considers a bit crazy or incurable bigots.
Here, however, it is one of those habits that sticks, aggregates and brings hope in the form of sharing. "Hery ya krismasi," Merry Christmas!

Foto: Osborn Macharia