Mr. Teka is the man I have probably laughed the hardest with in Kibera. He loves the CIA and the FBI due to obsessively watching every American show that deals with investigations like CSI or 24. In fact, after my first interview with him he was so happy that I “helped him remember to remember things he didn’t remember that he remembered” he thought I may be a CIA interrogator. He is afraid of cats. He loves his students at KGSA. The students respect him so much, in part because he too comes from poverty.
Teka grew up in upcountry, Kenya. His mother struggled to put food on the table. He would tie a rope around his skinny stomach before school to help alleviate hunger pains. He loved school so much, he would put his feet in a bucket of cold water so he could stay up later reading his school books every evening. He got high enough marks to go to a big high school. There, he would rush down to lunch to be first in line. He would eat quickly, wash his plate, and run to try to get back in line so he could eat twice.