A life well lived

In memory of Martin Nkhalambayausi Chirwa (1936 – 2016)

Martin Chirwa passed away on June 16, 2016 at the age of 79 after a long illness. He is survived by his wife Elinart with whom he was married for 58 years, 10 children ranging from 57 to 37 years old (from oldest to youngest) and their spouses, 21 grandchildren, and 7 siblings.

Martin Chirwa is my father. Of course I am biased, but there are few people who contributed to family, friends, church, education, and the country of Malawi, as much as my father did. My only question is, “how did he do it?” My father is truly one of the most unsung heroes of the world. And my father is my mentor.

I will write about this amazing man who walked the earth living an honest and hard-working life full of integrity. I hope that you will go along with me on the journey that attempts to retrace how my father lived his life. Some of the information to be penned was known to me prior to my father’s death. But there is also plenty of new information that I learned when I talked to my father’s two older brothers last month.

Just as a quick preview, my father personifies the much desired upward social class mobility that economists always talk about. As a young boy, he was a cattle herder. By his death, all his children were living an upper middle class life. His parents never stepped in a classroom and yet all his children had been to college and obtained some form of higher education qualification.

I will try to present his biography in chronological order. It will start with his early life and the struggles he faced to get a basic education. This will be followed by his political activism during Malawi’s fight for independence. To me, the most amazing phase of my father’s life was the third. This is the phase when he became a teacher and planted new schools while raising a large family together with my mother. This phase will also chronicle my father's transitioning to journalism. The concluding part will cover his final days on earth after “retirement”.

Martin Chirwa gave us so much of his life. He is looking happily at the positive fruits of his labor. And I believe the God who loves us and sent us his son Jesus Christ approved the way my father accepted the calling and was led by the Holy Spirit.