Hillary Lisimba Ambani has become an inspiration to most men in the country after pulling one of the most audacious moves any man could dare.
During his talk at the Safaricom, Platinum Engage Talk on February 21, the Saturday Nation 'Daddy Diaries' columnist narrated how he ended up being 'the father and mother' to his son.
When he proposed to his then-girlfriend Brenda Oloo, she gave him two conditions; to support her dreams and take her as she was.
After their wedding on April 16, 2011, he quickly learned that the 'take me as I am' part was because Brenda had severe Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) and also dreamt of working abroad was the 'support my dreams part'.
"She always wanted to work for this airline that is not in the country and I kept convincing myself that she was not going anywhere," Lisimba narrated.
Ambani, who has also authored the book, The Boy With Shoes, further narrated that after three years of marriage they were blessed with a baby boy and coincidentally the company his wife had applied to work with tabled an offer.
"Brenda told me she wouldn't take the offer because our son was too young," he continued.
He convinced his wife to take the opportunity especially after the fact that she had waited for years for the opportunity.
Despite the objection of friends and relatives, he took the responsibility of raising the minor all by himself.
He narrated the frustration he had to go through at times when the baby couldn't stop crying and he couldn't figure out what was causing it.
Lisimba explained how this almost drove a wedge between him and his mother because every time she called she would find the baby crying and she would revisit his decision of allowing her to take the airline job.
Then he learned about the infamous Kilimani Mums group on Facebook through friends who had empathised with his situation.
"Someone mentioned to me that there was this support group on Facebook for mothers and it is called Kilimani Mums Nairobi," he stated leaving the crowd in stitches.
Despite him sending the request with his full names, they somehow accepted him, unaware that the group was extremely harsh to men.
Whenever he would innocently ask for advice, he would be met with a barrage of negative responses and insults amid bouts of useful answers.
He further recalled spending nights in hospital wards leaving the nurses murmuring in disbelief as most of them had never seen a man take responsibility for their child to that extent.
While concluding his talk he advised men not to be restricted by societal norms and avoid the comparisons of marriages as everyone has their own path to chart.
On October 14, 2019, the young boy turned 5 years old and Lisimba added that he and his wife are happier than ever.
