Sometime in 2016 I had the opportunity of lunch with the Honourable Norbert Mao and his family, at their home in Ntinda then. It turned out to be a life-transforming moment for me (Allow me keep out the detail of what capacity I was there in).
Over lunch, I heard first-hand some of the stories Mr. Mao is fond of wittily telling in public; they’re funnier in person, with even greater moral weight.
He told the story of The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared in the US, a 2009 comic novel by the Swedish author Jonas Jonasson. A heavily literate family, everyone, including his youngest son, knew the story, except me. Shortly after lunch he showed me around the house, and took me to an outdoor room extension (upstairs) pending completion, that he intended to make the main home library.
Meanwhile, down at the main house, he owned a large collection of books; I believe has grown even larger in the past 10 years: Besides being a diligent book collector, Mao is evidently a voracious reader— one of the secrets to the man’s enviable eloquence and intellectual flair!
I asked him how he managed to have such a huge collection of books. Mr. Mao told me his secret: “I make sure to buy a book every time I travel [even locally],” he said.
Books are a continuous investment/expense on Mao’s budget, even during economically tight seasons.
As an aspiring bibliophile at the time, that nugget was all I needed to get started; I did as soon as I enrolled for my undergrad at Uganda Christian University.
Last Sunday, I run into him at a Bookstore adjacent to Forest Mall, Lugogo. Despite being a Cabinet Minister of Uganda, not an ounce of his passion for books has waned to the political demands, exhaustion and sometimes chaos that his national mandate carries. He was skimming a book(s) while standing (his guards at a distance) for several minutes. I briefly interrupted his book-reading to just say hello.
Several years had passed since our last meeting at his home so I jogged his memory. He was courteous enough to entertain my anecdotes. Moreover, he was delighted (I believe) to learn I had since grown a personal collection of over 600 books; I let him know I was aiming for 5000, that I’d ultimately donate after they’d raised a literate family. During the chat, Mr. Mao challenged me to eventually consider setting up a community library in West Nile. Why West Nile? I’ll share a separate account. But it’s a challenge I welcome and pray God helps me see through.
With all this said, in short: Political sentiments aside, we need more leaders (read readers) like Mr. Norbert Mao.
