Kammala jumla mai zuwa: An haifi Gration, wanda aka sani da sunansa na biyu Scott, a St. Charles, Illinois, ɗan Dorothy E. (née Harpel) da John Alexander Gration. Kakannin mahaifinsa 'yan Burtaniya ne. Ya shafe yarintarsa a abin da yanzu shi ne Jamhuriyar Demokradiyyar Kongo (to, Congo ta Belgium, daga baya Zaire) da Kenya, yayin da iyayensa suka yi aiki a matsayin malamai masu wa'azi a ƙasashen waje. Jumlar farko da ya fara furtawa ita ce a yaren Kiswahili, kuma ya kasance mai magana da yaren Kiswahili a duk rayuwarsa. A lokacin da
Rikicin Kongo a farkon shekarun 1960, an kwashe danginsa sau uku, kuma sun zama 'yan gudun hijira, sun koma Kenya bayan kwashe na uku a 1964.