By Ogari Mogire
About 18 years ago, I borrowed my uncle’s bicycle and cycled from my rural home -some remote village within kisii in search of my secondary school crush about 70 kilometers away.
From all indications, I was so close to winning her heart especially after she had earlier on accepted my gift of Sandak shoes which I had bought for her from the proceeds of charcoal burning. All along, she had played hard to get throughout school. Now, I get to her home and after peeping through the ebinagwa fence for over an hour, I finally managed to signal her small brother to where I was. The lad comes and demands for something before letting me know where my “love” was. I produce kona saba (five shilling coin) which I had spared for emergency on the road in case my bicycle got a puncture only for the boy to tell me ‘monene akare nyanturago’ I inquire about the distance from there to nyanturago place and my estimation gives me about 20 kilometers away!
Determined, I set the ‘Raleigh’ machine in motion after carefully listening to the directions.
I get to my destination and the first person I inquire from on the whereabouts of one Esther from Igare happens to be isebiara who confidently explains in swahili…”Yeye ni mitoto yangu ameoleka kwa kichana yangu!”
I dislodge from the bicycle and sit down to hear properly!!
My informer asks if he should call her for me and I only nod. Esther comes and she’s evidently pregnant! On seeing me, she is full of herself and says, ‘karipu ase kwaru mbuya bare?
She’s wearing my Sandak that I bought her!
Furious, exhausted and fatigued, I stand to leave. My bicycle’s rear tyre is flat! It’s 5.30pm and I have over 90 kilometres to do by way of cycling. I’m penniless.
No thought of killing anybody crosses my mind. Only defeat. I encourage myself that I will pursue Nyanchama instead.
Hii kuuana juu ya mapenzi imetoka wapi jameni??
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