But We Remember

After David Ndii, you feel like giving up on project Kenya but after meeting Yvonne Owuor you feel like there is some spark of hope. The project could be dead and buried but it may be resurrected. But was it not interesting that many of us did not seem to know, or at least, speak about any of our so called national symbols? Is it because the national flag is becoming heavier by the day? It was lighter many years back; one could carry and run with it; we cannot anymore and those who dare carry it are clearly weighed down upon. Do we really have them anyway or have we been told that they are there? Do we believe in them and why? How did we become a people so ready to kill the "nation?" Oops is there such a thing as a nation in Kenya? Dust's Trader isn't necessarily a pleasant character but he seems to know one good thing - trade in everything but a name - did we lose it when we started trading in our name? Yes, a name. A name is the identity, the nation, nationhood; everything. Do we still have a name? What is our name? Yes, dust opens it up and talks about hard things that we rarely dare want to talk about but we know them and they permeate our lives - I mean nobody wants to talk about kihi but we sure know that it wounds. Silences! Dust does dare talk about it. These are uncomfortable things but they are truths, so bitter are they to a "nation" whose people suffer from doses ad doses of historical amnesia. At least, Dust recognizes that we have four official languages: English, Kiswahili, Silence and Memory. We may not be speaking about it because in 1969 we were told not to "cheza na mzee" and in 2016 we were reminded not to "cheza na serikali" but we have our fourth language - memory. We do not talk about it because silence is our official languages too but we REMEMBER!