Word Symphony II – Lenjo Maza

“... crosses our lands, from the lake of salt to the lands of the great lake to quench its thirst." The Nandi seer, Kimnyolei predicted the coming of the "Lunatic Express" over a hundred years ago. Thousands died toiling to build it. Twenty-nine devoured by the man-eater lions at Tsavo. The railway still crosses the land. Its thirst remains still very much unquenched. In the sun-baked valley of Bomani, the railway is more than just iron and gravel, it is the restless artery slicing through the red earth, carrying the wealth of the outside world while leaving the local people in its dust. For twelve-year-old Ada, the railway bridge is a secret sanctuary, a place to map the world alongside her teacher’s lessons and ancient prophecies. For Mwawuda, a tired police officer weary of twenty-four years under an unyielding system, the outpost is a quiet refuge from a world that broke his ambitions. And for Msee wa Nduthi, a hardened stage rider desperate for a way out of the dust, the tracks represent the dangerous line between survival and ruin.