I am dreaming… Sweet, sweet, beautiful dream, I dream of lush rolling green hills, I dream of mighty earth-colored rivers snaking their way through manicured valleys, I am dreaming of the great silverback in misty hills of Kinigi, managing his family like the majesty that he is, I dream of Lake Burera pouring into Ruhondo like a mother pouring milk from Icyansi to her baby’s inkongoro, I dream of the tapestry of rolling green hills interspersed with emerald lakes from Masisi to Nyanzalac, from Juba to Mwanza, I dream of the Nile, the Mother of all Rivers, the Biblical Nile that gave sanctuary to the father of all Liberators; the bed-rock of civilization and the life line for three continents, I dream of snow-capped Kilimanjaro, did I say Kirinyaga? That is Mount Kenya for you born this side of the 21st Century. I dream of the Jade Sea, lakes and lakelets from Turkana to Tanganyika, reflecting the silhouette of ethereal flamingoes with pink lipstick. Did I spy the wonder of the world, Serengeti, or was it the sprawling Mara; was it the motherly lion tending a baby oryx in the Samburu? Did I hear the mighty roar of the wildebeest migration in the fall, or motherly tusker pushing her cub the Ngorongoro crater? Was it the climbing lions of Tarangire disdainfully observing the marauding four jeeps and their curious contents. I dream of the black gold gushing under the magnificent Mountains of the Moon and their twin eyes; Albert and George, down through the Crete Congo-Nil and the Virunga chain to infinity, I dream of a six-dimensional, (is it seven or eight) gem at the heart of Africa, brilliant, magnificent, eesh, this English language has no words!! I am dreaming of the SGR snaking its way from Mombasa through the Great Rift Valley, through the land of the Kabakas and Bakama , through the herds of long-horned Zebu to the land of a thousand hills. I dream of resort cities, tech cities, ICT and innovation hubs. I dream of prosperity, of rightfully proud citizens of the center of civilization at the heart of Africa. I am dreaming of a pearl at the very heart of Africa, nay, a diamond, was it a topaz, amethyst, whatever ! A gem at the heart of Africa! DON’T WAKE ME UP!!
