Red-Stained Tears

She adorns her flesh with silk; fine brown silk that hugs her thick body gently, yet firmly. A glorious assortment of warm colours exudes through the silk: caramel, cocoa, coffee, charcoal- and an array of toasty blends in-between. The elegance she radiates is effortless; her beauty striking. The scent of coconut oil wafts off her exterior with a hint of salty sweat.

Her face protrudes forwards to display an array of distinct features: mahogany thick lips caging the secrets of the world’s past; burnt ears that retain the reminiscence of ruthless slurs; a wide-set-nose carrying the smell of nature’s luscious foliage gradually being masked by clouds of pollution; and eyes. Twin-eyes. Eyes as dark as night, growing only darker with the oppression she supports on her splintering back.

Thick black vegetation grows out of her cracking skull. The vegetation is her glory and where her beauty resides most eminently. It is her crown. It is untameable, lively, coiled and wild. Hidden in it are riches beyond a single soul’s comprehension; riches that are maliciously exploited by her offspring.

Her own flesh-and-blood pierce into her skull with shovels and drills. Her cries do not stop them; nor do her bloody tears. They continue to impale deeper and deeper, for all they care about are the riches they will harvest for their own selfish desires. They choose to overlook their history origin. They wear ignorance on their sleeves to convince themselves that what they are doing is right. After all, they are superior and nothing like her. They tune out her screams with the sounds of their machines.

However, behind her red-stained tears lie two stars resting far-away in each of her night-skied eyes. They hold a glimmer of hope; one that yearns deeply for a life of equality, equity, love and respect- all of which she awaits from the infinite amount of children she bore over a time span of millions of years. For she believes that their ruthless ways will one day be a thing of the past. A dark past that humanity was able to overcome.

 

Wabia Nganatha Karugu
Second Year Law Student
Strathmore University