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I have reached my destination; I trace calligraphies. My quill seems to pour its ink unto the banks of the Tanganyika Lake. The sacred place, to which from the other side of the frontier, I confined my boredom and worries when I was that youth. Nevertheless, always hence along my way.

How have I arrived at the kraal of the oldest wisdom?

Ubushingatahe!

These legendary drummers armed with virtues, keepers of tradition of tolerance and proudness. This is a story or yet another imagining. However, I am as often inspired and consoled by the lake.

We always went there together.

We are from the lake, she and I.

She who freed me every morning from the prison of my subconscious that shrouded me whenever languish sleep appeared on the horizon. She writes too.

She colors verses in the sand of the beach, or paints figures in the water on the lake

We are from the lake. She and I

We are very close because we had the lakes in common, our nuptial bed.

We are united, almost intimate, and love had never been so noble. She and I

Together in the lake, that nourishes our desires, passion for freedom.

Nandi belongs to the lakes, a beauty that surpassed that of the muses.

Moreover, in her eyes, as on the shores of the Tanganyika Lake, I found my liberty.

—Nandi has fallen sleep and watch over her.

A thought of Burundi

 

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Image by kpierreart via African Digital Art

About the Author:

Portrait - Raiz BonezaRaïs Neza Boneza was born in the former Zaïre, now Democratic Republic of Congo. Mr. Boneza is a writer and poet with 3 poetry collections, 2 books of non-fiction and several articles and essays on transformative justice. He has travelled extensively in Africa and around the world as a lecturer, educator and consultant for various NGOs and institutions. His work is premised on peace and conflict transformation and human-rights issues coming out of Africa and the Diaspora. Boneza is currently a freelance journalist based in Trondheim, Norway.