A Kikuyu song used to play on radio once upon a time in the late 1980s. The song was called Ime ria Kasarini that translates to ‘dew of Kasarini’ by Pius Kihingo who sang Part One and the reply, Part Two, was sang by a lady.
Way before Gigiri was the Gigiri we know today and Runda was Runda, they were coffee plantations where the singers according to the two songs, used to hand pick coffee berries. According to Kenyan history, during the postcolonial times, there was a rise in rural-urban migration since the world had changed and money was the medium of exchange, the new normal. Like many other people of their time, the two moved to work in settler farms and that is where they met, fell in love and got married. A classic plantation love story.
Kihingo begins his song by claiming that he is shocked that his lover has left, claiming that he is a thata <impotent>. He says that when they were getting married, his wife had stretched earlobes. He took her to Kenyatta Hospital to have them sewn and hired a teacher so that she could get an education. He then reminds her of all the places where they handpicked coffee berries, sometimes in the rain< Kwa Dondo, Kwa Maguta, Maroni, Marurui, Gigiri, Githogoro<part of it is present day Runda> Shereta, Muiruthi and many other places like Thika kwa Waveni> and how she used to wake up early in the morning to prepare njahiko<diluted form of ‘tea’ without tea leaves> for him before going to work in the plantation, while in Marurui. Since they kept to themselves and picked the same row of coffee bushes, people called them arogi.
According to the lady <Part Two>, while they were both in Githogoro, Kihingo loved her more than money. They used to pray that God would bless them with children but Kihingo sent her away because they could not bear children. She reminded him of the insults they endured, being called arogi<witch and wizard>, kariko<village slayqueen>, njuna maiko<individuals who lick the cooking spoon<the metaphorical meaning applies here>>, thata<barren> and many other names. The lady also adds that they really had a hard time picking the coffee berries and sings of the injuries she sustained on her back, hands and feet due to the hard labor and falling over with sacks while taking them to be weighed. She says they loved each other so much that Kihingo could not sleep without wishing her a goodnight, and their only enemy was death. As it later turned out, childlessness trampled their love and they went their separate ways.
On to the question, what is love? Love is more of a journey than a destination. That is why it takes communication, growth, commitment and consistency to keep it alive. What love means to you today is not what it might mean to you tomorrow. It is a word that is redefined with time and knowledge acquired as one gets older and wiser. Love is being true to yourself.
