Lost Girl Found by Leah Bassoff

Author:Leah Bassoff
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Groundwood Books Ltd.
Published: 2014-01-24T15:41:38+00:00

— 20 —

WHAT MAKES YOU THINK you can leave? Thousands remain in Kakuma, and yet you have the nerve to escape. The voice in my head sounds like that of my foster mother, all its soft edges worn away by fatigue and disappointment.

But then I hear my mother’s voice, and it drowns out this first one. Do not listen to this, Chi Chi. Just leave quietly and then, as soon as you can, run. Run like you always do.

I walk out of the shelter on the balls of my feet, do not even look at my foster mother. As soon as I reach the fence, I give the guards their bribe, and then, as soon as I am past the camp’s exit, I run without looking back. I leave it all behind: the cracked ground that resembles old skin, the slabs of tin that try to pass for roofs, the women who stand with their backs bent over the small amounts of grain they are trying to turn into a meal.

Though I know my foster mother is counting on the bride money I will bring her, I do not pity her. With or without me, she will continue to talk to the ghost of her dead daughter, will hang somewhere between life and death.

Yet, leaving Lokure behind is too painful. I borrowed so much from him — first his book and then his words — but left him with nothing. Maybe I am selfish. Maybe my heart is harder than most people’s.

Those fingers of yours, Lokure, like tall grass — gentle and rough at the same time.

I believe I will miss your fingers as much as I will miss your words.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.