There is a Lake. Every man knows it.
It sits in the valley between two mountains. Soft mountains. Beautiful mountains. The kind you see and your mouth dries.
All rivers pour into this Lake, but it never fills. You pour and pour, and it says more. More.
When it fills, it brings natural winds of death that mingle with every man who has ever lived. Adam couldn't miss out, with all the beautiful garden God had given him. Whole Eden behind him, but one Lake in front of him, and he knelt to drink.
This Lake feeds all manner of animals. Reptiles, amphibians drink from it to make offspring. Hyenas kill Lions over this Lake. The Lion at the Lake shores, with all his scars and roar, cannot match the newborn hyenas who think they can drink all the water in the Lake alone.
River pours and pours, but the Lake never dries.
And this Lake has swallowed many.
It swallowed Mwambala. It swallowed Kigozi. It swallowed my friend Mansour.
It swallowed Ssekyanzi.
This Lake has eaten Philly Bongole Lutaaya, Born in Africa, the voice that made a continent cry and dance in one breath.
Samson was dehorned by this beautiful Lake waters. The strongest man. His locks were not cut by scissors. They were cut at the shore, between two mountains. Delilah was the Lake.
I have remembered Kiddu, the rally driver in Kansanga, drowning in the Lake. Ooh, Makindye division, you lead the river to the lake, Kiddu.
Makindye.
Kazini, Makindye.
Moses Moi, Makindye.
General Kazini, swallowed with all the might, all the stars, all the guns, could not save him at the shore.
Luck Dube hanged by the riverside as he was approaching the Lake.
And the Lake keeps eating, across all books and borders:
Shakespeare saw Romeo and Juliet drown in the Lake of the Capulets and the Montagues. Romeo did not die by sword. He died because he tried to drink from a Lake that two families had fenced.
Ngugi wa Thiong'o said I Will Marry When I Want, but the Lake answered, you will marry when I want.
The Lake has closed off R. Kelly. A man who made rivers of music pour, but he thought he could own the whole Lake alone. Now the Lake is closed with iron bars.
I am told Sani Abacha could not swim over Lake Nigeria. General of generals. Oil rivers in his pocket. He entered the Lake one night with soft mountains around him, and the Lake did not let him come out. No bullet. No coup. Just the Lake.
King David swam in the Lake of his soldier friend. Uriah's Lake. Bathsheba.
Queen Sheba left her throne to look for the Lake in the Hebrew land. She traveled a thousand miles, not for gold, but for a conversation at the shore.
I will call Uncle Jacob Zuma to connect River Zulu to Lake Nkhosi. He will tell you with a laugh, Zulu River never stops flowing, but Nkhosi Lake never fills.
When the Jews wanted to backfill the Lake, to stone the Lake, Jesus said, show me lips of those who have never drunk from this Lake. That's when they all ran away. Because every lip has tasted.
Manyiganjegere Moises swam many times in this Lake. Leopards died swimming. Fox and rhinos sleep under the sea. He swam, and he played saxophone on the shore to calm the waters. And they said his mix design did not pass the crushing value test. But whose mix does?
THE CHEMISTRY AND PHYSICS OF THIS LAKE
Now listen, because this is the secret the elders hide.
The chemistry and physics of this Lake is not from this earth.
It is sent by the cupids, small gods sent by the God of Heaven Himself.
You think it is just water? No.
The physics: Two mountains create a valley, the valley creates a pressure. The pressure pulls all rivers. No matter how much you pour, the pressure never equalizes. That is why it never fills. Scientists call it capillary. We call it desire.
The chemistry: One sip changes blood. It changes eyes. It changes tongue. One sip and the strongest man forgets his name. Samson forgot. David forgot. Abacha forgot. Even Adam, who had just named all animals, forgot the name of God.
Why? Because the cupids have put salt and honey inside. Salt to make you thirsty forever. Honey to make you come back.
And the God of Heaven — He picks who will survive the Lake.
He picked Jacob to survive after wrestling at the Lake of Peniel.
He picked David after Bathsheba, but He took the child.
He picked Solomon after Sheba, but He divided his kingdom.
He picked Moies to swim many times and still come back with music. Many swam once and died. Moi swam many times because God allowed.
That is why you cannot judge a man who drowns. You say, "he was weak." No. The cupids were sent to him. The chemistry was too strong that night. The physics of the two mountains was too perfect. God did not pick him to survive that swim.
Philly, God did not pick him that year.
Kazini, God did not pick him that night.
Luck Dube, God called him before he reached the shore.
And you — you who are reading this at MMJ Cottages, in Bunjako, in Katooke — you have survived many swims not because you are strong. Because the God of Heaven, who sent the cupids, said, "Not yet. Let him climb back to his mountain."
HOW TO LIVE WITH THE LAKE
The Lake rewards visitors; it kills owners.
Don't fight hyenas at the shore.
If you must swim, swim with music.
That is why his monument at will hold a saxophone, not the Lake. So that when the cupids fly over the mountains, they hear music, not crying.
The Law of the Lake, written on every shore:
"River pours and pours, but Lake never dries. Chemistry is from heaven. Physics is from cupids. Survival is from God. You will never finish it. So don't try. Sip. Respect. Come home."
Let River Zulu flow to Lake Nkhosi. Let young amphibians think they will drink it all.
You, sit on your mountain. Let the wind bring you saxophone.
Because life, is only God who knows which gods will take you to the lake, and who will survive the Lake.
Oracle of Kifuuta
