Can we run away from destiny?

By Jennifer Muchiri

“Regrow our Si-mot and always move with it if you want to survive” are the words the elders tell one young man on the eve of his initiation into manhood.  The young man sets off on a journey, both psychological and physical, to search for the meaning of these words. This young man represents many youth who find themselves at cultural crossroads when they are expected to find their place in the communities they belong to, and the world at large. This kind of cultural and identity conflict is the subject of Jason Kap Kirwok’s latest novella, The Heart is a Reluctant Nomad (Longhorn, 2013).