Kitovu Hill Poem by Tom MuyungaMukasa

Right there on a hill,
overlooking Masaka,
braced by the gracefully flowing Nakayiba,
coursing in feeder rivulets and creeks enriching the plains,
out of which knowledge tends her sprouts,
are the grounds on which missionaries,
whom having themselves come to these areas from Europe,
founded an education bastion,
from which charisma has busted out in many directions,
a Pokino led the drive,
Lule donated the land,
it was an undertaking of trust and commitment,
it is said by those from whom their eyes bore,
the dawn of a rich heritage,
bent backs their brows sweating,
sinew, limb and bone in synchrony,
as they tilled the vast plains,
only motivated by the hope of harvest
that we must be moved to engage,
in our tasks with a confident flair,
a dedicated bearing,
an intense focus,
unfettered consistence
and an undying desire to succeed,
"Kyosimba Onaanya, " they uttered,
here ideas are planted and skills harvested,
watered by persistent toil,
in soils fertilized by dreams,
the dreams both wild and wide,
filling the spread horizons, ocean depths and reaching sky high,
the bearer harnessing opportunities and leveraging them,
into life enriching transformations making the individual,
community, the society, nation and the world a better place,
but, lest you court frivolity and you become a son of anarchy,
there was a house in Nakayiba it is told,
that house of ruin and debasedness,
opened wide doors to a life of ease,
debauchery and wildness,
the nights before exams here,
coincided with high patronage,
it had become such that,
one day a long departed Ordinary pushed to a rare show of anger,
rebuked the agents of this house,
many had been ruined,
a fire that scorched the pristine Nakayiba,
left so much raze, soot and forlorn structures,
but not all desolate samplers,
were irredeemable,
there were some who repented and reformed,
they got back to their senses and blessedness,
heard the long established call to forge on,
this call shared by many here and there,
was the dependable North star,
gazed upon by those in control of this rocket,
swift, sleek and the epitome of technological wonders,
counted upon by many wayfarers,
"for greater horizons.."
is the enduring commissioning,
earlier fore-parents and missionaries,
passed on to this generation,
this generation in turn commits to pass it on,
both in word, work, talk and walk,
this becoming the will which opens the way,
thus with the backdrop of commitment and,
a vision to forge ahead flying on a banner of will,
the joined bearers are destined to march with resounding,
footsteps and chants of '...onward, onward...' repeated,
others are heard saying '... la ilaha..., '
celebrating diversity in unity,
at every step until one, two, three horizons are covered,
in their wake thriving communities,
but that is half of the story,
oh! The wonders,
the moon beam's silvery glint,
the rise and setting of the sun,
an ancestry in two royals,
one of Gallic stock,
the other a Burgundy royal,
should not go amiss,
this about two Henrys
the earlier Henry,
a secular prince of a God-fearing empire,
the latter Henry,
a prince of the Universal Church
the earlier a Bavarian Duke,
continued seeking eternal truths,
for this the grace of God haloed him,
he became a just and Holy Emperor,
in the times of Pope Benedict VIII,
a latter Henry named after the earlier,
who came to Buddu as a missionary,
the undisputed Bavaria of Uganda,
brought with him this heritage and bequeathed it here,
two other junctures raise the portfolio of your founding,
De gustibus non est disputandum
rooted in the knowledge that tastes become universal,
and that in matters of taste, there can be no disputes
Laberge and Eugene two men of the cloth,
oversaw the need for separation from another ivy monument,
a one St. Mary's College Kisubi,
so you two were once conjoined,
you too are in line with all those witnesses,
of a Greater God,
of a history resplendent with progress,
saddled with this knowledge,
lift up those who are heavily burdened,
go where your talents are needed,
with your hands make communities thrive,
this is your commission,
a spectator atop this hill,
espies a majestic panorama of resplendence and accomplishment,
this expectation is your story oh! Kitovu,
your mission is far grander than book knowledge,
no wonder your aspirations brim over,
for on this hill,
charisma's nimble and fleet limbs bust out in zeal,
that formulates ideas,
which turn out to spur toil harvested as opportunities,
may these grounds be so firm,
to be counted upon by the steadfast,
go Ye! Bavarian,
dare yonder you inheritor of industriousness,
search the truth,
lift up those of lesser fortune,
for in doing so you are indeed,
not forgetting where you came from,
and those who helped you on your journey,
go and tell it over the hills,
shape the narratives,
your heart's joy is a nutrition for your brain,
who you are must move you to who you become,
you are the ancestors' wildest dreams,
may your hands touch and form precocious bounty,
this spaceship will take you to the universe's breadth,
in the Mighty's Name.