Naenda Kanaani.........................

I heard King'ang'i singing that song today morning in the mat.

Naenda Kanaani,
Naenda Kanaani,
Naenda Kanaani,
Misiri sirudi tena.

I haven't heard that song in the longest time. But it got me thinking: we all have our Canaans and in the same breath, we also have our Egypts. Funny enough, no matter how bad Egypt was, it is our comfort zone. That bad place with its hard work and inhumane treatment was what was familiar.

A bad job, an insecure neighbourhood, a draining relationship, a bad friendship, a career that's going no where, a car that never co-operates. Bad as they are, when life becomes rough in Canaan, they are the first place you will run to. Egypt has its lure.No doubt. The comfort of knowing what tomorrow holds and the fact that you think you finally have what it takes to deal with all the bad-ness. You have a million reasons and excuses why Egypt is "not such a bad place". Isn't that what we always say?

But the truth will always be the truth. Your Egypt will be the death of you. It will drain you, mock you, starve you, whip you and after you're gone, it'll still be there to take out its horror on someone else. It is exciting the first time you decide to walk away. You pack your bags, you book the ticket and you stare out the window with tears and anticipation.

But then we walk out into the sunshine and the grass needs to be watered and mulched in Canaan and you start wondering, where you'll get your next job, if you'll afford your new mortgage, if you will ever get a good spouse, if you are ready for a career change or if you can afford to maintain your lifestyle. The answer that was a strong YES when you made that big leap of leap becomes a weak maybe.

The amount of work needed in the new course of your life is just as much as the one you left in the old one if not more. The only difference is that the new course is primarily your own. It belongs to no one else. So the size of your Canaan is highly dependant on you and the work you are willing to put in and the sacrifices you are willing to make to achieve your ultimate goal. It will be hard at first but ultimately, it is so much better than what you left behind. Egypt wasn't great to begin with so when you shut that door behind you, make a decision not to look back because sadly, the grass will look greener. But you have to remember, you are probably the reason it was green in the first place and if you could make that one green, you can make your own Canaan green too.