Atieno Songa

In Dana's Honor Atieno Songa

Somewhere in Siaya, Dana is born. She lives, loves and thrives. Having had twelve children, she is thrust back into parenthood at the age of fifty-nine (59) when her husband and adult children die within a span of five years. Her children leave behind orphaned grandchildren that she must raise. Despite her own heartbreak, she dusts herself and embraces the new role; never perfectly, but still, it shields the grandchildren and provides a form of solace whenever they need it. Dana takes her final bow on July 26th, 2012, and the grandchildren, most of them now grown, must forge a way forward without her. In this book titled, "In Dana's Honor," Atieno, who is Dana's maternal granddaughter, puts together seventy-seven of her own personal quotes and passages to symbolize each year that Dana graced this earth; blessing, nurturing, praying for and loving her grandchildren in a bid to honor and celebrate Dana. The preface provides a backstory into the life and times of Dana. In celebration of the extra six months that she lived among us, itself a bonus, Atieno incorporates a few stories of the times that she shared with her grandmother. Through the lens of a granddaughter, one gets a glimpse at the life and times of Dana, as she attempts to navigate through her own heartache and lead a household that was shared by at least eleven orphans in her care.