William H.A. Willbond MSM, CD

THE SNAKE MAN

When we went up country to Victoria Lake
A suitcase of medical supplies, we did take
We hired an old snake man to walk on ahead
Cause a black mamba bite, could make us dead

The snake man he walked out in front of the bunch
But he fell behind as we stopped for lunch
We walked to mud huts where patients had HIV
Carrying meds to ease pain, both Lynne and me

I asked the snake man why he now walked behind
I didn’t want to be mean and to sound too unkind
And he said with a huge smile of pure jungle delight
That he didn’t want to get a black mamba snake bite

Do you think we should pay you? I quietly said
Of course sir my family needs ugalii and bread
We left ointments and dressings and Tylenol too
To help ease the suffering of those dying few

The snake man was a luxury that we need not take
But it made us feel good as he’d look for each snake
The snake oil salesman had a wee scam aroma
In the mud huts of Bondo just south of Bungoma