Umphilisi - The Healer

 "Holy Spirit filled Visual art and Poetry" is what the invite said.

                                     

I had an idea of what the Visual art and Poetry would and could look like, but for the life of me, I could not begin to imagine what I could liken a "Holy Spirit filled" Visual art and Poetry session, to. But, I now know, and I am here to share that with you.

Last night, Lin and Bongani opened their warm hearts and space to us, as they hosted Rudo's exhibition of her collection, Umphilisi - a curation of a wholistic body of work, encompassing music, poetry, visual art, and the original creator, Holy Spirit.

The night began with a lovely spread of welcome drinks and finger foods. We walked around the garden taking in the ambience, where a trail of art pieces was dispersed throughout the space. A bonfire-come-viewing deck was stationed by the pool, against the backdrop of a collection named Kintsugi. This collection draws from the Japanese practice of restoring broken pottery by filling the cracks with Gold. It was the perfect set-up, given the sudden change in Joburg weather. Winter decided to do a final spin around the block, so Art by a Bonfire felt very fitting, creating the perfect opportunity to reflect on the potential beauty of the broken pieces of one's life.

Moving into the indoor setup, we cosied up around a fireplace, with a live band leading us in spontaneous worship. This made for a great icebreaker as we weren't quite sure what to expect. The hosts welcomed us and shared what the evening was about, opening the stage for Rudo to share about the journey leading to her delivering Umphilisi. We took a moment to pray together, and for each other, marking a coming together and standing together in faith, for a collective and individual healing experience.

Rudo invited us into her healing journey, relating how she got to experience God as a father and healer, as she navigated through various points of grief and loss in her life. This collection was birthed through those moments of surrender to God, allowing him to carry her and lead her through the pain. And also, just a commitment to worshipping through the pain and with the work of her hands, her creations, essentially giving the gift back to the giver.

The arrangement of the different Visual art pieces; the song offerings, and the surrendered hearts in the room felt a lot like going through the 7 stages of the cross during Easter - Mantswe a Supileng - A sacred moment one has to fully immerse oneself in as a step towards consecration. The artwork beckoned the audience to reflect, offering a jolting yet liberating inquiry into how we interact with our pain, hope[lessness] and healing. Furthermore, it posed as a catalyst for action, urging you to go deeper into self and walk in purpose.

My most favourite piece, titled Immersion, was captioned:

"Instead, fully immerse yourselves into the lord Jesus, the Anointed One, and don't waste even a moment's thought on your former identity to awaken its selfish desires."                                                                          Romans 13:14 TPT

 

Beneath the quoted scripture was a prompt to reflect asking, "Will you let go?" a tough question to answer for a reforming perfectionist.

These two realisations have stuck with me, following this experience. Firstly, that there is no art without God, and secondly, God is the ultimate healer.  I particularly enjoyed experiencing a palpable move and presence of Holy Spirit in a space that I would not have otherwise expected to find him. This heightened my personalised revelation of what the collection meant for me and allowed me to relax and let the art speak to me.

This was definitely a one-of-a-kind, Holy Spirit filled experience. One I would do again in a heartbeat.

You may checkout more of Rudo's body of work on this link

Sophiatown

The year is 1954, and the streets of Kofifi are buzzing with the energy of cherries and jitas all getting ready to go to Mamariti's tavern. Unbeknownst to them, in less than a year, their lives would be turned upside down as they are forcefully evicted and repopulated in a settlement close to 20km away from their homes and places of work. A close-knit community is disrupted by the threat of the apartheid government's rule of segregation that drives a wedge between the residents of Sof'town. Friends and accomplices; families and lovers now have to come to the reckoning of their racial differences and forego a livelihood they have become so well attuned to. A lot of hostility and suspicion is raised. 

While a lot has changed and transpired following the enforcement of The Native Resettlement Act of 1954, the effects of the existential crisis caused by a government with laws rooted in separation still engulf us. We now have the freedom to live in any neighbourhood we please, we have the right to and freedom of association, and we can sit together in a theater and watch a production about a history that affects us all, but are we having the necessary conversations. This production evokes a lot of emotion, showing how easily joy and harmony can be tainted by the stench of unchecked bias, where a symbiotic ecosystem can be disrupted and pulled apart by a system of power. More than anything, I appreciate the opportunity it creates for us to speak openly about pain, betrayal, displacement, and unfulfilled hopes. 

What I particularly enjoyed about the show was the depth of emotion and relatability of the family life, where strangers from different backgrounds are brought together by similar struggles and hopes, holding space for each other in the true nature of ubuntu. While their livelihoods are quite varied - from a gang member to a young journalist; an old mother selling "pineapple" for her family to survive; to a vivacious schoolgirl with big dreams and an uncle fluent in fafi/mochina; to a slum queen seeking an escape and an inquisitive white girl born on the wrong side of the line - this play encapsulates the melting pot that was and continues to be our beloved country, South Africa. The cherry on top is the harmonious voices of the cast, displayed through the songs that tell deep riveting stories that'll leave the hairs on the back of your neck standing, and the exhilarating band, so well orchestrated, they do not miss a single beat, setting the tone of Sophiatown, leaving their hearts on every strum. This was an absolute treat!

So gather your friends, family, and your community and head out to the Market Theatre to see it for yourself. The dedication from the cast and crew in delivering this story is captivating and engages the audience so charmingly that you even forget you are actually there to watch a play. It is all of our story, completely relatable in one way or another and it needs to be heard! 

Here is a link to where you can read a short excerpt from the director, as well as buy tickets. 

P.S. You can get discounted tickets for groups above 10. All information is on the website.

The show is running until Sunday the 24th of March 2024.  

Shaka Ilembe

When Mzansi Magic announced it was producing a rendition of the story of Shaka Zulu, I was excited, and a sea of nostalgia welled up within me. Immediately, I thought of the Shaka Zulu story we had come to know and love as kids. I guess naturally, as that is the audio-visual reference I have, my mind quickly went into critique mode, I started worrying about the execution and whether this production would live up to the standard that had already been set. I was concerned about the possibility of my childhood experience and knowledge being tainted by yet another bad spin-off. There was a lot of speculation around what to expect - we waited and waited, the release was postponed, and then finally, the official release date was announced and from what I have seen, this show is worth the wait we have endured. From the cast to the cinematography, the raw emotion portrayed by the characters and the riveting storyline, in the deep intertextual references to historical events, this is undoubtedly one production worth watching. This show has a wide audience appeal, but if you have an interest in South African History, Heritage or just love good television with a good dose of “bathong ba Modimo!” you will definitely enjoy this.

Having grown up in the 90’s the face of Henry Cele was what I associated with the name – Shaka Zulu! A boisterous stern face, probably the strongest man in the world. Even for a non-Zulu speaker, Shaka was a real force to be reckoned with. This was the most prominent representation of courageous or strong and triumphant black figures. For the longest time, I actually thought the story of Shaka was a documentary and actual footage of his life. Of course, that was before I fully grasped the concept of TV.  That was how real it all felt to me. Shaka was what Black Panther has come to symbolise. That is quite telling of the artistry that went into putting the production together. Beyond the performance, what stood out for me, was how powerful a tool the film Shaka Zulu was in teaching a history; telling a story and imprinting a memory that has become such a big part of my own personal memory alongside our national history. To this day, Shaka has a face, he has a story, he is not merely a fictitious fable told to kids to scare them, or dinaane told around a fire merely to entertain, when I read history books and see his name, there is a story I can cross reference.

The pre-screening teaser of Shaka Ilembe gave me excitement and hope to hold on to, what my younger siblings and their peers will grasp from it, the conversations it will open up and the knowledge it will impart. While there is a lot to be discovered about the series when it comes out, I am glad that it is holding space for the exploration of cultural knowledge and practices, and will ignite discussions and debates that will inspire people to find out more about the history of Shaka Zulu and SA history as a whole.  I am looking forward to, and routing for the new face of Shaka – Lemogang Tsipa – that the current generation can relate to. It is also exciting to see South African oral traditions receiving due attention in more mainstream media and taking centre stage. This story is the culmination of oral tales, family histories, cultural artefacts, histories and experiences, shared and documented in many different mediums— songs, novels, films, documentaries, books, pictures, paintings and drawings. Art keeps our memories alive; it allows constant communication between spaces and time. What a way to commemorate Africa Month, an opportunity to look back into our history, and carry the pride and wisdom of our past actions, good and bad, and let those lead us to a better future collectively, through our awareness of ourselves and each other.

So, as we close off Africa Month and cross over to Archive Month, this is a very fitting story to reflect on.

Shaka Ilembe will air on June 18th at 8pm on DSTV Channel 161 – Mzansi Magic.

#Shakailembemzansi

The State of Nervousness

                                                           The State of Nervousness

Double Consciousness- “a social movement, oriented towards the rational pursuit of a good life” while “accepting that in a racially structured society this movement is going to be somehow anti-social and probably defensive in character.” Paul Gilroy (1993:112).

For as long as I remember, Nervous Conditions by Tsitsi Dangarembga, was always amongst the books I would enlist as my favourite. When I first read the book, I was 19 years old, and in my 2nd year of varsity. The funny thing is that years went past and although the memory of what the book was about, slowly receded, I remained certain that it was one of my favourites. Although I could not remember its content, I remembered how it made me feel.

A good 7 odd years later I found myself finally picking up the novel to read again. There was undoubtedly a high level of anticipation and anxiety as I considered revisiting that nostalgic place riddled with feelings of elation and belonging that I had felt when I first read it the book. But more than anything, I was looking forward to remembering what it was about this book, that had resonated so much with the 19-year-old me.

The story is set in Zimbabwe, recounting the narrator’s upbringing and her journey towards attaining an education as a girl in a patriarchal society. The protagonist and narrator, Tambudzai recollects the events leading up to her leaving her family in the village to go and live with her uncle, a headmaster at a mission school, and his family. Her uncle Babamukuru is an educated man with a junior degree attained in South Africa, and a Masters degree, sponsored by the mission, in England. Babamukuru is the eldest of his siblings and since he is the most well-off amongst them assumes the responsibility of uplifting the various branches of his family. Babamukuru is the prototype of a “rich uncle”, praised by all and revered as the saving grace of the family.

Babamukuru’s wife and daughter though, do not take too kindly to this god-like status he has acquired due to money. His wife, Maiguru, despises how everyone praises and idolises her husband for the good he does for the larger family, while paying no regard to her part in it, especially the sacrifices she makes in order for her husband to extend his charitable deeds to his extended family. Her husband Babamukuru seems to get all the praise because he is a man and her society has conditioned her family members to believe her success would not have been attainable without her husband, or some kind of aid from a male figure. Their daughter Nyasha on the other hand dismisses her father’s generosity as nothing short of fulfilling his social duties more so in the wake of inequalities brought about by colonialism.

Nyasha is portrayed as a headstrong, opinionated girl that sets herself apart as a rebel with a cause, intent on non-conformance despite all the material offerings at her disposal. Upon Babamukuru and his family’s return from their 5 year stay in England, where he studied for his Masters, Tambudzai takes offence to Nyasha and her brother Chido’s inability to speak Shona. Their lack of interest in joining the festivities and dancing leaves her thinking that they are obnoxious and see themselves as being better than everyone else. Tambu later realises that they were as nervous about her reception as she was of theirs. Tambudzai learns that their stay in England was packed with a lot of disillusionment especially for Nyasha who never misses a chance to reprimand Tambudzai about falling for the traps robed in whiteness and a promise of a better life. Moreover, Nyasha is repeatedly scorned by her parents and aunt for being too anglicised and not behaving in a manner that a respectable young girl should. From her back-chatting, to staying out too late at night, the clothes she wears and the way she speaks, Nyasha is under a perpetual gaze that tries to condition her to live and reason within certain constraints that are accepted as acceptable for a woman.

Tambudzai’s first realisation of the burdens of her gender upon her life and education occurs when, during the time her uncle and his family are in England, her father decides to pull her out of the school system, because she is a girl, when he cannot afford to keep both her and her brother Nhamo enrolled. Upon protesting the decision, her father says to her, “can you cook books and feed them to your husband? Stay at home with your mother. Learn to cook and clean. Grow vegetables.” She comes to realise that by virtue of being a woman, there are some dreams of hers that society deems irrelevant and that there are longstanding social structures that have been put in place to retain her in spaces and roles that are socially acceptable for women.

A great example and juxtaposition of these roles is portrayed through the characters of her mother and her aunt Lucia. Tambu’s mother is portrayed as a virtuous wife for working hard and remaining faithful to her husband, despite his cheating. Aunt Lucia, on the other hand, is vilified for not being an inconspicuous woman and not being discreet about her ravenous sexual appetite.  She has been impregnated by her sister’s husband while she is shacking up with his brother. This situation in the novel highlights the double standards upon which women are judged and are expected to uphold while men get away with as much as a slap on the wrist for doing the same things.

Tambudzai finds herself in a state of double consciousness when she leaves her village to go and live at the mission. There she finds a new identity as a Tambu who attends a prestigious school, one her parents cannot afford. This Tambu is privileged to perks like sleeping on a bed and eating delicious food of different varieties- as opposed to the daily sadza and covo she is accustomed to back at home. Although Tambu wants to enjoy and delve into her new life with reckless abandon, she does not want to end up like her brother who she has grown to despise because of how different he has  become due to being exposed to the luxuries of life at the mission.

Furthermore, despite having been exposed to a life of privilege for a few years at the mission, Tambu further feels flabbergasted at the sight and thought of her new school at the convent. Tambu experiences various anxieties because she is a village girl who, while exposed to all these life-changing opportunities, had a constant and vivid reminder, at the back of the mind, of the reality of home and how different it was from the life she now lives. In a parallel world where women are given a chance to flourish, everything is a constant reminder of how women aren’t expected to excel or break out of the mould virtuously safe-guarded by the male gaze, as well as the female gaze. Tambu’s mom often accuses her of wanting to be more like her educated aunt and acting more and more like she is white and looking down on her own mother who birthed her.

Although Nyasha is more used to the affluent lifestyle, there is evidence of her having had similar insecurities during her time in England. Nyasha expresses that when she was in England she experienced racism. Which means while she may have been made to feel like she did not belong in England this misplacement followed her home as her parents and peers repeatedly refer to her as being too white hence pushing her tightly into a category of double consciousness.

This perpetual state of double consciousness, not perceived as smart enough for the same opportunities as boys, not being rich enough to afford certain schools, being too black to fit in with white society and being too white to understand or fit in with black culture is the exact state of nervousness I most intensely related to when I first read the book as a 19 year old. I understood all too well the anxieties Tambu had about going home and being made to feel like she did not belong. I understood feeling the weight of the inequalities experienced by the people around me as Nyasha did, and wondering why I was fortunate enough to experience the burden of exposure and opportunity when there were others in my community who couldn’t and wouldn’t get the opportunity.

Tambu’s experience as a village girl now living a life full of opportunities with infrastructure that is different from what remained back at home, and the thought of all those who remained behind and the sacrifices they had to make daily so that she may have better chances were quite relatable. Tambu expected Nyasha to be better settled and more appreciative of her life but Nyasha with the privilege of hindsight and experience warns her that it is all relative, that the education means nothing if it does nothing for you and your society. This nervous condition and double consciousness is inescapable because as soon as you are exposed to different cultures and societies, once you move out of your comfort zone you grow into a double conscious subject who embraces a condition of nervousness that comes with trying to settle and socialise yourself into the new self you have discovered.

I wholeheartedly agree with the motifs of social freedom and breaking free from set ways of living as expressed in this novel. I hope you enjoy this read just as much as I did, and that it will avail new ways of thinking to you.

P.S I met Ms Tsitsi on Sunday and she signed my book. I cried as I told her what this book has done for me. I wrote this piece last year but was too scared to post it. Meeting her has given me the courage to share with you all my deepest insecurities.

You can find Nervous Conditions, The Book of Not, and her new book, This Mournable Body here.

#AbantuBookFestival

#TsitsiDangarembga

#NervousConditions

Motherhood

Today I learnt a lot about motherhood. All the questions that I had about where I feature in the spectrum of motherhood were also answered. I learnt that a mother is more than the woman who carries you in her womb and gives birth to you. I learnt that motherhood meant more than breastfeeding and changing diapers and being a disciplinarian. I learnt that motherhood is a bond. A sisterhood, a covenant of love and companionship, motherhood is a gift.

I also stumbled across a great book- Stay With Me by Ayobami Adebayo. I walked into an Exclusive Books Store to find some hidden treasures and ended up spending the rest of my day there. True to the tone of the day the book turned out to be about motherhood. So with this piece, happy mother’s day to you strong beautiful, defiant women who consistently triumph in their walks of life despite what the world throws at them.

Stay With Me is a story about a woman whose journey of womanhood is riddled with strife and deceit.  Yejide is born to a mother who is the second of four wives. However, Yejide never gets a chance to know her mother as she dies right after giving birth to her. So she is raised by her father and his 3 wives.  Her father’s wives stop at nothing to make her feel like an outcast who will never amount to anything. Yejide hence grows with a promise to herself to prove them wrong and never be in a polygamous relationship like her mother.

She meets the love of her life in university and they get married some months later. She finds a friend and close accomplice in her mother in law who comes to represent the first present semblance of a true mother in her life. For the first time in her life, she has a woman whom she can affectionately refer to as Moomi. A title her step mothers had tirelessly tried to invoke out of her to no avail. Moomi supports her and welcomes her into her family with an expectant heart. When Yejide realises the amount of time which has passed in her marriage yet she has borne no kids, the brunt of the pressure from her extended families starts to take its toll on her. Her mother in law starts suggesting she sees, healers, priests and priestesses who have been known to curb such barrenness.

Yejide desperately tries everything at her disposal until she ultimately visits a mountain priest recommended by one of her customers who is expecting a child. This happens after her in-laws acquire a second wife for her husband without her knowledge. The priest carries out a ritual and faithful Yejide, in her desperation, hangs on to the belief of the miracle of an immaculate conception that is currently taking place in her body. Against her better judgement and despite not having been intimate with her husband, her faith manifests in the form of morning sicknesses and the gradual protrusion of her belly. This, however, turns out to be a feat of her imagination as countless scans prove her manifestation to be a phantom pregnancy which continues to plague her mind and body for over a year.

Her helpless husband, feeling sorry for his wife, in an act of desperation tries all he can to get his wife pregnant. She falls pregnant by her brother in law, through a conniving ploy by her husband, and carries to full term. They never anticipate, amidst their celebrations, that their joy would be short-lived. After praying and trying and hoping for 4 years their miracle baby dies mysteriously at around 5 months. She discovers during the burial ceremony of her child that she is pregnant again. She does not seem to be as enthusiastic about this child as she is starting to believe pain will not live without her. She resolves to take even better care of her second child as she blames herself for the mysterious death of her first. She believes that; “A mother must be vigilant. She must be able and willing to wake up ten times during the night to feed her baby. After her intermittent vigil, she must see everything clearly the next morning so she can notice any changes in her baby. A mother is not permitted to have blurry vision. She must notice if her baby’s wail is too loud or too low. She must know if the baby’s temperature has risen or fallen. A mother must not miss any signs.”

These are just some of the expectations society puts on mothers, on women. Despite having to soldier through insults about your barrenness and how you are disgracing your husband by not baring him any kids, mothers are also expected to have all the answers a superwoman like power and knowing. Mothers do not only nurse their children but their husbands as well, they are entrusted with the chore of nursing male egos, deciphering what will build their families and marriages even when the same kind of care is not reciprocated.

No amount of vigilance, however, can save Yejide’s second child he dies as well. In all this, she is the prime suspect in talks of the couple’s infertility and subsequent death of any children they bare. Her mother in law is convinced she has bad genes as they discover her third child is also ill and could possibly die. Throughout all of this, no one ever suspects that her husband could be the one with the problem. The burden of bearing a child is placed primarily on Yejide. I like how Yejide responds to the possibility of her child’s death. The defiance with which she approaches social expectations facing her is liberating. Although she comes across as insolent and detached to her child, for the first time we see her standing up for herself and making decisions for herself and not to please others. She breaks free from her husband’s deceit and her mother in law’s manipulation. She abandons her family as she does not want to experience the death of yet another child of hers.

During her breakaway period, she learns that she holds a strength greater than she has ever imagined. That the children she lost are her strength even in their absence. They are her symbol of growth even in a society that believes that a woman without children is inadequate. Her ability to love and nurture does not disappear with the children she lost. She learns to be a better mother than she has ever had or even been, to her surviving child. This story teaches the various dynamics of motherhood and the strives of womanhood. How sometimes you have sisters who can help you lighten your burden and at times advise you from their advantage of experience. How most of the time a lot of unsolicited judgement and burdens are placed on women. This story celebrates the triumph of women from different generations and different world views. It foreshadows a society where women are loved and cherished beyond their ability or inability to be mothers.

This novel is Ayobami’s debut novel at it was shortlisted for the Baileys women’s prize for fiction 2017 you can get it here or at Exclusive Books Stores.

The Hlomu Series

Dudu Busani Dube

I first heard about Dudu from my cousin who had just read her first book in the Hlomu series and thought I would like it. And I did! I was blown away. To be quite honest, at first, I didn't think I would, I thought it would be a drag, a redundant story about some girl who comes to Jozi seeking a better life, only to get schooled by life- but boy did I get schooled along with her?

Dudu brings a refreshing twist to South African literature. Her ability to turn stories of everyday life into encapsulating mysteries, horrors, and fantasies is amazing. The Hlomu series has a way of putting relationships into perspective. The ordeals faced by friends, siblings, and lovers take on a whole new narrative in her stories. Reading through this series is like looking at life from a different viewpoint. This, however, does not take away from how relatable this story is, appealing to readers across various age groups and offering an escape and a sense of hope for those who need one. There are 3 books in the series -that I know of- and whilst they are interlinked, they all bring a unique rendition of the fairytales and horrors of the characters represented.

First in the series, is the book; Hlomu- The Wife. The story of Hlomu is a heart-wrenching one that pulls at your heartstrings. Hlomu is a young graduate who comes to Jo’burg to pursue a career in Journalism. She meets a guy she assumes to be a taxi driver, who has 7 brothers who all look painstakingly similar. With some resistance, she finds herself falling in love with him and she happens to be the piece of the puzzle, his family has been missing. Hlomu's story is one of hope and growth, a bildungsroman of sorts. She epitomises strength, bravery, and passion, there is a tenacity about her that just cannot be ignored.

Having joined the Zulu family at a young age and having to take on the responsibility of becoming an instant mom at age 22, you cannot help but marvel at her strength and will. Hlomu ends up taking responsibility for, and practically raising the kids in the Zulu family as her own, despite not knowing where or who their mothers are. Hlomu and Mqhele decide to get married a year after meeting. This prospect of marriage forces the brothers to deal with the gruesome memory of their past, a past they have run away from and have no need to confront until the issue of marriage arises.

Next in the series is Zandile- The Resolute. Zandile is the eldest brother Nkosana’s lover. The two’s love is a long-standing one that could not even be dissolved by 5 years of not seeing each other or neither of them knowing where the other was. Zandile and Nkosana are high-school sweethearts who are separated one dreadful night when the brothers flee their place of birth to save themselves from the wrath of their father’s nemeses. Their story resembles that of Romeo and Juliet, in that their families, or at least Zandile’s family wanted nothing to do with the Zulus. They reconnect when one-day Zandile sees Nkosana driving a GP registered taxi on a highway and she resolves to go seek him out in Johannesburg, with no idea of where she would start. Zandile at this time is betrothed to a man named Gaza who was a childhood friend of hers. Though she does not love him, her parents believe he would be a fitting match for their daughter. She returns home a year later pregnant with Nkosana’s child hoping to get forgiveness from her parents and a blessing upon their marriage. They are instead met with fury and disapproval from Zandile’s parents. Zandile’s mother calls a lady to come and perform an abortion on her but Zandile ends up killing her mother in a scuffle to save her unborn child’s life. She gets apprehended a few years later after fleeing the scene and is sentenced to life imprisonment.

The last book in the series is focused on Naledi and it is titled Naledi- His love.  Naledi is first introduced in the series as Qhawe’s -one of the 7 brothers- girlfriend. For Naledi, Qhawe’s love is redemptive on so many levels. She is forced by circumstance to accept and love her full figure, so bodily insecurities are overcome. Through Qhawe, her faith and belief in her deserving love- in its purest form- are restored. Qhawe meets her just as she is trying to heal from a past relationship that was both physically and psychologically abusive. Qhawe helps Naledi mend her relationship with her sisters and suggests to her that she and her sisters reconnect with their mother who they had not seen since Naledi was a child.

What I find particularly pleasurable about Dube’s writing is the realness and the bluntness of the stories she tells. While reading Hlomu’s story, for instance, I found myself mad at her for “making” her stay in an abusive relationship. When countless things repeatedly occur, some illegal and some just morally wrong, Hlomu is faced with a seemingly perfect opportunity to call it quits but she stays. It makes you question your ability to love yourself and others and discusses the possibility and ability to forgive in the most raw manner. You sometimes find yourself crying with the character because the story has forced you to confront issues in your own life you never even knew existed.

Zandile’s story, for example, is one about resilience, stubborn faith, and sacrificial love. Yet again, here you find yourself questioning your own morals as you agree and are drawn to hate and despise, then forgive all at the same time. I have not read Naledi’s story in full, but what I can deduce from Dube’s blog and from Zandile-The Resolute, is that Naledi’s story is one of self-discovery and self-acceptance. We have all had to heal from one pain or another, and her story is about restoration, which we can relate to. Naledi’s story also offers a “voice of reason” when she asks Qhawe to talk to, and encourage her sister’s high school learners by relating his life story and how he and his brothers made a success of their lives against all odds -because we all need a bit of encouragement in our lives, once in a while, and proof that it can be done. 

I have completed the first two books in the series, and I’m now searching tirelessly for this last piece of the puzzle. The books are not the easiest to find, but I can assure you that they are a real gem to behold. I did a bit of research after reading the first book and found out that the first book was self-published online and the other two are available through a site called africanbuys.com or click on this link for more info. I found out yesterday that Exclusive Books also stocks the books although they fly off the shelves faster than you can say cheese, the best thing to do would be to place an order.

P.S. there are typos evident throughout the series. I have no idea what the desired effect if there is one, is. This, however, is what I made of them. As I was reading through the first few pages of Hlomu-The Wife, I was taken aback and thought it was a gross oversight on the part of the editors. As I continued reading and getting engrossed in the storyline and acquainted with the characters, the imperfections in the grammar began to foreground a realness in the stories echoed. The story did not feel overly polished and it complimented Dube’s raw delivery of pertinent life stories, without the sugar coat. So do not let the little things stand in your way of experiencing something great.

I do hope that you enjoy these stories as much as I have and that you find yourself as you peruse through the pages. Dube’s characters offer a sense of solace and community to its readers. Take a tour with Dube and her characters in a journey of self-realisation. Have fun…

An Ode to Chinua Achebe

To this work of art, I owe all my gratitude. This book taught me to dream through different lenses. Before I encountered this astounding piece of literature- and I will detail why I deem it astounding later in this post - I loved literature, I was sold, but little did I know that there was a lot more to discover.

Before Things Fall Apart, my world of literature was adorned by the works of JK Rowling, Roald Dahl and of course William Shakespeare to name a few. I actually believed that I was a lady Shakespeare in the making, with plans and dreams set out to go and study English Literature in England and walk amongst the castles and through the fields of Scotland where I would be eternally mused and become a world renown writer.

I still dream, I still hope, but most importantly I still love literature. but through this blog I wish to lend or recommend these new found lenses to some avid reader in the world, introduce and expose them to this spectacular realm of literature. Let me, before I mislead anyone, elaborate on what I mean and refer to when I say African Literature:

I would describe African Literature as the body of art works written by Africans living in Africa as well as those in Diaspora. This literature speaks to the social, economic and cultural attributes of African society and culture. Literature in this instance is not only limited to the novels that fall within this genre but also the plays, movies, comics and songs encompassed within this realm.

I first read Things Fall Apart in Grade 10 and it was part of the prescribed reading for the grade 10 syllabus that year. In all my prior years of schooling, I do not recall being exposed to literature written by African writers about African Culture and society. So I was delighted to pick it up and start reading. It was clear when I picked up the book that it had been lurking around me in many ways. The poem by W.B Yeats, The Second Coming sounded all too familiar and so did the title of the book and the poem. As soon as I picked up the book a gush of nostalgia rushed through me. My dad had a copy of the book at home and held it most sacredly. I recalled having once seen a worn out copy on the side table of his headboard, with clear signs of having been read over and over again. I also recalled hearing him say the words; "Things fall apart, the centre cannot hold, Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world". Little did I know that at that point, when I picked up Things fall Apart to read it, mere anarchy was indeed loosed upon my world. I had found an alternative story, one I could read, love and live.

I must admit, I did not do too much to find or discover more books in this series, but every chance I got, which was mostly through the prescribed readings and old treasures I came to realise my dad and my brother kept, I started to grow more in my knowledge and awakening to literatures of Africa. I continue to read my Shakespeare and Mark Twain and I will not stop, but at the moment my focus is on catching up on African Literatures and sharing my most favourite reads, starting with this one.

Things fall apart was first published in 1958 two years before Nigeria gained independence from colonial rule. It tells a story of a community that undergoes changes brought upon them by both internal and external factors. Achebe through this novel was writing back and rewriting the story of Nigerian culture. The story starts with a celebration of culture in Okonkwo’s community. At this celebration young men from the nine villages take part in a wrestling match. this is where Okonkwo’s reign of glory begins as he defeats Amalinze "the cat" a fierce fighter who had been the undefeated champion for seven years. Okonkwo comes to portray and embody all the glory of Igbo culture and became a stealth custodian of its traditions. As he grows in prosperity and wisdom he becomes an elder and advisor in his village.  And when his culture is threatened by the advent of colonial rule he tries to defend it, and his loyalty to it and his rigid nature ends up being his Achilles heel.

Achebe uses different characters to pose a story of how “things” in Umuofia come to “fall apart”. Okonkwo represents the unrelenting influence and wrath of culture. Pastor Smith is the embodiment of colonial rule also in his unrelenting regard for following rules. Ikemefuna is on many levels like a sacrificial lamb and Nwoye represents the outcomes of having cracks in the cultural system.

I particularly fell in love with the character of Ikemefuna. Ikemefuna came into Okonkwo’s life and gave him a shot at redemption. Redemption from the fear that had crippled him perpetually, hindering him from showing love and warmth freely. “Perhaps down in his heart Okonkwo was not a cruel man. But his whole life was dominated by fear, the fear of failure and of weakness. It was deeper and more intimate than the fear of evil and capricious gods and of magic, the fear of the forest and of the forces of nature, malevolent, red in tooth and claw." Ikemefuna brought a lot of Joy into Okonkwo’s life and showed a softer side of Okonkwo that had always seemed to vanish beneath his wrath.

Achebe wrote a story that was relatable to me as an African child. I grew a desire to know more about African societies and to travel the African continent and experience this harmattan that he writes about. Eat kola nuts and taste palm wine while sitting under palm trees. This book allowed me to travel to Nigeria and imagine what it would be like to sleep in an obi. I also liked that I could draw similarities in the use of language and proverbs in Ibo culture to the use of the same in Setswana culture amongst many other things.

Chinua Achebe has created a world of travel and esacape for me. He paints vivid pictures with his writing and you cannot help but get lost in his work only to find pieces of you, that you never knew were missing, inside.

It might be late but Thank You

                             

                                   Mr Chinua Achebe 16 November 1930 to 21 March 2013