"Majega" Given A New Lease On Life

The deteriorating economic situation in the country has given a new lease of life for the beleagued "Mageja".These are the men who drive hand carts to carry all sorts of goods for a fee.

"Majega" at work

These gentlemen have been maligned for the longest time for taking part in menial jobs which a "right"thinking person would not touch with a long pole.The high cost of transportation as a result of the exploding inflation rate has forced a lot of the people to review how they interact with the cart-drivers.They are ever present in most of the high density surburbs of Zimbabwe and help people move their goods from point A to point B.The fact that their fares are much more reasonably priced makes them more attractive to the general public.

A typical day for them starts as early as five in the morning and will end when it is too dark to see.By far the biggest need for these gentlemen nowadays is the carting of water from homes where the owners are fortunate to own borehole to those who donot have that privilege.After paying for the water ,this is normally charged per bucket,the cartdrivers then charge their transport costs per bucket as well.The more established ones have a client base which ensures that they have business on a daily basis.All told this makes for a very tidy sum of money and these gentlemen have been known to take care of their families quite well.Given the fact that ours is a country where job opportunities are scarce,these gentlemen have shown quite an entrepreunal spirit and with the right kind of backup they very likely can start a well oiled transport business since there is a dire need for water in most of our urban communities.

The economic downturn is certainly working for them.

Innocent Victims Of The Economic Meltdown

Recently I have had  conversations  with two young girls who have been rendered "orphans" because of the debilitating economic meltdown which  Zimbabwe has been  experiencing for the past decade or more.

Innocent Victims Of The Economic Meltdown

The first is a sixteen year old girl who is studying towards her Ordinary Level examinations in October this year.I discovered that her mother passed away when she was three months old and her father ended up going to the Republic of South Africa to seek greener pastures.She was left in her father's older brother and his wife to care for her.The painful part of the story is the fact that she has not had the pleasure of knowing her father at all since she became aware of her paternity.For a girl child this can be very painful since girl children normally form very close bonds with their fathers.She went on to disclose the fact that she was told that her father had remarried. Whilst her Uncle had tried to reach out to his younger brother so that he could take responsibility for his daughter, the phone always goes unanswered.At the time of writing she still has not heard from her father.The saving grace is the fact that the Uncle is doing a splendid job of raising her.

The other case is a thirteen year old girl who has just started her secondary education and she broke down in the clasroom.After calming her down and asking her what the problem was ,she intimated that she missed her mother.She said that her mother was  had gone to RSA four years ago and has never come back nor has she called. The mother has not bothered to check on  about her welfare  at all.At the moment she is being looked after by her father's sister.The father is a subsistence farmer more than two hundred kilometres away.In someways this girl seems to feel that she has been abandoned twice.

Whilst I understand that things are difficult here but please lets try and be responsible for the lives we created.

Rukweza Growth Point's Scary Reputation

Nestled on the foot of the magestic Denzva mountain,Rukweza was also in the news last year for the marauding snakes which would roam the village in search of food scrapes from peoples rubbish dumps, has taken an even scarrier turn.

Rukweza Growth Point's Scary Reputation

Two murders in the space ot two months has most residents of Rukweza growth point as well as surrounding areas running scared.

For the the family of Alex ,the 25th of December will firever be a day associated with sadness and longing.Rumuor has it that on the fateful day,he had been celebrating the so called "birth of Jesus Christ" with his younger bother and some friends when some unruly individuals accosted him and stole four dollars from his pocket.We understand a fight broke out and when some good samaritans came to Alex's rescue the the thugs who had accosted him weere not happy.They waited for him when was making his way home,assaulted him with what people believe were screwdrivers 

and other blunt objects,killing him in the process.They dumped his body on the tarmac so that it would appear as if it was a hit and run accident.After his corpse was taken for a postmortem it was established that he was not the victim of a road accident.

After the mourning period ,his remains were buried in the village graveyard,what surprised all and sundry was the fact that a week later his cofin was exhumed and a further post-mortem examination was carried out.His remains were to be retaurned later and interred, But as I write, nobody has been 

arrested for his murder.

The other incident which has struck fear into the residents here is the fact that last Wednesday another youngman who was on his way to go and visit his ailing mother was also 

murdered and his remains placed on the tarmac ,similar to what had been done to the body

of Alex.

As a result of these incidents people in the area are very nervous and most imbibers of alcohol now make it a habit of leaving their watering holes early so as to ensure that they do not get waylayed as well.

Love Never Fails

By James E.Kudzala

A farmer went to the field day to cultivate.During the work,he glanced up at the mango tree and saw a big belleberry ripe mango which he picked.

Love Never Fails

He decided not to eat the mango but take it to his wife,whom he loved very much,even though he was starving.When he got home ,he called his wife and gave her the mango to show his affection.Very happy with the precious gift ,the woman though of her child who had gone to school.

She took the mango, thanked her husband sincerely and reassured him that she would eat it later.The woman hid the mango so that she would give the mango to her son as soon as he returned from school to show him her love.As soon as he returned ,the mother gave him the mango with joy in her heart. The child thanked his mother warmly for the precious gift and told her that he would eat to later.

He, too ,resolved to hide the mango and make a surprise gift to his father who paid his school fees ,believing that his Dad knew nothing of the mango.

In the evening while everyone was eating the evening meal,the child said to the his father,”one minute dad,I brought you a present because I love you so much”.He ran to his room and took the mango and gave it to his father.Surprised to see the same mango he had given to his beloved wife return to him,without any comment ,he asked for a knife and shared it equally among the family.All ate the mango with a lot of joy.That is how love works.

The secret of love –when you give love ,it comes back to you in another way,because love is the most extraordinary force that governs all the universe.Lets love genuinely.

Women's Unending War With Dust

I always watch with bemusement the lengths some women go in order to combat dust and dirt so as to fit in with their peers.

Women's Unending War With Dust

Early in the morning, as soon as their children go to school, these housewives take to their brooms and scrubbing brushes and floor polish. Their quest is to make their floors as shiny as they can. They will toil and scrub and rub and clean until the floors are like mirrors. Only then are they happy and can then proceed to do other household chores I am not in any way belittling the wonderful work they do but just cannot reconcile their reasons for doing what they do.Half the time this is done because they don’t want the Mother of so and so to find their house dirty.So the reason is not really cleanliness but the need to conform or the fear of failing to conform ;then being turned into the laughingstock of the neighborhood.I have always maintained that even grownups suffer from peer pressure because this is definitely a form of peer pressure. Woe betide  the young ones should they come back from school and then absentmindedly wander into the house wearing their shoes. The mother will shout at the top of their voices for the offending shoes to be removed lest the wearer has his/her back tanned.The shoes are supposed to be removed and left outside the door or held and taken to the place where they are normally placed.

Homes which are supposed to be enjoyed by all who live in them are turned into no go areas for the young ones, they only get some respite when the father comes back from work ;if he is lucky enough to be formally employed. More often than not nowadays, he would be coming from a weird case of cat and mouse with the Riot Police for a space on the city streets. As vending has now become the biggest “employer” in the country. If however the father is also a serial shouter then the young kids do not have anywhere to seek refuge.These places of human habitat are turned into showrooms for the mothers friends to admire and coo over.In the process these ladies turn the floor polish vendors into fully employed individuals as they are assured of a constant stream of customers who buy their ware.

Surely if one cleans the house in the morning and the children then come and mess it up ,it should be alright.The well being of the family should weigh much more than the mother’s need for reassurance from her friends and extended family.

Bitterness

By Thembie

Bitterness is a spirit that disturbs many believers besides being a sin, bitterness is a mixture of disappointment ,anger and fear.Remember, anger graduates to bitterness if you don’t deal with it accordingly by forgiving and letting go.

In fact ,Ephesians 4:26 states that; “in your anger do not sin.”” Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry”.As believers ,we must bear in mind that anger has a timeline ; your anger shouldn’t exceed 12 hours.

 Futhermore, bitterness makes you bitter instead of better and eventually leads to unforgiveness.What most of us are unaware of is that bitterness blocks breakthrough to your destiny.Before you allow bitterness to control you,here’s what you need to keep in mind.

.Bitterness is sin

.When you deliberately fail to talk to someone you have no part in God’s kingdom

.Bitterness is unforgiveness fermented

.The more you hold onto past hurts, the more you become “drunk” on your own pain

.The devil uses anger to Attack m any

.God can’t draw near a bitter person

.To overcome bitterness, you must ;forgive ,stop dwelling there and stop retelling

. Bitterness blocks your physical and spiritual life;you’ll stagnate physically and spiritually.It’s no wonder many are worsening physically and spiritually

.When you’re bitter,you can’t have a breakthrough even in prayer

.Bitterness creates space for the enemy

.Bitterness is satan’s altar in your life –an altar is a point of contact.Therefore,when you’re about to rise financially ,the enemy stands against you

.This sin entangles easily similar to sins like lies and gossip

.When you allow bitterness to take root in your life,you won’t succeed at any time because you’re limited

.Bitterness is what’s “eating” many up

.Bitterness holds you back

.It’s like an acid that destroys its container; whatever you try fails

.A bitter person holds grudges

The Pain Of Losing A Parent

I remember it as if was yesterday. It does not matter that it happened way back in 1994,there are times the wound is so fresh I could swear it happened yesterday.

The Pain Of Losing A Parent

My mother had been on high blood pressure for a very long time , I was only able to piece together the bits and pieces of the puzzle slowly over a long period of time.This was the result of an accident which left my eldest sister burnt and she was hospitalized .For a time it was touch and go ,I gathered later ,the accident having happened well before I was even conceived so no one in the family really talked about it .I supposed this was because of the trauma that she  had gone through.During that ordeal ,my mother was to be diagnosed with high blood pressure and she started taking medication.

When I was born ,I understand she had already been on the meds for sometime.I was her last born son and I must say she loved me dearly and I believe now she spoiled me a little bit although I am not your typical mama’s boy. being the youngest ,I remember growing up and going to school and the only constant in my life was my mother.My siblings are all much older than me ,so they had completed school at the local primary school and had gone on to secondary schools far from home and my father could only come to visit during public holidays from his work in Harare.

In time,I was also able to outgrow the primary school and trekked to Harare for further education.I would just bear the idea of staying away from my mother  for the three months which constituted the school term,the day immediately after schools closed without fail, I would be on the first available bus for the rural home where my mother would be .

Whilst in college,I realized that my mother was no longer as strong as she used to be and I discovered that she was taking these medicines .It wasn’t a secret but I guess I had previously been too young to comprehend all that was happening around me.I would try and do my best to cover as much work as I could during the three or four weeks of the school vacation but I guess is was never enough now was it ?

I remember in 1993 ,when she was taken ill and my father , who was a pensioner then brought her to the family home ion then town of Chitungwiza(a dormitory town 20 kilometers from Harare)so that we could seek medical attention from a private doctor who operated a surgery quite close to our house.After many tests were conducted and much going to and fro ,it was later discovered that she had cancer of the eosophagus.She could not hold down any food let alone liquids like water.She was refered to one of  the main referral hospital at Harare Hospital.After undergoing several chemotherapy treatments she was discharged and we were told to bring her to hospital for check-up and to have her medication replenished.

Watching her struggling and waste away a on a daily basis from the lack of nourishment was heartbreaking, nothing seed to make sense then.Life was a slog .Whenever I had to leave home and go into town , my thoughts would be troubled ,I always feared that I could come back to find her gone.We were blessed as a family that her sisters would take turns to come and help look after her but the dreadful thoughts that one had especially at night was one which hardly made it possible for one to sleep.This was reduced to cat naps with one ear turned to the next room to try and find out if all was still alright.After a few months of this existence ,her sister finally arranged to take her home and we hired a station wagon were she could lie at the back with the back seat folded as at the time she could no longer walk nor sit.Little did I know that this would be the last time I would ever see her alive because two weeks after her departure I got a call that she had passed away and we had to start arrangements to lay her remains  to rest at the family grave yard in the rural area of Makoni South in Manicaland province.

Although I was a full-grown man with a wife and family at the time ,the loss was mind blowing .It took time for me to take it into my stride.One of the reason why I seemed to struggle with the loss was the fact that I was unable to grieve ,I shut all the emotions inside where no one could see them and tried as hard as I could to function like a normal being .I grew up at a time when most males were taught that one never showed their emotions in public,you would have to bottle these up lest you be known as someone less of a man and would be ridiculed. The truth is that I was cut up. Whilst my mind rationalized that maybe this was better for her because no human being is supposed to suffer as she had .To make the matter worse she would always put on a brave face and would ask me whether I was eating and sleeping well and I would lie to her that all was well do not think for a moment that I was able to fool her though,she was my mother after all.

Twenty-four years later the loss of my father to rob me of the remaining parent made me relive these emotions once more and to tell the truth it is as bitter as the first time I experienced it.

The Power Of Gratitude P3

On the nineteenth of July I lost my father.What was shocking was that the day before I had got a call late in the day that he wasn’t feeling well and a cousin brother was taking him to Rusape General hospital where was admitted.

Mr Gwangwara Snr 

Early in the morning of the following day whilst making arrangements to go to Rusape,I Got the dreaded call that he had passed on during the night. After alerting my older siblings well as other members of the extended family  of the news, I hit the road so that I could go and consult with my uncle-my father’s only remaining sibling-about funeral arrangements.

I was fortunate to have a cousin brother in Nyazura ,just twenty kilometers from home, who was waiting for me and we proceeded home. When we got there we found that nothing had been done as the family said that they were waiting for us the children  to lead the arrangements .We the remaining brothers gathered-three from the extended family and my uncle ,a plan of action was devised and my cousin brother and I set about implementing it.Throughout the arrangements and the actual burial, Richard was a rock. He would guide point out things that needed to be attended to and generally made sure that he had my back.

My father was 94 years old and had never been to hospital since the time I became conscious of things around me he was also the village head. When one is a child, one takes their parents for granted. The only time I realized the high esteem in which he was regarded was the massive turn out of mourners on the day of the burial; members of the Seventh Day Adventist church, fellow headmen, the local chief as well friends and family members who drove from far to take up in the burial, opened my eyes to the high regard in which my father was held. Somehow the huge turnout of people who came to offer their condolences made it a bit bearable to face the loss.

Nyati together with his company, Nyaradzo Funeral Services, ensured that we could mourn and bury our father with the dignity that was befitting of a man of his stature. They went beyond the funeral plan that he had with the company and ensured the mourners well catered for.

To each and every person who came and contributed to the smooth mourning period as well as the dignified burial of my father, the family is forever in your debt.

The Ugly Double Standards Of Armchair Critics

In a statement soon after the Zimbabwe National Army lead operation “Restore Legacy” ,Numsa, general secretary Irvin Jim,said;’The army in Zimbabwe has taken over power through a military coup and no amount of concealment of this most obvious of facts can change the ugly reality of the unconstitutional military takeover of power in Zimbabwe.

The Ugly Double Standards Of Armchair Critics

The  first stolen elections from the year 2002 to date ,the Zimbabwean opposition politicians have been crying foul over the manner in which the ZanuPf party with aid of the army, especially where the 2008 election were concerned. Where were the likes of Mr Jim,the catch phrase then was ‘Zimbabweans should solve their own internal problems. ’The army is surely part and parcel of the Zimbabwean populace so why then is it wrong now that they have initiated the resolving of the internal problem that the likes of Mr Jim alluded to earlier, dare hide behind the constitutionality of the act. Where were they when the constitution was being abused in the name of uncle Bob.I guess some animals are more equal than others huh ala the pigs in THE ANIMAL FARM.

We have had to endure harassment,false accusations,imprisonment,trumped up charges of undermining the dignity of the President,Treason ,just to mention a few and we had to do it without any support from the likes of Mr Jim and his ilk. Now that we have the courage to throw off the yoke that has been around our collective necks for the last 37 YEARS please leave us be so we can solve our Internal problem Uncle Bob.

Included in the group of worthless critics and organizations is surely the AU and Sadc,who can forget the ill-advised Quiet Diplomacy practiced by one Thabo Mbeki, when he was the President of South Africa. It never bore any fruit save to entrench the despotic rule of Uncle Bob. Their main concern is self-aggrandizement and the stroking of their collective egos. We say to hell with you, we are living in the moment and enjoying it whilst we can .We will not listening to your doomsday prophecies, We will reclaim our lives come what may.

At the time of writing this  article a lot has come and gone ,another disputed election; but then that is the nature of ‘The Beast’ isn’t it.An election by its nature is a dispute .So the fact that one of the contestants is disputing the results may just be put down to “sour grapes” or is it?Anyway we were able to exercise our right to choose our leader and now the arduous task of undoing the rot that set in during the past regime’s misrule begins.At the end of the day it is the individual citizens putting their collective shoulders to the wheel which will get us out of thus rut not some know it all somewhere hiding behind his laptop of in front of a TV camera for 20 seconds of fame.

What's In A Name

‘What’s in a name,that which we call a rose will smell just as sweet if called by another name’,William Shakespear wrote.

What's In A Name

Traditionally ,our names are supposed to depict some happening in our parents’ lives,Reval,Sarudzai,Makandionei,Dambudzo to name just a few of the names that hang around the necks of some Zimbos like a tire-necklace ,for those of you who are not aware, this is a sadistic form of punishment devised by the South Africans where they pour petrol into a used tire ,put it around a person before setting it alight. The victim dies an agonizing death. Unfortunately, most of these people with these traditional names somehow actually suffer as in the case of one called Nhamo (Suffering).Many a time these children with the hard-luck inspired names change these names to “acceptable” ones once they get a chance or when they start going to secondary school because we know that teenagers can be cruel if you don’t have a cool name, one can end up being bullied mercilessly.

This is the reason why some Zimbos end up with names like Kubi,an Anglicized version of the name Kubvoruno,which was deemed uncool by its owner. Usually we are in the habit of having two names one given at birth which is normally in the child’s mother tongue ,then another which is Christian inspired for the church baptism. These are the names that are normally adopted once one starts going to school or when they want to appear ‘cool’ names like; John,James,Peter,or Mischeck. Many a time these guys  with the ‘found names’ tend to ignore those who grew up with them should they accidentally meet and greet them using the hated “African” names.Of later there has been an upsurge of cool names which are inspired by celebrates like;Beyonce,Ronaldo,Alisha to name but A few.

A lot has been said about the need for our people to be conscious of where they come from by not many can withstand the need for them to appear cool in the eyes of their colleagues and peers.Peer pressure applies even too the aged,so a lot of less hardy types will cower to have their traditional names called in circles where they want to be regarded as being in with the program. In Lesotho, where I had the pleasure of living for quite some time ,a lot of children have English inspired traditional names like ;Paramente from Parliament,Lepolisa from a policeman or Lesole from the word soldier in English.I was unable to establish the thinking behind the names but suffice to say quite a few giggles were stifled at the mention of these names.But most importantly ,that is a nation which is in love of its culture,to the extent that most of the given names are in Sesotho- the mother tongue.

I rest my case, you be the judge.

The Quest For The Elusive Dollar

It is an open secret that things are tough in Zimbabwe at the moment ,people spend most of their time hustling to get the elusive greenback.

The Quest For The Elusive Dollar

So serious is the way in which some people hustle that there are reports that people have gone as far as Nigeria ,Ghana and Mozambique in order to look for charms which purportedly help them to acquire money at any cost. The dailies are full of reports of people who would have gone to these so called ‘Prophets’ and Witch Doctors who promise them heaven on earth. Often times they are given small twigs and told to go and do as the ‘Prophets’ will have advised. Most of them cry foul after discovering that the twigs end up turning into enormous snakes which completely take over their lives.

Recently ,a certain lady from Chinhoyi, who claimed that her mother had left here a huge snake when she passed away, had to resort to one of local radio stations in order to look for help as the gigantic snake had completely taken over her life and turned it into a living hell. Those in the know claim that the damsel in distress had a huge mansion and several top of the range vehicles but she could not attract nor keep a spouse as it was taboo for her to do so. She lived alone with only a maid to keep her company in the huge mansion. Loneliness and the need to be reed of the demanding reptile, forced her  into  turning to the radio station in order to ask for help. It is reported that several ‘Men of God ‘ tried and failed to kill the gigantic snake, with some reports saying it was as big as ten meters and weighted several tonnes.

Last week, there was a reported breakthrough in the case as some Prophets went to the home of this lady and succeeded in killing the snake.

Another reported case is one of a lady from one of the affluent suburbs of Harare, who reportedly went to Mozambique in her  quest to get instant riches, she was told to go and perform some rituals , when her money was enough for her needs ,she had to return to the Wizard who had given her the herbs ,un fortunately for her, she did not return and the room where she was supposed to keep the money that was created by the wizardry was so full of money that she no longer knew what to do with it. At the time of writing she was so overwhelmed that she was asking for advice.

In our quest to be better than the Johns next-door some of us are going out of our way and abandoning the nurturing of our parents to the extent that we end up biting more than we can chew.

It Takes A Village

A nephew of mine paid me a visit the other day so that he could check on me after he learnt that I had sprained my leg.After exchanging greetings and discussing the weather,the true nature of his visit soon became apparent when he started complaining of the difficulties he was getting in trying to raise his eldest son as an upstanding member of the community.

It Takes A Village

Like most of the young people of his generation my nephew has his sense of entitlement were he expects things to be done for him and things are handed over to him on a silver platter. His father has a small business which has managed to put him through school and the university education which is now enjoying is a result of the efforts of his father. The parent had in his wisdom asked the young man to have a holiday job so that he could earn a some pocket money .Towards the end of the vacation job stint, the young man was not happy about the fact that his payment was delayed which resulted in him pouring out his heart to the effect that he did not think much of his father and he would much prefer his mother ,who was more understanding and gave him all that he asked for as for the surname he might as well change it since his father was not fair to him.

Things got so bad that he has since dropped out of University and he wants to go back to form five so that he can resit his “A” level examination once more.He completely misses the fact that he has spent a lot of time ,effort and expenses on his studies todate. Nobody seems to be able to stop him from going on this self- destructive quest of his and the family is at their wits’ end.He is warming his back at moment whilst consuming the musical programs that are spewed by the various channels on the Television set.

I was roped in to try and talk some sense into him.His intention is to change the program of study.In most peoples view this is throwing his future away.Since I am a bit removed from the situation ,the belief was that I would be able to hear his side of the story and advise his parents so that a collective decision could be reached.After I had sat with the young man and he listened to my and his parents view presented by a neutral,the matter is still up in the air and his future hangs in the balanced.

I have had the privilege of tutoring some hard working youths who were down on their luck and many struggled to have anyone who could pay for their education and it pains me to find one who has parents and extended family egging him on and making sure he has all he needs in order to get a University degree which a lot of other deserving people crave for but fail to get because of circumstances beyond their control,but he is prepared to throw it all away on a whim.WHAT A SHAME

Children Say The Darnedest Things

I spent a innocent half hour with my granddaughters and it was fun because there was no pretense on their part,the eldest is five years old and has just started school ,grade 0 she says .In my time we did not have such,at seven years old one started grade one and that was that!

Children Say The Darnedest Things

What I enjoyed the most was the fact that there were screeches of loud voices and I was engulfed in hugs ,each of the two elder girls competing for my attention and the almost six month old baby gurgling away contentedly without any care in the world .Maybe the fact that I always bring some goodies in the form of bananas and those chicken flings that children love so much is the reason why I am so well received but I don’t care !When their eyes light up with recognition ,that is enough for me.

The eldest rushes to their room and comes back with her small hands leaden with a school bag ,school shoes in the other hand and a pair of rubber boots (for when it rains I suppose) in the other hand and loudly proclaims the fact that she is now going to school .Her heart is bursting with the good news and she just has to share them with her grandfather.

The second born declares contemptuously that she doesnot go to school nor does she sing in the church choir.She boldly declares that she hates both those activities and volunteers the fact that she loves to play.It is said with such a serious countenance that one cannot help laughing.

It is moments like these that I truly appreciate how fortunate I am to have a daughter and the granddaughters she bore,nothing beats the feeling of being loved unreservedly. I am going to enjoy this for as long as it lasts before the ugly world turns them cynical.

It Is Not Where You Start But How You End

Edgar Mangwende is the epitome of the cream that rises to the top of the milk. Born in a family of six, he is the fourth child. His father was a driver for the national airline; Air Zimbabwe , his mother was and still is a hustlepreneur according to the lingo of the youth.

It is Not Where You Start But Where You EndAdd caption

One can hardly describe his upbringing as one that was well-to-do, but certainly the prevailing  standards in the newly post colonial Zimbabwe,they did not starve. A story which I remember quite clearly was one where his father flatly refused to go and be humiliated at Edgar’s primary school during a parents meeting(consultation day).His reason was that Edgar and his younger brother were not the sharpest tools in the shed and would hover around the last group of learners in their respective classes. Presumably they had not fully grasped the concepts of studying  and applying themselves. The father would boycott these occasions.

He was however surprised when the “O” level examination results came out and found out that the erstwhile dullards had passed well enough for them to proceed to form five and six after which they dully qualified for university. After four years of study Edgar was able to attain a BSc(Hon) in Horticulture form the Midlands State University. He proceeded after a few years of strife ,in which he could not secure any meaningful employment .He ended up joining a Multi-Level Marketing company where he used to sell green tea and other herbal remedies to clients in and around Harare. Edgar’s never die attitude and acute sense of purposed however ,eventually led him to be accepted         to study for an MSc  at the University of Pretoria .According to him ,times were hard. He would go without meals at times until one of his lecturers challenged his students to excel at an assignment he had given and he promised that the the best student would be sent to Scotland for a month-all expenses paid.Edgar set out to look for part-time work to finance his meals and for the resources he needed in order to complete the assignment .He did this with flying  colours and was able to pay his own way for the study visit to Scotland .Soon after he came back and completed his studies upon which he commenced  to write his book ,The Cage Mentality-From the mind to the Mountain top, whilst completing his PhD in Plant Pathology.

Whether his book bombs or not ,the fact that he has been able to achieve all these from his humble beginnings attest to the strong will,never die attitude that marks him out as one whom will certainly make waves in both his chosen field and whatever community he will choose to live in.

Mugabe's Repressive Regime Responsible For Making Zimbos Resilience

The throwing in of the towel by Uncle Bob on the 21 st of November is the culmination of over twenty years of struggle by the sane thinking Zimbabweans. The struggle has been long and harsh, resulting in the deaths and maiming of thousands of innocent Zimbabweans whose only crime was a cry to have a different opinion or ideas to the ones exposed by Bob’s regime.

Mugabe's Repressive Regime Responsible For Making Zimbos Resilience

However, as the saying  Pressure makes diamonds reveals; the need for self –actualization is what forced over three million Zimbos into exile. This is the thing that made them the modern day children of Israel,forced to labour at menial jobs even though some of them are well educated. The politics of the stomach will  force one to swallow their pride and do that which needs to be done in order to put food on the table.So the dancing and singing that was witnessed on the evening and the night of the 21 st of November was the outward expression of the joy and hope that the Zimbabweans had in the momentous occasion of the overthrow of the evil dictator who had misguidedly thought that the country was his to do with as he pleased.

Since Zimbos could not openly express their anger and frustration at the straight jacket which was the political situation that we experienced ,a lot of people ended up showing their assertiveness in other areas of endeavors be it educational,finance,judiciary and industry. The world is full of Zimbabweans who were inspired by Mugabe’s academic excellence, who went on to emulate or even surpass him.Names like Arthur Mutambara,Dr Strive Masiyiwa,Josey Mahachi,Ellen Chiwenga and Maud Chifamba to mention but a few ;are examples of Zimbos who excelled maybe as a means to thumb their noses at the repressive regime.They may have wanted to show that despite the hardship and lack of freedoms ,one cannot keep a good man (OR woman )down.

So love him or hate him,Bob has managed to push quite a number of Zimbos to excel so as to escape the dictatorial tendencies of his regime.

A Zimbos Perspective Of Life In The Diaspora

Whilst some will embrace you with open arms, there are subtle nuances that will throw you off balance if you are observant enough.

A Zimbos Perspective Of Life In The Diaspora

These are found in the terms that most indigenous people will use in referring to one such as the following used by the Sotho speaking inhabitants of South Africa and Lesotho;’makoere-koere,batsoakantle,bo my friend,bakhotsi,bo Rathuthu.If ones grasp of the local language is not that good then people will go to town ,gossiping about one in their faces.Some not so pleasant experiences will be when one meets someone who has a score to settle with a perceived enemy,who is accused of having stolen a girlfriend or a prospective job.That or the fact that you are found not to be light skinned enough to qualify as a Mosotho.Half the time the terms ‘Ke Lesotho moo' thrown about ,there is normally open hostility .Coupled with these would be questions like ;’why don’t you vote Mugabe out’ or ‘Ke Lesotho moo ,kutlang haeno’

Most people have developed a thick skin as they can hardly win all the arguments started by people who have very low self esteem or are simply not educated enough to realize the benefits that most countries gain from the economic refugees that settle in the various countries. Most of the people who are predominantly found in the countries neighboring  Zimbabwe are quite well educated and have skills that they can offer. Unfortunately, most of them end up not necessarily working in their areas of specialization but the fact that they have been through tertiary education makes them very malleable to adapt and operate quite efficiently in any given task they find themselves in so that they can put bread on their tables .

The Ugly Truth About Armchair Critics

In a statement ,Numsa, general secretary Irvin Jim,said;’The army in Zimbabwe has taken over power through a military coup and no amount of concealment of this most obvious of facts can change the ugly reality of the unconstitutional military takeover of power in Zimbabwe.

The Ugly Truth About Armchair Critics

The the first stolen elections from the year 2002 to date ,the Zimbabwean opposition politicians have been crying foul over the manner in which the ZanuPf party with aid of the army,especially where the 2008 election were concerned.Where were the likes of Mr Jim,the catch phrase then was ‘Zimbabweans should solve their own internal problems.’The army is surely part and parcel of the Zimbabwean populace so why then is it wrong now that they have initiated the resolving of the internal problem that the likes of Mr Jim alluded to earlier,dare hide behind the constitutionality of the act.Where were they when the constitution was being abused in the name of uncle Bob.I guess some animals are more equal than others huh ala the pigs in The Animal Farm.

We have had to endure harassment,false accusations,imprisonment,trumped up charges of undermining the dignity of the President,Treason ,just to mention a few and we had to do it without any support from the likes of Mr Jim and his ilk.Now that we have the courage to throw off the yoke that has been around our collective necks for the last 37 YEARS please leave us be so we can solve our Internal problem Uncle Bob.

Included in the group of worthless critics and organizations is surely the AU and Sadc,who can forget the ill-advised Quiet Deplomacy practiced by one Thabo Mbeki, when he was the President of South Africa.It never bore any fruit save to entrench the despotic rule of Uncle Bob.Their main concern is self aggrandizement and the stroking of their collective egos.We say to hell with you, we are living in the moment and enjoying it whilst we can .We will not listening to your doomsday prophecies,We will reclaim our lives come what may.

Be The Best You Can,With What You Have,Where You Are

The great Nelson Mandela became the President of South Africa at the ripe old age of SEVENTY-SIX years.

Be The Best You Can,With What You Have,Where You Are

Many able bodied people of various ages give up their dreams because they stop believing in themselves or think that it is not doable, having a never-die attitude as well not allowing one to wallow in self pity will definitely drive one to their dreams.As sure as the sun rises in the East and sinks in the West,things will never remain the same.No matter what state one finds themselves in, the truth is that it will change .So instead of winging and mourning about your circumstances ,get up ,dress up and pitch up.Do something about your circumstance, it might be as minute as going to visit a friend and chatting ,the walk and the chance to change your surroundings will definitely give you a different perspective to the problem,half the chance you will come back invigorated  and ready to meet your challenge head on.

Whilst I might not be the best example of a person who has achieved in life , I never stop moving nor improving myself.This year alone , I was able to go for a class two drivers’ license  after having failed at the last huddle Five times ,I DID NOT give up ,on the sixth attempt I got the license and began the odious task of looking for a job in an economy where it is reported that more than half the population is unemployed. I could have given up or waited for something to happen but instead through the luck I created I was able to get a job managing a construction project for some guys who where going into construction but where too busy to baby sit the project to fruition.

How I created my luck was making people aware that I was willing to work on a voluntary basis in order to gain some driving experience.Once I was given the opportunity to work, I ensued that I did my very best .Right now Iam indispensible to the operation, Iam not only  proactive, I make sure I resolve problems on site and make it possible for the principals to concentrate on their careers.

Whilst I might not be driving but Iam learning some very useful life skills which I would have needed to pay some big bucks for in order to learn .The things is I never pass the opportunity to learn something new.Our brains require constant stimulation otherwise they die from inactivity. The stuff we learnt last year is already obsolete so we cannot rest on our laurels and think that we know it all. 

What's In A Name

What’s in a name,that which we call a rose will smell just as sweet if called by another name,William Shakespear wrote.

A Rose By An Other Name

Traditionally ,our names are supposed to depict some happening in our parents lives,Reval,Sarudzai,Makandionei,Dambudzo to name just a few of the names that hang around some Zimbos like a tire-necklace ,for those of you who are not aware, this is a sadistic form of punishment devised by the South Africans where they pour petrol into a used tire ,put it around a person before setting it alight. The victim dies an agonizing death. Unfortunately, most of these people with these traditional names somehow actually suffer as in the case of one called Nhamo (Suffering).Many a time these children with the hard-luck inspired names change these names to “acceptable” ones once they get a chance or when they start going to secondary school because we know that teenagers can be cruel if you don’t have a cool name, one can end up being bullied mercilessly

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This is the reason why some Zimbos end up with names like Kubi,an Anglicanized version of the name Kubvoruno,which was deemed uncool by its owner. Usually we are in the habit of having two names one given at birth which normally in the child’s mother tongue ,then another which is Christian inspired for the church baptism. These are the names that are normally adopted once one starts going to school or when they want to appear ‘cool’. Many a time these guys  with the ‘found names’ tend to ignore those who grew up with them should they accidentally meet and greet them using the hated “African” names.

A lot has been said about the need for our people to being conscious of where they come from by not many can withstand the need for them to appear cool in the eyes of their colleagues and peers.Peer pressure applies even too the aged.

The Power Of Gratitude Part 3

What goes around ,comes back around ;they say on the second of July 2017,I was reminded of this when a friend reminded me of a good deed that I carried out more than twenty odd years ago.

At the time a friend told me in confidence of the financial problems she was going through and asked whether I would be able to lend her some money for nephew’s school fees .I do not remember the exact amount involved any more .I had a bit of spare cash at the time and grudgingly gave it to her ,I was not really sure whether I would be able to get it back.To her credit she was able to pay it back and I promptly forgot about.

The Power Of Gratitude

Fast forward some twenty odd years later ,I am now the one in a fix and I require help in paying for some driving lessons ,during a conversation I happen to mention  that I am having problems ,imagine my surprise and delight when  my friend, out of the blue, inform in that I should go town and collect enough money for my lessons and a bit left over.I profusely thank my benefactor ,proceed to the point I was instructed and duly get the promised amount.A day later my reminds me of the helping hand I had extended all those years ago and informs me that the fellow I had helped in paying for his fees eventually completed school ,passed and now has a well paying job in The Republic Of South Africa.

Imagine, if I had refused to help out when I did what would have happened.What was a small gesture at the time resulted in me getting a leg up.Often people act without consciously thinking out their actions not realizing that they have a bearing on what happens in the future.Should one be in a position to help,they should just do it ,they never know that kind deed may lead to their getting a helping hand in their hour of need.