well.’
‘It is all probably too much for her,’ I said, looking at Mama Unahti’s distressed face.
‘You boys stay out of the bush, you hear me?’ cried Mama. ‘And to think I took it all very lightly when I heard where you were this morning.’
‘You went to the bush?’ asked Lwazi and Simoshile simultaneously.
‘Please don’t tell my dad,’ pleaded André.
‘It was a stupid thing to do,’ said Lwazi shaking his head. ‘If you want to go out into the bush, ask your dad to take you along on one of the game drives.’
André and I nodded. Lwazi was right. I knew we shouldn’t have gone. But I had already learned so much from just one morning with André, not to mention seeing that splendid giraffe.
Night came all too soon. The end of my first full day in South Africa. I felt tired but somehow happy. I liked André and Simoshile. And Lwazi, and of course Mama Unahti. In just this short while they had made me feel so welcome. It was actually amazing. I had never made friends that quickly. I was always apprehensive when meeting new people. I kept up the walls around me. Fearful of really getting to knowthem, always wondering if they didn’t have a hidden motive for getting to know me.
But with this group of people it was all different. When they talked, they talked from the heart. When they laughed, they did it as if nobody was watching.
Sadly, this was not the case with Themba. The few times I had been in his company I’d felt weirdly disconnected to him. I didn’t really know what to say to him. Was it because he hadn’t been there for me all those years? I didn’t know.
It was around seven in the evening. He still wasn’t home. What could he be doing?
I missed having a TV. Probably withdrawal symptoms. I felt fidgety. What was I supposed to do with myself?
Perhaps I should try and cook some sort of meal for Themba. He was sure to be hungry when he got home, all tired. My cooking skills weren’t up to much, but I wasn’t totally unfamiliar with a kitchen.There were times back home when Mum didn’t want to cook and I simply had to step in if I wanted some dinner.
I grabbed some meat from the fridge and defrosted it in the microwave. It was beef steak. I found some chips as well. Eggs too. Steak, eggs and chips. That will do for a nice dinner!
Busying myself in the kitchen took away the boredom. I thought about the day, and again a smile spread across my face. Wait till I tell Mum about it.
I opened the kitchen door to let some fresh air in. And then I heard it … The sound of an animal … The lion! The thought flashed through my mind instantly.
No, there was a whine. Do lions whine? I wondered.
Of course not. I listened again, my hand on the doorknob, ready to bang it shut should something leap out at me from the dark. It sounded like a dog.
Should I go out? I was a bit scared, but the animal seemed to be in distress. I found a flashlight in a cupboard. Carefully I made my way outside. Past the tree standing right outside the kitchen. Clenched fist around the torch. The beam of light moved across the ground. And then I saw it: it was a dog, tied up to a tree. A long chain extended right up to its neck. It was an Alsatian. A fine looking animal.
‘Hey there, boy!’ I said, carefully approaching him. I didn’t know if he would bite. He whined again. ‘What’s your name?’ He didn’t seem to mind me coming closer. The chain around his neck jingled. He got up, stood there watching me for a while and slowly put one foot in front of the other. Again he whined.
‘Hey, there!’ I said, softly. I set the light down. He was now right in front of me. I extended my hand slowly. He gave it a quick sniff. He seemed to be okay with me, so I touched him. Scratching him behind the ear. He appeared to like it, and lowered his head. ‘Whose dog are you? Themba’s?Why does he keep you all tied up?’ The dog turned his head and licked my hand. There was a tag on his collar. Umfana.
‘So
‘It is all probably too much for her,’ I said, looking at Mama Unahti’s distressed face.
‘You boys stay out of the bush, you hear me?’ cried Mama. ‘And to think I took it all very lightly when I heard where you were this morning.’
‘You went to the bush?’ asked Lwazi and Simoshile simultaneously.
‘Please don’t tell my dad,’ pleaded André.
‘It was a stupid thing to do,’ said Lwazi shaking his head. ‘If you want to go out into the bush, ask your dad to take you along on one of the game drives.’
André and I nodded. Lwazi was right. I knew we shouldn’t have gone. But I had already learned so much from just one morning with André, not to mention seeing that splendid giraffe.
Night came all too soon. The end of my first full day in South Africa. I felt tired but somehow happy. I liked André and Simoshile. And Lwazi, and of course Mama Unahti. In just this short while they had made me feel so welcome. It was actually amazing. I had never made friends that quickly. I was always apprehensive when meeting new people. I kept up the walls around me. Fearful of really getting to knowthem, always wondering if they didn’t have a hidden motive for getting to know me.
But with this group of people it was all different. When they talked, they talked from the heart. When they laughed, they did it as if nobody was watching.
Sadly, this was not the case with Themba. The few times I had been in his company I’d felt weirdly disconnected to him. I didn’t really know what to say to him. Was it because he hadn’t been there for me all those years? I didn’t know.
It was around seven in the evening. He still wasn’t home. What could he be doing?
I missed having a TV. Probably withdrawal symptoms. I felt fidgety. What was I supposed to do with myself?
Perhaps I should try and cook some sort of meal for Themba. He was sure to be hungry when he got home, all tired. My cooking skills weren’t up to much, but I wasn’t totally unfamiliar with a kitchen.There were times back home when Mum didn’t want to cook and I simply had to step in if I wanted some dinner.
I grabbed some meat from the fridge and defrosted it in the microwave. It was beef steak. I found some chips as well. Eggs too. Steak, eggs and chips. That will do for a nice dinner!
Busying myself in the kitchen took away the boredom. I thought about the day, and again a smile spread across my face. Wait till I tell Mum about it.
I opened the kitchen door to let some fresh air in. And then I heard it … The sound of an animal … The lion! The thought flashed through my mind instantly.
No, there was a whine. Do lions whine? I wondered.
Of course not. I listened again, my hand on the doorknob, ready to bang it shut should something leap out at me from the dark. It sounded like a dog.
Should I go out? I was a bit scared, but the animal seemed to be in distress. I found a flashlight in a cupboard. Carefully I made my way outside. Past the tree standing right outside the kitchen. Clenched fist around the torch. The beam of light moved across the ground. And then I saw it: it was a dog, tied up to a tree. A long chain extended right up to its neck. It was an Alsatian. A fine looking animal.
‘Hey there, boy!’ I said, carefully approaching him. I didn’t know if he would bite. He whined again. ‘What’s your name?’ He didn’t seem to mind me coming closer. The chain around his neck jingled. He got up, stood there watching me for a while and slowly put one foot in front of the other. Again he whined.
‘Hey, there!’ I said, softly. I set the light down. He was now right in front of me. I extended my hand slowly. He gave it a quick sniff. He seemed to be okay with me, so I touched him. Scratching him behind the ear. He appeared to like it, and lowered his head. ‘Whose dog are you? Themba’s?Why does he keep you all tied up?’ The dog turned his head and licked my hand. There was a tag on his collar. Umfana.
‘So
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