Like yesterday, I woke up at an ungodly hour.
Tried a spit bath, but not on my mother’s watch!
I was stripped naked and scrubbed head to toe.
Not that it made much difference in reality,
For I still had to walk 10 kilometres to school!
I shoved in a few mouthfuls of leftovers,
Which didn’t deserve to be called breakfast!
A couple of sadza pieces from last night,
Roasted briskly on smouldering embers and,
Served with boiling-hot tea in a metal cup!
Beyond our village, the journey became strenuous,
From the creepy and secluded mountain pass,
Dense overgrowth and long elephant grass,
Then the slippery rocks on the sheer cliff,
And the crocodile-infested, rushing river.
Hunger and exhaustion momentarily disappeared,
With a distant silhouette of the school block,
Then remembered we were a little late.
No respite given for missing the national anthem,
Which everyone sang passionately out of tune!
I took my beatings uncompromisingly,
Without remorse, just like a badge of honour.
The first few lessons were the most difficult,
For it’s hard to concentrate while still tired,
Though I was reinvigorated after break time!
I came second only to the son of the headmaster,
Supplied with an onsite government house.
Armed with a new story each day, I returned,
To the village, as a teacher to cousins and nieces,
Who had never seen the inside of a classroom!