Today, like yesterday, was no different,
It was still an ungodly hour as I woke up,
To birds calling and insects chirping,
Wailing babies and whispering mothers,
Whistling boys and humming girls!
I was born with a silver spoon in my mouth!
To progressive parents who believed in education,
Still this did not absolve my responsibilities,
Even at seven, I had to pull my own weight,
Only at school was I allowed to act my age!
Today was a tad nippy for my juvenile body,
I put on the remains of a tattered shirt,
Giving no protection against the cold breeze,
Nonetheless, work is the best clothing,
The quicker I got on with it, the warmer!
Though school only started 4 hours later,
Already, I’ve had a long lie-in this morning,
A bunch of cows had to be milked first,
Then the vast fields needed to be tended,
A few furlong turns to kick-start the day.
I was running late and so I tried a spit bath,
My watchful mother was having none of it,
She stripped me naked in front of my cousins,
Thermal shock when dipped in a freezing bath,
And scrubbed hard from head to toe.
“No, the teacher shall not smell your sweat,
And suspect anything of our meagre means!”
The shouting of a loving and caring mother,
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,
Served with boiling-hot tea in a metal cup!
It was sunrise, two hours before school started,
Had to pick up the pace to abate the tardiness,
By the time I collected a friend along the way,
My toes that jutted through gaping shoe holes,
Were totally wet from the morning dew!
Beyond our village, the journey became strenuous,
From the creepy and secluded mountain pass,
To the slippery rocks and roots on the sheer cliff,
Then there was the painful and blinding sandstorm,
And the crocodile-infested, rushing river.
For they always brought bumper harvests,
The village elders welcomed abundant rains,
But not the queasy children of school-going age,
Who had to walk through the long elephant grass,
Dense overgrowth with its hidden dangers.
I would have been dead had I moved an inch more,
For I nearly stepped on a 10-foot long puff adder!
Ostensibly casual snake but still deadly poisonous,
Luckily, it was not the aggressive spitting cobra!
Had to quickly adjust my feet and yell out a warning.
Momentarily, hunger and exhaustion disappeared,
With a distant silhouette of the school,
Then remembered we were a little late,
No respite given for missing the national anthem!
Which everyone sang passionately out of tune!
Uncompromisingly, I took my beatings gracefully,
Without remorse, just like a badge of honour,
The first few lessons were the most difficult,
It’s hard to concentrate when one is tired,
Although, after break time, I was reinvigorated!
I knew I was smart right from day one,
For I came second only to the class teacher’s son,
Whose well-to-do father was the headmaster,
Supplied with a luxurious government house,
Located just behind the school ablution blocks!
Armed with a new story each day,
I returned to the village to become a teacher,
To my curious cousins and shepherds,
Looking after the cattle, our most prized possession,
And who had never seen the inside of a classroom.
They called our school Shinja Primary,
Named after the surrounding community,
There was also a river with the same name,
Arguably, the best school around,
For it was the only institution for miles!