You never really know what to expect when you phone!!

I called today to get an update on the community and ended up calling during the post Ukwalusa ceremony which means that a boy has completed his initiation into manhood and all of the men in Gcinsizwe's area are now having a two day celebration to welcome this "new man" into the coveted Xhosa community of men (as opposed to boys). The entire two days are spent singing/chanting and dancing, this takes place 24 hours a day which is remarkable, I am not sure how they find the energy! The boy who was just initiated spent 3 months in the bush (the forest) and is 20 years old. About 200 men were celebrating his return back to the community. Gcinsizwe was selected to lead the group in the singing of traditional Xhosa tribal songs. As I spoke to him I could hear the raspiness setting into to his vocal chords after hours and hours of singing. He was so happy, this is a time of great joy for the community. The Ukwalusa ceremony is a very important ritual that takes place in the Xhosa kingdom, I actually wrote a paper on it not too long ago. Below you will learn more about this really interesting and awe inspiring right of passage.

The Ukwalusa: Male initiation into manhood
There is one custom that is the most important event in a man’s life. It is known as the Ukwalusa. Between the ages of 18-25, boys are initiated into adult life by means of circumcision, cultural exchange and isolation. Before Ukwalusa, the male is not eligible to participate as
leaders in community events. They are not able to be married, have a family, or inherit property from their fathers. When boys feel that they are ready, they will inform their elders, who then make a recommendation based on the maturity and readiness of the boy.

The Ukwalusa ceremony is held in very high regard, young boys will often ask to become a man before they have the mental capacity to endure the initiation and take on the responsibilities expected by the community. The beginning of the three-month initiation begins with the male having his head shaved by another man in the community; he is then given a necklace made of the hair from a cow’s tail, and a blanket for him to wear until the end of his isolation. The surgeon arrives at dawn to begin preparations for the day’s events. The surgeon is known as Incibi and is a culturally educated surgeon. Often times the surgeons have no formal education as a doctor. The Incibi makes his incision with a sharpened blade and one swift motion and when the circumcision is complete he yells, “You are a man”. These few moments after circumcision are the most important moments of a man’s life. Respect in the tribe is determined by the initiate’s ability to withstand the pain. The expectation is that a real man will keep a relaxed face and will not cry out or admit pain.

The group generally consists of 3-10 initiates, depending on the quantity of eligible boys. When all initiates have been circumcised, their bodies are then smeared with white clay from head to toe and their bodies wrapped in the blanket given to them during the head shaving. The initiates are then appointed a guide, who is a male member of the community who has completed this initiation. The guide is responsible for handing down cultural knowledge to the initiate, explaining the required duties and expectations he will now have placed on him, and is also there to ensure the general well being of the initiate.

The first seven days after circumcision are the most difficult and dangerous. After circumcision the initiate is marched to his new home, a grass hut built for this ceremony which is located in total isolation. For the next seven days he is forbidden to drink water as this will jeopardize the healing process and cause significant pain to his wound. The initiate is given a strict diet of dry maize, slightly boiled and eaten hard. During these first seven days the initiate stays in his hut, careful not to move and risk pain. Although this is a widely spread custom it does not come without risk, as there have been 300 infection related deaths since 1994

After three months in isolation, the initiates are now free to join the community however first they must leave behind their boyhood past. Everything associated with their past must now be destroyed, the hut is burned, their bodies washed clean of the white mud and their blanket discarded. At no point during the walk away from the burning hut may they look back as this is a sign of bad luck. These boys have now become men in the eyes of the community; they are now eligible for marriage, to have families and to be leaders in their communities.

I learned something new yesterday

It is really amazing to me how I keep learning new things about this community that I find shocking. I was on the phone with Gcinsizwe two days ago, he sounded very depressed and it was the first time I had heard this kind of sadness in his voice. Normally he is very upbeat and positive, even when you and I would be crying. He has the ability to keep his chin up in the most desperate of situations. But still, on this day, he sounded defeated.

For you and I the issue of electricity is simple, we work for a few hours to earn the $50 that we need to pay for a month's worth of power, easy peasy right?? On days where there is a power failure we head to our local diner to have lunch. Well today I learned that most people in this community have to work an entire day just to pay for 4 days of power......

Now I want to put this into perspective for you, we work a few hours so that for one month we can run two televisions, a computer, lights, heat, the stove, microwave, a stereo, a toaster and on and on.....in this community they work for one day just so that for four days they can turn on a two burner hotplate. Seems crazy doesn't it. They hardly use any power and it lasts 4 days. This goes to show how little money they are paid, and how little money they have. Most people in this community are earning less than $2 per day, for many it is less than a dollar a day.

Gcinsizwe had the sound of sadness in his voice because he had no money for power this week and last, his hours have been cut back and he is only working for one day a week. Without power his mother must cook over an open flame which consists of a campfire made outdoors. It has been raining non stop there which means that they cannot build a fire. As a result this family (and many others) have been surviving on water for the last three days.

Again, I really have to thank all of my supporters, because of your donations we have been able to send things like peanut butter, oranges etc, items which can be eaten without cooking. I try to balance healthy foods which can be cooked with healthy foods which can be eaten as is. Thank you to everyone though, I may be the one who is leading navigating the ship, but you are the wind in my sails.

Protests break out in South Africa

Courtesy of BBC News July 22 2009

Violence in South Africa's townships has spread as residents protest about what they say is a lack of basic services, such as water and housing.

Police have fired rubber bullets at demonstrators in Johannesburg, the Western Cape and the north-eastern region of Mpumalanga.

In Mpumalanga, there were reports of foreign-owned businesses being looted as foreigners sought police protection.

More than 100 people have been arrested during the past week.

The rising tensions in the townships have revived memories of xenophobic attacks on foreigners last year in which more than 60 people died.

The latest protests over service delivery come less than 100 days after Jacob Zuma took office as president, following a resounding election victory for the governing African National Congress (ANC).

They are a reminder of the impatience felt in the most deprived areas of the country, says BBC world affairs correspondent Peter Biles.

On Tuesday, police cars were stoned in Thokoza near Johannesburg during a demonstration about living conditions that turned violent.

Nearby township Diepsloot saw cars and houses being burnt last week in protest at plans to tear down makeshift shacks to make way for a sewage pipe.

Poverty pledge

President Jacob Zuma promised to improve service delivery when he came to power in May, and said fighting poverty was his priority, highlighting the huge economic and social challenges facing South Africa.

However, South Africa announced in June that it was facing its worst recession in 17 years.

Fifteen years after the ANC won its first election, more than one million South Africans still live in shacks, many without access to electricity or running water.

The gap between rich and poor is also wider than it was 15 years ago, our correspondent says.

The slow provision of replacement housing has long been controversial - nearly three million have been built, but the allocation has been prone to nepotism and corruption.

In addition, the global economic climate has banished any hope of South Africa maintaining record levels of economic growth, and reducing unemployment.

In the midst of this latest unrest, Mr Zuma is embarking upon a tour of the country to thank voters for returning the ANC to power in the elections last April.

Our correspondent says he will now be under even greater pressure to explain how the ANC is going to meet its plethora of election promises.

It is raining today, everyone remains inside trying to keep warm as best they can. It is a cold day today and to get wet means certain that they will also get sick so they stay indoors and huddle near the fire. Mama has built a good fire today and it is creating a lot of heat. Gcinsizwe, Stumo, Sizwe and Mama sit together, Mama is cooking maize while Stumo tries in vain to patch his shoe. Two weeks ago my package arrived in the post and Sizwe is yet again perched in front of the map looking at all of the countries. Gcinsizwe shows him Nova Scotia where I live, and Sudan and Congo where my friends are from. Each area has had a star placed on it so that they can find the places with ease. Sizwe asks his father in the Xhosa language, “Daddy where does Catherine live” and Gcinsizwe points to the other side of the map, very far away from South Africa.

Sizwe is a beautiful little boy who this year turns 6 years old. For his birthday I sent him stickers in the shape of the Canadian Flag, enough to share with his friends. I also sent glow in the dark stickers to stick on the walls of the shack he shares with his father Gcinsizwe. Sizwe switches between calling me Catherine and mama, a name I have grown fond of. His mother left the family when he was very young and since that time he has not had many women in his life to provide guidance. His grandmother, Mama, Gcinsizwe’s mother, treats Sizwe as if he were her on baby. She plays with him and teaches him about life and the lessons it has to share with them. Still though, in the Xhosa world Mama is getting old, she is in her late 50’s and after a long life of struggle her body is not as strong as it once was. Mama and Sizwe speak only Xhosa and a tiny bit of Afrikaans. We giggle a lot when we speak on the phone, Gcinsizwe translates as best as he can but when Mama and I get on the phone we spend far too much time giggling and laughing to get any sort of translation in! I find the Xhosa language fascinating, as she does English.

Mama and I have yet another “conversation” on the phone today. I say it this way because we don’t really say many things that the other person can understand but we sure do spend a lot of time laughing and giggling. She says something to me and then roars laughing, finding it so funny to hear me respond in this funny language called English. I try to imagine what English sounds like to Mama, an ever changing language filled with slang and exceptions. We must sound very harsh to her with our rough sounding RRRR’s and Tha’s found in so many of our words. Xhosa is a beautiful language indeed, with the sensual rolling R’s, the strange sound that reminds me of a rounded-cat hiss and of course the famous clicking sounds of which there are three distinct sounds. I have made attempts to learn Xhosa from books and cd’s but I cannot seem to grasp the ability to make a click sound while in middle of a word let alone a sentence. From time to time Gcinsizwe will take a pause from speaking with me to speak with a person asking him a question, I could sit and listen to him speak for hours, if only it didn’t cost me so much in long distance charges. While I listen to him speak Xhosa I take a moment to ponder how it is that such a beautiful group of people with a rich and interesting culture, incredible and complex language and so much kindness could have been persecuted so harshly during the Apartheid era.

Siabulayla and Anna have a baby

Siabulayla and his wife Anna had a baby today, May 29 2009. This is their first child and they welcomed a beautiful and healthy little boy into the world. They have given their first born the name Siabonga which in Xhosa means “Many Thanks”. When I first met Siabulayla over a year ago he introduced himself to me as Kevin. This is very common with Xhosa men as they are forced to change their names so that they have an easier time finding work. We call these their “struggle names” as it is an indication that Apartheid is long from over. Gcinsizwe was known as Eric for the longest time, until I begin to realize that this was not in fact what his Xhosa people called him. Both Gcinsizwe and Siabonga have adopted “white” names which their bosses have given them, refusing to call them by their real names. To this day when I meet Xhosa people via telephone they introduce themselves as Michael, John, Peter at which point I remind them that I am a part of their community and that it is ok for them to introduce themselves using their birth name, in fact, I prefer it.

Today I am on my way to Fredericton to visit my dear friend Lisa. I am traveling by train to Moncton and as I sit here enjoying the comfort and luxury of the train I decide it is time to call Thembalethu to see how my friends are doing. Gcinsizwe hands the phone to Siabonga who wanted to thank me for sending diapers for his baby boy. I hear a sadness deep in Siabonga’s voice, I ask him how he is and he says, fine fine in which I say “Siabonga, I can hear sadness in your voice, what is going on in your world today?”. Siabonga, the sole bread winner in his extended family and new father of a baby boy has just lost his job. His company has closed due to the recession and laid off all of their employees. In Canada we are very much effected by the recession, people are losing their jobs at an alarming pace, we apply for employment insurance and hope to find something else soon. We are very fortunate in this country, we have food banks and other social services to help us when we hit rock bottom. It is hard for us to imagine the desperation that comes from losing a job in other countries. For Siabonga and his large extended family they now face an impossible battle due to the massive unemployment in this area. Finding a job is nearly impossible, he now joins tens of thousands of other men with equal skills who are also looking for work. When I met Siabonga and his wife Anna they were only eating proper food every third day or so. This meal would consist of maize, beans and if they were having a good month perhaps a few flecks of meat about the size of scattered dimes. Today they have no income, and no food. I ask him what he will do, he has his two parents, wife, baby and two sisters to feed, his response “Only God knows our destiny, I pray to him that I find work and soon”. I ask, How will you feed your family? Where will you find food? Siabonga pauses for a long while then says in a defeated voice, Catherine, I just don’t know.

Siabonga is one of the families who receives food from The Themba Development Project’s food delivery program. On July 7th his family received food rations to last them for one month. His story reflects most people living in Thembalethu. Due to YOUR donations Siabonga’s family has a changed destiny, once living in a world without hope, his future now includes food and the knowledge that people in Canada care about the future of his family.

Leesay

Ha ha, Leesay, I love this little boy, I try to have a phone conversation today and all I can hear is Leesay screaming and laughing in the background. Leesay is 7 years old this year, I met him a year ago and when I first saw him I felt worried. He was a very tiny boy for his age, somewhat quiet, his belly was very puffy and his teeth were rotting. How could this be? I asked Gcinsizwe why Leesay appeared this way and he said that Leesay’s family has struggled for many years, they have very little food. Leesay has been my inspiration ever since, when I feel lazy or am having a difficult day I pick up his picture and smile at his tiny little face. He gives me the motivation to move forward. Leesay is like many other little boys here in Canada, his favourite activity is playing “leg horsey” and piggy back. Ha ha, oh the sore muscles I would get from bobbing this little boy around on my leg. I would get so tired but he would look up at me with his big eyes and urge me to keep going. Children make me laugh, they have so much energy, how they tire us out ha ha. I could hardly walk a foot without him pulling at my shirt to indicate that he wanted a piggy back. You would swear that he was riding a real horsey, he would laugh and laugh and laugh while I spun him around on my back. Sometimes I would spin so much that I feared I would fall over in dizziness! His little laugh was worth it, I could listen to him laugh for hours. Leesay is not the same little boy I knew last year, for almost a year now he has been receiving food from The Themba Development Project Food Delivery program. Today his puffy belly has been replaced with bounds of energy and laughter. No longer needing to worry about his hungry belly, he now runs around the community laughing with the other boys, his mind filed with nothing but little boy thoughts of playing in the mud and helping his father do big boy jobs around the house and garden.