The Journey so far…

(In my free time, I have been writing a book of a collection of stories from my childhood – I thought I would share this excerpt with you…)

I was four years old when my family’s village homestead in Svosve, was destroyed by the white soldiers fighting against black African Freedom activists such as my parents. It must have been after 6pm on a 1979 day, the sun was quickly setting as if to run away from being a possible witness. My brothers were playing outside in the dimness of the African dusk and the rest of us were in the thatched kitchen putting supper together. All of a sudden, loud gun shots came from the thick woods. Then plenty more bullets rained on the kitchen, starting a fire on the thatched roof. The kitchen was no longer a good option to take refuge, so everyone scrambled to the now dangerous courtyard, crawling and seeking safety. The chickens were frustrated by the noise and began to scurry and half-fly all around. Everyone – almost everyone, managed to creep up behind the anthill on the edge of our residence, enduring the cuts and bruises from the pebbles on the yard. My mother noticed I was missing from the cluster and without a thought, sneaked under the shower of bullets to come and get me from where I hunched by the broken door of the burning kitchen. Shortly after, the roof fell with deafening intensity. I don’t even recall how I truly responded to the events that led to that night; my mother says I was very brave and filled with the courage of an old soul. The smolder held the night captive and it polluted everyone’s state of mind. My most vivid memory of the morning after was the earth covered in bullet shells. Brown and bronze in color…

My father knew that staying in this village was no longer safe, so once dawn broke, he made the tough decision to move the family. It took no time to pile up in Austin, our old van. As we drove down the dust road and over across the little thirsty stream, it was hot and stuffy in the van, but that journey to refuge was one of the most significant trips I have ever been on. I was leaving behind my first childhood memories. Behind me now, was my pool by the river, “kutu” – our faithful dog, the lovely scent of wild flowers, the courtyard that had been home to so many of our fun games. Behind, was the only place I knew as home, the place that had often given asylum to many freedom fighters passing through. Behind the van was old air and it could only be in everyone’s hope that the air ahead was fresh with the pursuit of liberation.

As I sat on that Lufthansa flight headed to the United States for college in May 1995, I thought about my childhood and how far I had come. From a village girl, to a US college student – I smiled a bit. At the turn of the century, I graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering from Drexel University. Last year, I graduated with a master’s degree in Software Engineering from Monmouth University. As this new decade turns, I look forward to beginning my PhD studies. I am immensely interested in sustainability education, particularly with the way it relates to my village community of Macheke in Zimbabwe. I’m compelled to further my education because I sense that we will always be chasing freedom, until we embrace the more natural and sustainable way of life.