The Oath - "Your child is My Child"
Thula was 6 years old but already mother and sister to her 2 siblings, 3 year old twins, Paco and Ponine. Boys were hard work but she tried her best since their mother died of aids 6 months ago - their father worked the mines far away. That's all she knew. Adults had a way of telling children nothing. The village of Mbizana had many women and all pitched in to help raise the 3 children. Thula however was their big sister and mother. That's just how it was. The 3 were always hungry. Thula often wondered why mines didn't pay her father a wage because no money was ever sent home. Neither did her father return after her mother's death. They survived on the cabbage and carrots that Mr Abujan dropped off each Friday. The twins were malnourished and often cried in their sleep. The hut creaked and the holes were illuminated in the moonlight that hovered overhead. The African plains - the big 5 and safaris that brought giggles to children were a far cry from Thula'