I was born in 1972 through home delivery in Sakubva township in Mazhambe.My parents lived in Mazhambe then although this was my father's parents' house.Life in the 70s was not so fast and people lived as social community members.My parents then moved to 88 Maonde.This neighbourhood had blocks of two roomed attachments.Each block has (up to now) four such attachments of two roomed houses.This means that four families live on a block.The two rooms were meant to be a kitchen and a bedroom but lately people use them as kutchen ,bedroom and living areas.There was and still is very limited privacy as the neighbours can actually hear the goings-on in the next room.Among 4-5 blocks is a common bathroom with two separate toilets for men and women.In the toilets are four cubicles each for individual business.Back in the days the cubicles had doors and a working flash system that allowed each toilet business to be done and completed.Toilet paper consisted of old newspapers stuck up behind the cistern.No one really was in charge of putting these papers there but somehow someone always felt that they needed them there.And for sure we did.And if by any chance you would not fing the papers then the wall would do too.
Every morning you would wake up to the swish swash noise of a hard broom and some loud shouting and sometimes singing.City council or the local authorities provided a cleaner who would come early in the morning to clean the bathrooms and toilet.The same process would be repeated at sundown before knock off time which was usually 5pm.This kept the toilets clean somehow.Inside the toilets was a tap where you were expected to wash your hands after business.The toilets were also numbered.I remember ours was number 13.Pretty cool hey.
Back then every man went to work.Decent work where you get a salary at the end of the month.Somehow families survived and we all managed to go to school.What was most impressive is that community members used to take care of each other and even the saying,everyone's child is my child too,made alot of sense.I remembered each time we came from school.We always knew that we could go and eat from our neighbours Mbuya Assan,Mbuya Vito or Mai Mazaiwana.It seemed that they liked to feed us because even when you didn't go to their houses they would always come and check on you,whether you have food or whether you are ok generally.There was no talk of food poisoning then and we were safe.It was only in the 90s that we started to hear about rape,incest,food poisoning and streetkids.To be honest even the issue of child headed households started to make sense to me in the 90s.Those community members who were willing to take care of us had vanished.Boof into thin air.
During that time common prostitution was not rife.We had a handful of prostitutes and we knew them by name.Those who lived in Sakubva then know them.Oh yes those ones.I loved them though, with their tight trousers,sagging bellies due to too much illicit drinks,clownish makeup and hoarse voices.And to think of it our mothers never worried if our fathers were seen talking to these women.It was ok and we used to call them Sisi So and so.
Check this page for more momeries from Sakubva.This will be updated weekly.You too can send your memories and we can share.
Every morning you would wake up to the swish swash noise of a hard broom and some loud shouting and sometimes singing.City council or the local authorities provided a cleaner who would come early in the morning to clean the bathrooms and toilet.The same process would be repeated at sundown before knock off time which was usually 5pm.This kept the toilets clean somehow.Inside the toilets was a tap where you were expected to wash your hands after business.The toilets were also numbered.I remember ours was number 13.Pretty cool hey.
Back then every man went to work.Decent work where you get a salary at the end of the month.Somehow families survived and we all managed to go to school.What was most impressive is that community members used to take care of each other and even the saying,everyone's child is my child too,made alot of sense.I remembered each time we came from school.We always knew that we could go and eat from our neighbours Mbuya Assan,Mbuya Vito or Mai Mazaiwana.It seemed that they liked to feed us because even when you didn't go to their houses they would always come and check on you,whether you have food or whether you are ok generally.There was no talk of food poisoning then and we were safe.It was only in the 90s that we started to hear about rape,incest,food poisoning and streetkids.To be honest even the issue of child headed households started to make sense to me in the 90s.Those community members who were willing to take care of us had vanished.Boof into thin air.
During that time common prostitution was not rife.We had a handful of prostitutes and we knew them by name.Those who lived in Sakubva then know them.Oh yes those ones.I loved them though, with their tight trousers,sagging bellies due to too much illicit drinks,clownish makeup and hoarse voices.And to think of it our mothers never worried if our fathers were seen talking to these women.It was ok and we used to call them Sisi So and so.
Check this page for more momeries from Sakubva.This will be updated weekly.You too can send your memories and we can share.
