3.UNPREDICTABLE LIFE.

As the contemporary young children; we would naturally find ourselves beholden to our parents and taught from time to time to respect and obey them; so much so that everything said or done of them was final; and therefore anything said or done of us beyond the common standards would be found worthy of discipline and a harsh punishment.

After all we were young and little children; therefore there was nothing we could have done to circumvent or contravene the rules of living set up by our superiors in the form of parents; instead, ours was just to obey; now that we had already been told that the way to a justified ancestral living starts with respect of parents.

They were our biological parents and us their children, much as it is still so by now!

The reality that we as little children had been born of them could have not changed in whatever way possible; neither can it be so by now; for even if it can mean having to live too far away from them or be more educated and highly Westernized than they are; the genetic and biological link; a natural reality; will always be there. That our blood is also their blood, therefore; even if we ourselves as their true biological and genetic children can realize the weaknesses of their past life by now; condemnations and infighting won't help to erase the biological and genetic truth that they are our parents. At least, our courage to practically and willingly demonstrate to them the negative consequences of their weaker past can help to awaken them to realize that they were wrong and should therefore turn their minds around for the better!!

No matter how difficult that reality might be; yet there is no any other way around it.

Naturally, there is a certain time in life when and where disagreements would arise, no matter how close-knit the concerned parties might be. That fateful day would eventually come for the emergence of a particular quarrel of any form and from any angle; whether as a domestic altercation involving all family members and children inside; a romantic affair affecting the concerned lovers, or just a simple but costly social scuffle between long time friends; or even an employment-related issue between lifelong boss and their employee. When it had come that day, no one could be able to turn the tide; unless through qualitative efforts of humility and the desire to make a reasonable compromise; and only by then can betterment come.

Now, on my part we used to have certain adolescent mentalities as a group of little boys who would trudge those dusty and somewhat strange-looking villages after school, just searching for new friendships while making arguments here and there. Sometimes we would argue about the most beautiful girl in our village or somewhere else; or about the most intelligent classmate, or even the most revered and powerful traditional healer whose property should not be messed up with or damaged, unless when in pursuit of danger and a curse.

 Well; that would have been another day of a limited free time after whose duration we as young contemporary children would find ourselves back on basic commitments like school assignments; house cleaning activities no matter what gender; or even making sure that all the livestock is driven completely and safely to its kraal as little boys. Not to forget talking of goats; cows; sheep and chickens also.

 It was just a matter of which family was owning what type of stock; and like us the people, those beasts formed an integral part of our daily living.

Beside the live property of cows and goats, there was another business of crop farming. Where it was a common practice for one family to own either a single or fleet of fields, on which to do their domestic farming way over the hills there. Or even on the sprawling expanses of land down the wild there. 

Nevertheless, money and some other forms of wealth still had a space and role to play in every existing contemporary human identity. And even though not that much, there was no need for one to worry. The live and static property could ensure the provision of all those necessities without having to tuck one's hand into their pocket for either a one cent coin or dollar. But then, hard work was required here to achieve that final satisfaction and successful benefit.

And as part of our leisure time as little buddies; we would even take a long walk during most weekends to mountains or fields over there; if not out playing soccer with friends or looking for sexy girls around.

Just to explore with miracles of nature while working for our manhood status of bravery and life skills beside academic duties we had to carry out during weekdays as scholars. And all these errands were undertaken without our parents' knowledge; for truly speaking, some of us could have been beaten and punished seriously if we were found doing something like that. Especially given the consistent parental warnings we had already received against similar practices and dangerous errands; we were actually getting silly and wild, even though at times that reminder would haunt some of us about warnings issued earlier before by our parents.

As part of our dangerous and mischievous exploration while in pursuit of manhood status and life experience, we would find ourselves climbing this wild fig tree here or wild peach tree over there. Sometimes even taking a dive or a dip in scary waters of deep rivers while competing among ourselves in relation to who can take a deeper dive than the other, or spend several minutes underwater without taking any breath. And in no time someone would have fallen down from a particular tree and then got hurt in the process, or even choked in the river if not bitten by an angry crab or a provoked hornet nearby. 

And then the final moment would eventually come; wherein to find ourselves supposed to bid our mischievous explorations goodbye and straightaway head home. There our parents would be waiting for our return; if ever late; to come and make a confession about our recent whereabouts while questioning our failure to carry out our daily tasks in the form of house cleaning among others. 

And then all hell would eventually break loose; and in no time someone would be howling and wailing bitterly as one parent wields their punishing tool of any kind against one particular offender; and then tomorrow one offender would be laughing at their counterpart about how hard they had been beaten up and punished yesterday, either with a clothing belt; wooden kitchen spoon or food mixer; or a hot clap; their mother's pencil-heel or even an animal-skin whip. 

I just cannot blame them completely by now; though here and there; now that I have already acquired understanding about why such a harsh and punishing discipline was necessary!!

Or is there any responsible; caring and loving parent who can just watch their beloved children playing with hazardous material of any kind under the weaker pretext and reasoning that the person is still a child? And as such should be left alone to learn on their own from their mistakes?

Or deliver their beloved child to the hands of the enemy disguised as a true neighbor by day, only to turn into a ravaging and merciless predator by night? 

 Only if some of us as little children had been born with that fully matured mind we could have not defied our conscience; in the form of fear; by diving into those dangerous and provocative adventures; but then we were young; inexperienced and less informed. 

That is why life seemed like a simple reality where we can just get away with anything at any given time. We expected goodness to be with us always, no matter what we may be doing or where we may be found, and who we may be interacting with. In those times, every adult was seen as a true and loving good character in our eyes as little children, unless having been warned against that particular individual by one's parents.

And there we were as children of those times; poor of any democratic right except for our compulsory submission to our parents. 

It is life and we are living it.

My grandmother who has since passed away; my father's mother so to speak; was the source of traditional and cultural knowledge to me and my own siblings; she died being ancient even though no one knew how old given the fact that she grew in times when western education had not yet gained momentum in their traditional African region; let alone those cultural initiation schools.

 And as we sat by fire side, she would then take us back to her old days through her narrations; when she and her peers were still young and how they came into contact with a white man for the very first time in their lives, or how was the mood and experience afterward. This is the person who taught us how to sow; work the plantations or even milk the goats and take care of their kids; she really was a mistress in all such lessons even though she could not read nor write; let alone know names of famous white men like Paul Kruger and Schoeman among others. 

She was our traditional and cultural teacher!!

My second grandmother; who is still alive; my mother's mother, honestly; was on the other hand a double-sided person in terms of life experiences. 

Here we found a person with both African cultural knowledge and a taste of western education. She could read; write and speak either Afrikaans or English languages; she'd been there herself, and hence her consistent insistence that we had to go to school liking it or not; she was a source of pressure when it comes to education and always made sure our school requirements were up-to-date; no wonder then we grew up taking all these things serious as young children; African and western culture all in one place.

That is how this unpredictable life goes after all; or what can we do??

WELCOME!!