"24 hours"

9.21.09

Allow me to explain the worst day I have encountered in Swaziland. You may doubt it, question it, think it to be untrue. But I promise you. It is. And it all took place within- 24 hours. (This does not represent an actual Peace Corps Volunteer's experience)

It began with my introduction to the headmaster of a school. I explaining what it is I want to do in his schools while he looks me up and down with what I am sure is a huge erection. "And so this is why I want to start a school newspaper here." He interrupts my BIG ideas and BIG plans. "So you are looking for someone to teach you Siswati huh?" He asks. "Ahh... yes." I say- confused. "I can teach you on the pillow." He grins. His secretary looking down, blushing. He continues, "You know the problem with learning Siswati is that the ears are too close to the mouth. Do you understand me?" I continue on. "OK. So the school paper- a great way for the students to communicate with each other. Informing them of events and clubs. Helping them with their English. Keeping them positvely active you know?" He continues to look me up and down. What a fucking schmuck (I dont know how to spell schmuck- you get the idea).

As I'm walking home, I run into my bhuti- *Themba. Themba, who's known for being a ladies man- tells me he's found the love of his life. She's 25, like him, and has a child of her own. "Themba." I ask. "Have you been tested?" He pauses for a moment. He stops to explain. "You know Simphiwe. Girls over there, they know me. Girls here. They know me. Over there. They know me.. even way over there.. they know me. And I don't like to use condoms." "OK." I say. He continues, "So I just assume I am positive. But now things are different. I'm a one woman man. I love her. I want to marry her." "Themba, you NEED to know your status before having unprotected sex with her. She's a mother." "It's too late. I've already slept with her maybe 6 times without a condom." I explain that the virus is a stupid virus. It does not always transmit. It has to be just the right environment. I tell him the sooner he gets tested the longer he will live if he is positive. But what I didn't explain was my anger. You just killed an innocent mother of a 4 year old girl- you selfish prick. But life is not black and white- especially here. Hearing this story, in America- i'd hate this person. But, I don't. I sympathize. I'm starting to see AIDS their way.

I arrive at the carp shop. *Mctosa is talking with friends. Bhule goes home while *Mctosa and I continue to walk and talk. I want to talk about him getting tested tomorrow. Something that needs to be discussed in private. We walk down a narrow path and sit under a tree. In the distance I hear Alexander's voice getting closer and closer. I tell *Mctosa he is following us. Like every time I complain, he raises his hand and says, "Nevermind..." Alexander now standing over us, with a friend, starts shouting at *Mctosa in Siswati. *Mctosa laughs. Alexander looks at me, and asks, "What are you talking with him?!" I ask him to leave. He continues to shout at Mctosa. I get up to leave. Mctosa follows me, Alex follows him, friend follows Alex. I stop as Alexander continues to shout at Mctosa while Mctosa just laughs, looks down and smiles. Alexander's friend grabs my arm and says, "Sibali (his nickname for me- I am family to the mother of his child therefore making him my sibali... its confusing.. just go with it), they are going to fight over you." Mctosa looks up at me and asks, "Do you know what he is saying about you? He says because he was the first to propose love to you- you are his. No one else can have you. Not even as friends, as I have explained to him that we are." "This is absurd." I say, throwing my hands up in the air. How did it come to this? I go to leave. I look at Alexander, he pulls his sleeve down, covering a shiny object in his right hand. "Mctosa, he has something in his hand." I say. "Nevermind." He says as he turns me around to walk away. Alexander behind him. Mctosa's back turned to him to escort me away, I'm afraid Alexander will stab him in the back. I turn back around. Mctosa stares hard at Alex as Alex continues to swear in Siswati at him. Bomake (mothers) are now starring. This is not good.

Mctosa lifts his shirt up exposing his rippling chest full of scars. He is egging Alex on. Mctosa stands, shirt up, smiling, motioning for him to "come on". Alex- a child- with fury in his eyes. A stupid adolescent with a stupid crush. I put my hands on Mctosa's shoulders and whisper, "Leave us." "What?" He asks. "Hamba. Go. He wants to hurt you. Not me. Leave us." Mctosa pulls his shirt down, turns to leave. But watches from afar.

I lean in and calmly speak to Alexander. " Alexander. You have crossed the line. You have taken advantage of my niceness. I am going home now. I am speaking with Mkhulu and then probably Peace Corps. If you approach me or Mctosa ever again- it is them you will have to answer to. Is this clear?" "Simphiwe! Please! NO!" He pleads. I go to leave. Alexander turns to Mctosa then me and shouts, "Your posioned blood will run together!" (Im sure he is referring to Mctosa's supposed HIV status).

I arrive home. I get a call from Babe Shongwe. He and the bucopho want to meet me at the umphagatsi. Mctosa finds me along the way. We walk in silence most of the way. "Mctosa where did you get all those scars?" "If love be rough with you, you be rough with love."He says. "You know Romeo and Juliet?" " I know Mercutio, even in death- he was laughing." "Is this how you will die?" "No. I plan on just fading away. No one will see me die. This is where my journey ends. I leave you here." Mctosa leaves me at the entrance to the umphagatsi.

For thirty minutes, Babe Shongwe has the audacity to complain to me how I have not been in Nkiliji enough. Nkiliji is hearing about my presence at Kukucayenne schools and clinics- but not Nkiliji. I explain to Babe. " My family my home is in Kukucayenne. They have introduced me to the appropriate people. They have informed me of events in this area. You have yet to give me a counterpart. You don't inform me of anything. You tell me this morning you were at the new OVC garden for the children. I should have been there Babe. I should have been called. How am I to know what is going on in Nkiliji when you do not tell me?" The bucopho agrees with me. I follow the two men under a tree and to talk with the chief. As im seated below his highness, hands up in humility- drunken crazy man I've been dealing with for the past month wanders into the umphagatsi. He stumbles over. He takes a seat next to me and starts grabbing my arms and chest shouting obscenities. IN FRONT OF THE CHIEF.

Immediatly, Babe and another man pull him off of me and start wacking him with their wacking sticks. They drag him away as he's reaching out for me yelling at me to come visit his home. The chief shakes his head in disbelief. He asks me if I want bodyguards. I turn him down. It's important the youth feel comfortable to approach me anytime. I do emphasize that this man needs to be taken care of though. There has been no consequence for his actions yet. I also explain Alexander. That his obsession is a big reason I have not gone to Nkiliji schools yet. I'm uncertain how things will turn out, me going to his school without a counterpart. He tells me Babe Shongwe will take care of this. I'm quickly loosing faith in Babe Shongwe.

The chief gets up to leave. Babe slaps me on the back and says, "Sisi, you are getting big! Big mamma!" "NOT TODAY BABE! It's called muscle. The only protection I have these days." I endure a couple more routine greetings, go gos touching my hair, groping my breasts, asking for money and water. NOW NOW NOW NOW. What will YOU do FOR US?!

Chief drops me off at my homestead. I am home. I find my family is gone to the mountains to collect firewood and water. Our tap has been dry for days. So we must go to the water. If Mohammad won't go to the mountains, the mountains won't come to Mohammad. I find Bongiwe and Gigi sitting alone on the tire that is placed in the middle of our homestead. I tell Bongiwe my days events. We have a laugh. Mkhulu has slaughtered a cow so tonight the men will come over to sit and eat the head together- making them "smarter".

Then, in the distance, I hear his drunk grumblings. Bongiwe and I shoot up, Gigi looks around confused. Drunk man comes stumbling towards us from behind our property with a friend of his. Bongiwe yells at him to go. "Hamba! Hamba!" His friend retreats to where the cow head is- out of sight from us. Drunk man comes closer, reaching out to me asking me to be his, to come home with him. Bongiwe steps in front of me. They start yelling at each other in Siswati. Drunk man then pulls down his pants and under garments. Bongiwe and I turn around. I whistle for the dogs. I've been practicing Mkhulu's whistles when he wants the dogs to get a cow off his lawn. I want this cow off my lawn. The dogs circle around me as I whistle. They bark and lunge at the drunken man. He's too drunk to care though. "I'm not scared of your fucking dogs!" He laughs. "Fusake!" I shout. Siswati for Fuck Off! I know how to say fuck off in many ways now. He gets in Bongiwe's face, he starts pressing his fingers against her chest. He threatens to get a gun and shoot us both. I run inside the kitchen and grab the biggest knife I can find. I come out, dogs following close behind. I step in between him and Bongiwe arguing. Knife in hand, I tilt it into the light so it shines in his eyes. "Hamba." I calmly say. He laughs. I'm completely aware, as a woman, I should never introduce a knife into a quarrel with a man- due to who has the most strength. But this one is too drunk to do anything. Bongiwe pushes past me. She pushes him to the ground. As he sits there- shocked- she grabs a large branch and begins beating him.

During this whole encounter- two men have walked past- and done nothing. Gigi continues to laugh on her tire. I have called Babe Shongwe, "community police" who told me to call the bucopho because he does not have a car anymore. I call Mkhulu- no network. Finally, old man decides he's had enough. He leaves. After 30 minutes of indecent exposure, beatings, and shoutings of obscenities in two different languages- I fall to the ground as soon as he is out of sight. I barry my head- and began to laugh. "Simphiwe! Why are you laughing?!" Bongiwe exclaims between her long frustrated breaths. "My day Bongiwe. Two years of THIS....." I continue to laugh. "Simphiwe noooooooooo. It'll get better. I promise you. You have me."
"And you. Bongiwe." I continue. "Shayaed (beat) a man for me. I love you girl." I laugh and then reinact her beating this man with a large branch. We laugh together.

Now. I am completely aware I have four parents at home reading this. Which means four times the worry. So allow me to continue.

I realized, at the community level, this whole day's events has just been entertainment for others. So i decide to call Peace Corps. When I explain to the head of Safety and Security of Peace Corps Swaziland- Mfanafuthi- the day's events he says, "I'll be right there." "Are you sure?" I ask. "I mean. Is this just part of integration?" "No Meredith. This is completely abnormal."

Peace Corps arrives in big shiny air conditioned SUV to my little worn out village. Heads are turning. Mfanafuthi takes my statement and calls the Manzini police. Manzini police take drunken man to jail. As for Alexander, I wait in the air conditioned car (ahhhhh) while Mfanafhuti talks to Alexander's parents and then calls Alexander over. Alex continues to look hard at the ground, then up at me. He says nothing- only listens. Mfanafuthi gets back in the car and says, "He won't be a problem anymore." "What did you say to him?" I ask. "I told him, it only takes one phone call to put him behind bars. This is the first and final warning. Exams are just around the corner for him and I do not want to put a student in jail. I told him next time, it won't be me he's speaking to." "Mfanafuthi, I can see why you are the head of Safety and Security here." We laugh.

Peace Corps pulls away. Leaving me at home with my family. I haven't thought of Peace Corps in quite a while. I once had ideas, plans, dreams, for this tiny village- my home.