Sane madness

Maama Nalongo was pregnant. AGAIN. She hated that Taata Salongo would never be satisfied with any number of children until the day she would breathe her last. Even then, she was pretty sure he would get another wife, Taata Salongo came from a school of thought where the number of children a man had was a power tool. The more the better.
This would be baby number twelve, and heaven knows she would fast and pray hoping that she wouldn’t have twins.

It didn’t help that all the girls were only allowed to study primary school after which they were trained to become perfect wives so she would also pray that it wasn’t a girl.
Sham was getting married in two months; after which she would immediately begin proving her worth in the household by having one child after another like her mother and her mother’s mother. She shuddered at the thought of her having a child, she was still a child herself. However seventeen was considered mature in their world and there was nothing she could do. She wished there was something I could do.

Amidst all that, she was grateful that Taata Nalongo let her run her matooke business which was something most women didn’t have in her village. It was a welcome distraction from everything that was in her life, it brought her so much peace.
She would request Sham’s husband to let her have a business of her own, Sham loved making pots and jars. It made her happy and in their world, happiness was important.

Unfortunately Sham’s marriage was the least of her worries, Kato was using again. Taata Salongo had given him a serious beating after being called in for a disciplinary meeting because Kato had been caught stealing drugs from the pharmacy, for the third time. She worried about him, but their relationship hadn’t always been the best. He was too much like his father which honestly scared her so most times she stayed away.
Taata Salongo had not spoken to Kato in two weeks, which was a bit too much even for this type of crime. She hoped that it didn’t drive Kato deeper down the rabbit hole because he lived for his father’s approval.

Maama Nalongo looked at the clock, the younger children would be back from school very soon. She hummed one of her favorite songs as she prepared their lunch, her problems would have to wait especially because they weren’t going anywhere.

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