A village called Tambala

Today. my cleaner Veronica, kindly invited me back to her home a 20 minute cycle ride away in a village called Tambala. What I didn’t know is that the entire village is made up of her relatives, or her husband’s relatives to be exact. His uncle being the village Chief

Veronica, Samuel and their four daughters live in a house that Samuel built before he was married but whilst there I was visited by numerous cousins and aunts who all have neighbouring houses, all of them growing maize, cassava, groundnuts and pumpkins in what they call gardens. I would call them fields.

The highlight for me was meeting Samuel’s Mum who was described to me as a very old lady; she is blind and cannot walk and spends her days sitting on the khonde (veranda), praying, listening to her radio and receiving her many visitors. She had such a spirit about her and laughed very freely as we sat there holding hands in the customary way. Hannah told me that she doesn’t know how old she is but she remembers getting married in 1946 so her family guess she is around 90.

Sadly this lovely joyous woman went all serious when the photo was taken but believe me in the time I was with her she just didn’t stop smiling.