Eka doroba ra mphesaphesa ra Giyani a
ku ri na swifanyetana swo pfumala
makaya. A swi amukela xin’wana na
xin’wana lexi siku ri swi
khomeleke swona.
Hi mixo wun’wana a va ri ku sungeni ka
mimete ya vona
endzhaku ka loko va etlerile epatwini
exirhamini. Ku ringeta ku tikufumeta
va tshiverile ndzilo hi nthyaka leri a ri ri
eka xo chela thyaka.
Exikarhi ka swifanyetana leswi a ku ri na
loyi a vitaniwa Matewu. A ku ri yena
lontsongo
eka vona.
In the busy city of Nairobi, far away from a caring life at home, lived a group of homeless boys. They welcomed each day just as it came.
On one morning, the boys were packing their mats after sleeping on cold pavements. To chase away the cold they lit a fire with rubbish.
Among the group of boys was Magozwe. He was the youngest.
Vatswari va Matewu va lovile a ri na
ntlhanu wa malembe. U yile a ya tshama
na malume wa yena. Wanuna loyi a nga ri
na mhaka na Matewu. A nga n’wi nyiki na
swakudya swo enela. A n’wi tirhisa
mitirho yo tika swinene.
When Magozwe’s parents died, he was only five years old. He went to live with his uncle. This man did not care about the child. He did not give Magozwe enough food. He made the boy do a lot of hard work.
Loko Matewu a ringeta ku gungula a
biwa. Loko a kombela ku ya exikolweni
na kona a biwa. Ivi malume wa yena a ku,
“U xiphukuphuku ngopfu wena u nge
pasi.”
Endzhaku ka malembe manharhu a karhi
a xanisiwa, Matewu a kunguhata ku
baleka ekaya. A sungula ku
tshama eswitarateni.
If Magozwe complained or questioned, his uncle beat him. When Magozwe asked if he could go to school, his uncle beat him and said, “You’re too stupid to learn anything.”
After three years of this treatment Magozwe ran away from his uncle. He started living on the street.
Vutomi bya le switarateni bya vava na
swona swifanyetana swo tala swa
kayakaya ku kuma swakudya. Mikarhi
yin’wana va khomiwa kumbe va biwa.
Loko va vabya ku lava munhu wova
pfuna.
Ntlawa lowu wa vafana a wu tihanyela hi
mali leyi va yi kumaka loko va famba va
kombela na loko va xavisa tipulasitiki.
Vutomi a byi tikisiwa ngopfu hi mitlawa
leyi a yi tshamela ku lwa leswaku va ta
lawula ndhawu yo
karhi.
Street life was difficult and most of the boys struggled daily just to get food. Sometimes they were arrested, sometimes they were beaten. When they were sick, there was no one to help.
The group depended on the little money they got from begging, and from selling plastics and other recycling.
Life was even more difficult because of fights with rival groups who wanted control of parts of the city.
Siku rin’wana Mahewu a ha lava
swakudya eka xichelathyaka a
vona buku ya xitory ya khale no thyaka. A
yi dzudza thyaka a yi chela esakeni ra
yena.
Masiku hinkwawo a humesa buku leyi a
languta swifaniso. A nga koti ku hlaya.
One day while Magozwe was looking through the dustbins, he found an old tattered storybook. He cleaned the dirt from it and put it in his sack.
Every day after that he would take out the book and look at the pictures. He did not know how to read the words.
Swifaniso swa xitori lexi a swi ri swa jaha
leri nga kula ri va muhahisi swa
swihahampfhuka.
Mahewu a hamba a lorha a karhi a
hahisa swihahampfhuka. Mikarhi
yin’wana a tivona ku ri yena jaha leri nga
eka xitori.
The pictures told the story of a boy who grew up to be a pilot.
Magozwe would daydream of being a pilot. Sometimes, he imagined that he was the boy in the story.
Siku rin’wana a ku titimela swinene loko
Mahewu a yimile etlhelo ka patu a karhi a
kombela. Wanuna un’wana a n’wi
tshinelela. “Kunjhani?
Hi mina Tomasi. Ndzi tirha kwala kusuhi
laha u nga kumaka swo miyeta nyoka.”
Ku vula wanuna.
U kombetile yindlu yin’wana ya
xitshopana ya lwangu ra bulu.
“Ndzi tshemba leswaku u nga ta ku kuma
swakudya.
Mahewu a languta wanuna, a languta
yindlu. “Kumbexana.” Ku vula Mahewu a
karhi a famba.
It was cold and Magozwe was standing on the road begging. A man walked up to him. “Hello, I’m Thomas. I work near here, at a place where you can get something to eat,” said the man.
He pointed to a yellow house with a blue roof. “I hope you will go there to get some food?” he asked.
Magozwe looked at the man, and then at the house. “Maybe,” he said, and walked away.
Eka tinhweti leti landzelaka, Mahewu a
tshamela ku vona Tomasi. Tomasi a
rhandza ku vulavula na vanhu exitarateni.
Tomasi a tlhela a yingisela na swirilo swa
vanhu. A nga heli mbili, a nga rhukani na
swona a hlonipha.
Van’wana va vafana va vo pfumala
matswari va sungule ku fambela endlwini
ya xitshopana na lwangu ra
bulu ku kuma swakudya nanhlikanhi.
Over the months that followed, the homeless boys got used to seeing Thomas around. He liked to talk to people, especially people living on the streets.
Thomas listened to the stories of people’s lives. He was serious and patient, never rude or disrespectful. Some of the boys started going to the yellow and blue house to get food at midday.
Mahewu a tshamile endleleni a karhi a
languta buku ya yena ya swifaniso loko
ku ta humelela Tomasi a fika a tshama
etlhelo ka yena.
“Xana buku leyi yi vulavula hi yini?” ku
vutisa Tomasi.
“Hi jaha leri nga va muhahisi wa
swihahampfhuka.” Ku hlamula
Mahewu.
“Vito raj aha ra kona i mani” Ku vutisa
Tomasi.
“A ndzi tivi, a ndzi swi koti ku hlaya.” Ku
vula Mahewu.
Magozwe was sitting on the pavement looking at his picture book when Thomas sat down next to him.
“What is the story about?” asked Thomas.
“It’s about a boy who becomes a pilot,” replied Magozwe.
“What’s the boy’s name?” asked Thomas.
“I don’t know, I can’t read,” said Magozwe quietly.
Loko va hlangana kambe, Mahewu u
sungurile ku hlamusela Tomasi xitori xa
yena. A ku ri xitori xa leswi nga n’wi
humelela loko a ha tshama na malume
wa yena.
Tomasi a nga vulavulanga ngopfu kambe
o yingisela. A nga vuli leswaku Mahewu u
fanele ku endla yini.
Mikarhi yin’wana a va ta vulavula va karhi
va tidyela endlwini ya lwangu ra bulu.
When they met, Magozwe began to tell his own story to Thomas. It was the story of his uncle and why he ran away.
Thomas didn’t talk a lot, and he didn’t tell Magozwe what to do, but he always listened carefully.
Sometimes they would talk while they ate at the house with the blue roof.
Loko siku ra ku velekiwa ra Mahewu hi
fika, Tomasi u n’wi nyikile buku ya
switori. A ku ri na xitori xa jaha ra le
switandini leri nga kula ri hetelela ri
duma hi ku tlanga
bolo.
Tomasi u hlayerile Mahewu xitori lexi ko
hlaya swinene ku kondza ku fika siku
rin’wana a ku:
“Ndzi vona wonge i nkarhi w ova u ya
exikolweni ku ya dyondza ku hlaya. U swi
vona njhani?”
Tomasi u vuye a hlamusela leswaku u
tiva tindhawu to hlaya laha vana va nga
tshamaka va tlhela va ya exikolweni.
Around Magozwe’s tenth birthday, Thomas gave him a new storybook. It was a story about a village boy who grew up to be a famous soccer player.
Thomas read that story to Magozwe many times, until one day he said, “I think it’s time you went to school and learned to read. What do you think?” Thomas explained that he knew of a place where children could stay, and go to school.
Mahewu u vuye a ehleketa hi mhaka leyi
y ova a ya exikolweni. Kambe a tlhela a
ehleketa leswaku malume wa yena a nga
va a nga hembi leswaku yena i
xiphukuphuku na swona a nge dyondzi
nchumu.
Loko vo n’wi ba kwale xikolweni ke? A
chava swinene. “Kumbe swi antswa ndzi
titshamela kwala switarateni.” Ku hleketa
Mahewu.
Magozwe thought about this new place, and about going to school. What if his uncle was right and he was too stupid to learn anything?
What if they beat him at this new place? He was afraid. “Maybe it is better to stay living on the street,” he thought.
U vuye a kombisa Tomasi leswi a
chavaka swon. Kambe Tomasi u ringetile
ku n’wi kombisa leswaku vutomi byi ta
antswa swinene a nga chavi na nchumu.
He shared his fears with Thomas. Over time the man reassured the boy that life could be better at the new place.
Mahewu u vuye a ya nghena eka yindlu
ya lwangu ra rihlaza. U
fikile a tshama na majaha mambirhi.
Eka yindlu leyi a ku tshama khume wa
vana, Hahani Sindi na nuna wa yena,
timbyana tinharhu, ximanga, na mbuti ya
khale swinene.
And so Magozwe moved into a room in a house with a green roof. He shared the room with two other boys.
Altogether there were ten children living at that house. Along with Auntie Cissy and her husband, three dogs, a cat, and an old goat.
Mahewu u vuye a sungula xikolo. A swi
tika swinene. A fanele ku dyondza swo
tala.
Mikarhi yin’wana a lava na ku tshika.
Kambe a ehleketa hi muhahisi wa
swihahampfhuka na mutlangi wa bolo
eka buku ya switori. Ku fana na vona, a
nga tshikangi.
Magozwe started school and it was difficult. He had a lot to catch up. Sometimes he wanted to give up.
But he thought about the pilot and the soccer player in the storybooks. Like them, he did not give up.
Mahewu a titshamerile jarayini eka yindlu
ya lwangu ra rihlaza a karhi a hlaya buku
ya switori ya le xikolweni. Tomasi u fikile
a tshama etlhelo ka yena.
“Xana xitori xi vulavula hi yini?” ku vutisa
Tomasi.
“I xa mufana loyi a nga va mudyondzisi.”
Ku hlamula Mahewu.
“I mani vito ra jaha leri?” Ku vutisa
Tomasi.
“Vito ra yena i Mahewu.” Ku hlamula
Mahewu a karhi a n’wayitela.
Magozwe was sitting in the yard at the house with the green roof, reading a storybook from school. Thomas came up and sat next to him.
“What is the story about?” asked Thomas.
“It’s about a boy who becomes a teacher,” replied Magozwe.
“What’s the boy’s name?” asked Thomas.
“His name is Magozwe,” said Magozwe with a smile.
