Ḓoroboni ya Nairobi,kule na hayani kha vhutshilo ho thogomeliwa, ho vha vha hu tshi dzula vhaṱhannga vha sina mahaya vho vha tshi tanganedza duvha linwe na linwe samusi li tshi ḓa. Duvha linwe nga matsheloni vhatukana vho vha tshi khou vhekanya dzithovho dzavho musi vha tshi vuwa vhusikuni hu no rothola maguvhani.U tuwisa phepha vho vha tshi funga mulilo nga mashika. Kha vhatukana a vha ho vha ho vha hu na Magozwe. O vha e mutukusa kha vhothe.
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.
Musi vhabebi vha magozwe vha tshi lovha, o vha a na minwaha mitanu. O ya a dzula na malume wawe. A vha munna vho vha vha sina ndavha na nwana, vho vha vha sa fhi Magozwe zwiliwa zwo linganaho.Vho ita uri Magozwe a ite mishumo minzhi I no vhavha.
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.
Arali Magozwe a ṅuṅuna kana a vhudzisa, malume wawe vha do mu rwa. Musi Magozwea a tshi vhudzisa uri a nga ya tshikoloni, malume wawe vho mu rwa vha ri,” U tshi ḓaela nga maanda u guda zwinwe zwithu.” Nga murahu ha minwaha miraru ya u tambudziwa Magozwe a shavha kha malume. A thoma u dzula tshiṱaraṱani.
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.
Vhutshilo ha tshitaratani ho vha hu tshi vhavha na vhathannga vhanzhi vho vha tshi tambula u wana zwiliwa, tshinwe tshifhinga vho vha tshi fariwa, tshinwe tshifhinga vha tshi rwiwa. Musi vha tshi lwala, ho vha hu sina thuso.
Vhothe vho vha vha tshi thembela kha tshelede thukhu ine vha i wana kha u humbela, na u rengisa mapulasitiki, zwishumiswa futhi. Vhutshilo vho vha vhu tshi kondesa nga uri nndwa na vhanwe vhane vha toḓa u vhusa tshipida tsha dorobo dzo vha dzi hone.
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.
Linwe duvha Magozwe o vha a tshi khou pala kha tshifaramashika, a wana bugu yo thathekanaho ya nganea ya kale. A i kunakisa nga u bvisa mashika khayo a i dzhenisa kha saga ḽawe.
Duvha linwe na linwe a tshi fhedza u dzhia bugu a sedza zwifanyiso. O vha a sa koni u vhala maipfi.
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.
Zwifanyiso zwo amba nganea ya muthannga o hulaho a vha mufhufhuisa mabufho.
Magozwe o vha na dzangalelo la u fhufhisa mabufho. Tshinwe tshifhinga, o di humbula sa muthanga ane a vha kha nganea.
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.
Ho vha hu tshi khou rothala Magozwe o vha o ima tshitaratani a tshi khou humbela. Munna o ya khae. “Ndaa, ndi nne Thomas. Ndi shuma tsini na fhano, fhethu hune wanga wana zwiliwa, ha amba munna.
Vha sumba nndu ya ṱaḓa i re na thanga ya lutombo, “Ndi a kholwa u do ya fhala u wana zwiliwa?” a vhudzisa .Magozwe a sedza munna, na nndu.” Thamusi,” a ralo, a mbo di tuwa.
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.
Murahu ha minwedzi i tevhelaho vhathannga vha sina haya vha dowela u vhona Thomas. O vha a tshi funa u amba na vhathu zwihulu vhathu vha no dzula zwitaratani. Thomas o vha a tshi thetshelesa nganea dza matshilo a vhathu. O vha o ḓiimisela na u kondelela a sa semani kana u sa thonifha. Vhanwe vhathannga vha thoma u ya kha nndu ya ṱada na lutombo u ri vha wane zwiliwa zwa tshiswiṱulo.
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.
Magozwe o vha o dzula kha guvha a tshi khou sedza bugu yawe ya zwifhanyiso musi Thomas a tshi dzula tsini nae.
“Nganea i amba nga mini?” ha vhudzisa Thomas.
“Ndi nga ha muthannga we a vha mufhifhisi wa bufho,” ha fhindula Magozwe.
“Dzina la muthannga ndi nnyi?” hu vhudzisa Thomas.
“A thi dvhi, a thi koni u vhala,” ha amba Magozwe a tshi ambela fhasi.
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.
Musi vha tshi tangana, Magozwe a thoma u amba nga nganea yawe kha Thomas. Yo vha mafhungo a malume wawe na uri mulandu wawe o shavha.
Thomas ha ngo amba nga maanda, fhedzi a si vhudze Magozwe uri a ite mini, a dzula a tshi khou thetshelesa zwavhudi. Tshinwe tshifhinga vha ḓo amba vha tshi khou ḽa nḓunai ine ya vha na thanga ya lutombo.
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.
Tshifhinga tshe Magozwe a vha ena minwaha ya fumi. Thomas o mufha bugu ntswa ya nganae. Yo vha i tshi khou amba nga muthannga wa mahayani wea hula a vha mutambi wa bola.
Thomas a vhalela Magozwe nganae yeneyo lunzhi lunzhi u swika linwe duvha a tshi ri, “Ndi vhona u nga ndi tshifhinga uri u ye tshikoloni u gude u vhala. U zwi vhona hani?
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.
Magozwe a humbula nga fhethu huswa na uya tshikoloni. Thamusi malume wawe vho vha vha tshi khou amba ngoho ha ngo talifha uri a kone u guda tshithu? Thamusi vha murwa kha bulege iyo ntswa? o vha a tshi khou ofha.“Khamusi ndi khwine u dzula zwitaratani,” a humbula.
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 vhudza Thomas nga zwine a zwi ofha. Tshifhinga tshothe munna, o mu khuthadza uri vhutshilo vhu nga vha khwine kha bulege ntswa.
He shared his fears with Thomas. Over time the man reassured the boy that life could be better at the new place.
Zwino Magozwe a swielelwa kha lunwe lufhera nḓuni ine ya vha na thanga ya ṱaḓa.O shumisa lufhera na vhanwe vhathannga vhavhili. Vhothe vho fhelela vho vha vha vhathannga vha fumi vha tshi dzula kha nduni yeneyo.Vhothe na Mmane Cissy na munna wawe, mmbwa tharu, tshimange na mbudzi ya kale.
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.
Magozwe a thoma tshikolo zwi tshi konḓa.
O fanela u shuma, zwihulwane u lingana na vhanwe. Tshinwe tshifhinga a tshi toda u litsha. Fhedzi a humbula nga mufhufhisi na mutambi wa bola kha bugu ya nganea. U fana navho a si fhele mbilu.
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.
Magozwe o vha o dzula mutani nḓuni ire na thanga dala, a tshi khou vhala bugu i no bva tshikoloni. Thomas a da a dzula tsini nae.
“NganaeiI amba nga ha mini?” a vhudzisa Thomas.
“I amba nga muthannga we a vha mudededzi.” a fhindula Magozwe.
“Dzina la muthannga ndi nnyi?” ha vhudzisa Thomas.
“Dzina lawe ndi Magozwe,” ha amba Magozwe a tshi khou nwenwela.
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.
