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African leaders update

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I have compiled the names of the leaders that people picked and picked ten to celebrate. As this is meant to be a celebration, I will focus on the good of the leaders I’ve picked and not the bad. The names that have made the cut are:

1.Angus Buchan because when I saw the name, I felt moved to write about him. He is truely a man full of faith in God and His ability to change Africa.

2. Harry Mwanga Nkumbula, I remember learning about him in school but dont remember anything about him. Time to go back and see what this man did for me to enjoy what I do now.

3. Kenneth Kaunda, a controversial figure, seen as a dictator by some, visionary by others. I think he could have been both but will focus on the later. Fact is, its hard to think of Zambia without thinking of the man.

4. Samora Machel, a late president of Mozambique, I know little about him and I’m looking forward to the history lesson. Part of what drew me to him was his wife being Mandela’s widow.

5. Mohammed OA Aziz: I was going to research him before deciding if he made the cut but decided to just do it. Don’t know why but maybe my friend Elizabeth’s high view of him was what made me decide.

6. Abdelaziz Bouteflika is sort of a controversial man, based on the research I did but lets see what I can come up with.

7. Joyce Banda,I know nothing about, except that she is president of Malawi. We will see what we find.

8. Julia Chikamoneka, I know nothing about her either but we really did need some women gracing this list so will have to get to work…

9. Kofi Annan, we all know about his involvement with the UN, an organisation that I don’t really care for but I think he is a leader deserving of respect.

10. Steve Biko, last but not least! He is a man I admire greatly. He was not as perfect as the movie portrays but perfect enough to inspire and convince me of our ability to transform our continent.

I know people love tata Nelson Mandela but I think that it is also important to celebrate other lives that have contributed to the landscape of Africa. At this rate I dont know what gems I would be able to find that others have not yet found about his life and I guess part of why I have chosen these people is I am looking to learn and show people across the globe that tata Mandela was not the only positive influence on Africa.

There are others like the late Simon Mwansa Kapwepwe that I would love to write about but didnt want to let my bias toward Zambia get the better of me. I wish there had been more women on the list but also believe that young girls can still look at inspirational men and say “I can change something or someone’s life!

my brother got married!

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My elder brother got married this weekend. It was a tiring weekend and I have found myself nursing a massive headache since yesterday, to the extent that I ended up having to stay home from work; and no, I’m not nursing a hangover. The closest to alcohol I came was accidentally spilling beer on myself while passing it to a friend and a sip of champagne during the toast. Anyway, the headache was well worth the day. My brother is married! To a beautiful woman I am happy to call my sis 🙂

This relationship is just inspirational. The coming together of two people who have overcome obstacles and have kept their focus on God and helped others see His goodness, not being swayed here and there but standing firm on what they believe.

They have carried themselves in an honorable manner, not taking shortcuts and I for one feel challenged to live my life better and focus on the one who matters most. The rest God will provide in his own time. 

The other thing I have learnt is to sometimes let things slide. This whole time I have been caught losing my cool, but on Saturday, none of it mattered. None of it matters today. My brother is the same God fearing, fun loving man he was and his wife, the same peace loving, joy filled, laid back woman.

I have to admit that I found myself feeling scared of the change but now it feels okay; change is a good thing…sometimes and this is one of those times; holding on to the past would make for a very miserble sister.

Weddings are stressful but on the day, it’s a celebration of the two people who love each other enough to spend the rest of their lives together. The coming together of two families, whose job now is to support and help build something beautiful and not to tear down. We have seen many who have missed out on being supporting beams and have rather chosen to be what destroys marriages and pray that God gives me enough wisdom to choose to support. I  pray that the couple will see many happy years and that God will give us all the grace to bless them and not tear down. I can’t wait to see the great things that are yet to unfold in this new union, to the glory of God!


Yesterday, my great-grandmother was put to rest. This is a tribute to her, maybe in a sense my way of saying bye to a woman who gave her life to the cause of the family. Ba Mayo lived life simply and was a strong woman who was quick to embrace her sisters children as her own(they were) aways rushing where she was needed. She embraced her grandchildren and great-grandchildren as well as her great great grandchild – my Natasha with so much love it was as if she were saturated in it. All her children, except one, who was deaf, were educated, in a time when some did not see the need to educate daughters. She ensured her sons could clean and cook and take care of themselves too.

She was wise beyond words, teaching us to stay united and Always take care of each other. She was a very active woman and very hardworking, rarely ever sitting around doing nothing.  Her and my great-grandfather had a farm with fruit growing that they planted themselves and I remember her coming home and always bringing goodies for us, ifishikulu.

Whenever you visited her, you never left empty handed,regardless of how little or how much she had and, she always made sure you ate. She had no time for nonsense but laughed easily and no matter how busy life got, she always made time for family.

I’ve heard that the people in my family have always lived long and maybe its due to the food they ate and the level of activity in their lives. 12 years ago my great-grandmother could still farm and could still walk 4 kms in under an hour amoung other things.

Ba Mayo always taught us our norms without ever using the words “this is our culture” or “these are our norms”. She taught by just being. You also never wondered what she was thinking, she was always frank and to the point.

Yes, we have lost a treasure but she is at rest and we still have the 4 members of her generation to enjoy life with. I pray for the unity she fought so hard to instil to grow. That is my greatest hope, till God calls us too.

On By blessingsonahillIn All postsLeave a comment
On By blessingsonahillIn All postsLeave a comment

I havent posted in a while and feel like I am wasting valuable space here on wordpress. Im back though after a long time of being unable to write poems or stories or any real thoughts. Ive been feeling like a dry well. I have a theme I want to try. I ask that anyone who reads this will give me a name of an African leader they admire and I will write articles on ten oof those nominated over ten weeks from the 12th of April. I understand that history favors the one who writes it and will try to give a balanced view of whoever these people might be. I plan on doing this again so if there are too many names, I will simply use them later on. If however, there arent enough names, I will let it ran it’s course. In the unfortunate event that no names are submitted,I will just ran with it. I am giving a two week limit on the nominations and hope people will join the journey that I hope will be a celebration of Africa’s leaders. So just post your names in the comments section or go to the blessings on a hill facebook page and post there. You have until the 14th of March which is just a little over two weeks

Celebration of tears: a poem

On By blessingsonahillIn All posts, PoetryLeave a comment

We were running among the trees before they first came
Swimming in the water before their first fleet,
Dancing in red soils with heat beating down on our backs before they first came

Tied a noose around our necks, they did
Stole from us, poisoned, they did
Then they decided we were not human

We were hunting game among the bushlands before they came
Swimming, on foot, the wind at out feet
Dancing on the waves, drums beating like heart rhythms, thought us insane

Killed us for greed, they did
Took our children from us, they did
Fed us hate, preaching a God of love

Now we hold on to yesterday’s pain, we are lame
Broken by the ills of another man’s heart
The wounds fester, we are crippled, unable to succeed in their world

Raped our women, they did
Took even burial grounds, they did
Broke our backs and hearts, they did

Now they expect that I rejoice
On the day of their fleets landing, unaware
Of the strings of bitterness, they just don’t care, why should I?

Finally admitted us human, they did
Admitting their wrongs, they did
Said sorry and tried to make amends, they have

But is it really amends if they refuse to acknowledge our lands
Still celebrate that which breaks our hearts?
Can unity exist where wounds still exist, razors cutting?

Maybe in me choosing to forgive, healing can start
For me, my children, the next generation,
Telling them the stories of our past like old.

Teach them forgiveness, I will
Teach them to never be oppressors, I have
Taught them the power of hope.

 

Pictures of You

On By blessingsonahillIn All posts, PoetryLeave a comment

With you I am a poet, author, artist,
Regardless of who sees what I pen out or
Sketch to paper or who hears what I whisper to the wind…
Without you, I’m a writer with writer’s block.

Words lose their magic, my love for poetry dies,
My imagination fades, I cease to
Enjoy turning pages to enjoy others’ art.
I am unable to create pieces of art that

Leave me inspired, wondering how
That happened, where the words came from or
Where pictures came from or where the simplest of flowers took its form.
Unable to enjoy the company of your creation,

I die and wither like a beautiful rose
Deserted in a desert of my choosing. Unless
I can enjoy the rays of your Son
And draw or paint pictures of you, I am no artist

Written 11/01/2014- 12/01/2014 (about midnight)

Happy new year

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Happy new year people! I wonder how many of us celebrate he new year for a reason. I personally love new years because it’s a time to reflect on the previous year and see what you achieved and didn’t achieve and more than that, it’s a new start. I don’t personally set new years resolutions but do set goals…somewhat, and new year is one of those times when you can “initiate clean slate protocol” and start afresh, “forgetting what is behind and looking to what is ahead”.

2013 saw the shattering of dreams and confidence for me, when I got a job that only lasted six weeks and then a series of rejection letters that have left me feeling unemployable, and a friendship that has been left irreparably damaged. But more than that 2013 has been a time of great blessing where I have had my confidence rebuilt as I improved my abilities as a cytologist despite having been told cytology was not for me. I got to be a bridesmaid for the first time, got to take part in two programs that have greatly improved my skills in spoken word. My brother started dating the future Mrs Phiri and we can all look forward to two lovely families coming together. God provided for me to go home and spend time with my family and friends and attend a beautiful wedding and see a grown man cry because he loves the woman he was marrying that much. God gave me the opportunity to see the beauty of being a vision carrier and what happens when we miss what those before us dreamt of achieving and to see how I have failed in many ways, to carry my parent’s dreams and visions.

I’ve seen God move in my life and that of my family and even though lately I don’t feel Him close, I know that He is still moving. Just yesterday what started as a movie simple movie marathon turned into a crying session as I watched Front of the class, then Gifted hands and finally Unconditional. I found myself feeling like I am wasting my life and feeling thirsty for change again. I hope that 2014 will be the year of many opportunities for all of us to start putting people before wealth, before the bottom line and before ourselves. That we will work to lift others up even if it just means buying a homeless person a bottle of water. Friendship doesn’t require that you know a person, sometimes it requires just a little kindness.

Christmas

On By blessingsonahillIn All posts, Family lifeLeave a comment

The best thing about Christmas is probably time spent with family and friends and this year as we do every year, we had at least 30 people in the house. It was a great day and the days that led up to Christmas, my young sis, my daughter and I decided to bake what would be our Christmas present to everyone who was coming. It was a lot of work but a lot of fun too. Then there was Christmas services at Church…all I can say is I haven’t enjoyed  praise like that is a while. Other than Christmas, it happens to be my 2 cousins’, my uncle’s and mum’s birthdays in the few days before Christmas so we were also celebrating birthdays. Safe to say by the time Christmas night came and people had gone home, our whole household was really really tired!

This Christmas proved very special for us…my 0lder brother proposed to his lovely girlfriend and we are all now looking forward to a wedding soon. it’s funny to think of my brother as a romantic but he is and he couldn’t have picked a better woman! This was the best Christmas present and a great end to the year. God has been really good to us and I am grateful for the endless blessings. As this year comes to an end, a lot has been lost but we have been given so much more than we could have dreamt of. There’s nothing worth more than family and I pray that we all learn to appreciate them more and set aside selfish desires for the good of all those around us.

Zambian breakfast…porridge

On By blessingsonahillIn All posts, The best of AfricaLeave a comment

This is a recipe for a porridge that I used to love eating as a Child. Still do 🙂

You can edit it to suit your tastes. I know there are people who add egg or soya but my family doesn’t. This recipe contains pounded groundnuts, aka peanuts; so for those with peanut allergies, you can remove the groundnuts. I guess the general idea is that you can tweak the recipe to suit you.

You will need*:
3 tablespoons of mealie meal (maize flour)
2 tablespoons of groundnut powder
cold water
a cup of boiling water
salt
sugar
milk
a bit of butter (or not)

Method:
1. Add the mealie meal to a pot and add the cold water (enough to make a light paste) and mix until all the mealie meal is mixed in then add the boiling water. switch stove on and stir until thick.

2. Cover with a lid and allow to cook for about 3-5 minutes, splutter can burn so make sure pot is covered

3. add groundnuts, milk (if too thick, the milk will make it lighter) and salt (about four pinches) to taste and mix it all in. Too much salt will leave it tasting like ORS. Cover again and allow to cook for about 5 minutes or until groundnuts are cooked (you can taste the difference).

4. If salt is needed add a bit more, then add sugar and turn off the burner. Add a bit of butter if you like and mix. You can use honey or any other sweeteners you prefer. Serves 3

*all measurements are estimations

Birthdays

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There’s nothing that makes me feel older than other peoples birthdays…My younger siblings more than anyone else. Though one that shocks me a lot is my daughter’s. There are four birthdays from the 23rd to the 30th of November. The 23rd happens to be my big mum’s birthday. She is a precious woman in whose house I spent many of my childhood days. Growing up, I always new she was my mum’s sister and was probably in my teens before I fully understood that she was actually my mother’s best friend. Seems dumb I know but I think it explains the kind of relationship that we have with their family. There were times when my parents couldn’t pick us up till late and we spent the night. We spent holidays there, shared in birthdays and hand me downs went between the two houses. I miss sitting pa mpasa after school and talking with her and gleaning from a life lived well. She has been a source of wisdom and when I had a child out of wedlock, she loved me all the more; she defended me. She reminded me I was worth so much and that I could achieve anything.

She loved my child before she was born and the day I went into hospital, all mum had to do was call her and her and her eldest daughter (my sister) were there when we got to the clinic, and she stayed until they had no choice but to go home; same time mum left, and she was back the day after and the day after that. She was there when I was struggling with intense feelings of sadness, when I couldn’t understand why God would let my life go the way it had. Even today, all I have to do is call or text and her wisdom always leaves me feeling at peace. I have always been safe with her and I love her beyond words. Celebrating her birthday leaves me feeling blessed.

baby bro
baby bro

Then there’s the birthdays, other than my daughter’s that make me feel old. Younger siblings! Bwalya, Ndeke and Dalitso; their birthdays are on the 24th, 28th and 30th respectively and they turned 18, 17 and 21. I feel old because I’ve seen all three in Diapers and carried them on my back…

I don’t think I ever carried Mr D but still, he’s my baby brother and even though he now thinks it’s inappropriate for me to say so, he will always be that and that image will never go away. Maybe one day I will manage to get him reading.

I will always love you and Someone like you Karaoke in three generations. Ndeke, Me, Mum and my daughter!
“I will always love you” and “Someone like you” Karaoke in three generations. Ndeke, Me, “small” Mum and my daughter!

Bwalya and Ndeke are just two of the bravest girls I know. Both have faced so much and are still standing. You guys inspire me and I know I can be very mean and love to tease and portray a very harsh no nonsense face but I love you guys and I am inspired by you. Bwalya as SandyI can’t wait to see you guys in the next few years. I can’t believe how big you are and for me the hard thing is to let you be grown because I will always see you as my babies in need of protecting. God will take you places and I know that people will be blessed because of you!