ZAMBIA LETTERS, 18

LuCAC is located in an area of ​​villas surrounded by walls. Nearby are neighborhoods where people live very simply. Not so long ago, this was an agricultural area and there are several fields behind the nearest villas. There, farmers grow corn and fish in large ponds.

Although the houses are well built and the gardens are spacious, the streets themselves are of varying standards, as is the case throughout the rest of Lusaka. The main streets that lead through an area are usually paved, but the intermediate streets that connect them to each other are simple sand roads with deep potholes and lots of pebbles.

The children who live here play on the streets in the sand between the villa walls. They run around without having any special playground, finding out things to do. It doesn't seem like they are ever at home, playing in their gardens.

LuCAC is, unlike the other plots, an open space that welcomes visitors. Inside the wall there is a swimming pool, a bar, a lawn and several trees. There is also a gallery, artists' studios, a library, a bar, a restaurant and apartments for artists. The residence functions as a hotel when it is not fully booked.

It is therefore not surprising that the children in the area gather outside the gate of LuCAC, hang out there and peek in on us to see what we are doing. When they saw that Irpa had arrived, they became even more interested. Hanna invited them in and together with some of the staff she began to introduce them to drawing, papier-mâché and football. In this way, it became natural for them and Irpa to start playing together.

They are considerate towards her and integrate into their community. The girls teach her Nyanja and Bemba and the boys bring her small gifts. We prepared her for the trip by giving her private English lessons so that she can play with Zambian children and we are happy we did that now.

Meeting them has been a fascinating experience. I can't tell if they come from simple backgrounds or if their parents are well-off - I think it may vary from child to child, but regardless, they play together in much the same way and none of them have ordinary toys. The only objects I have seen are a large car tire and a small football made of rubber cords and plastic, which they have constructed themselves. They use the car tire to do back flips and to do bridge, but also as a basketball hoop and as something they can run after and jump over. We have given Irpa some simple toys, such as a ball and a couple of jump ropes, and they are obsessed with them.

Their play never ends, there is no pause, the whole day is one continuous motion. It is as if they are driven by an inexhaustible energy. Most of them are also strong and you can see that they have good control over their movements as they throw themselves down edges, walls and heights. They do cartwheels, walk on their hands and do somersaults. None of them have any formal training, of course, they just play their way up to the skills. At first I thought they might go off the rails, because they pull and tug at each other without warning, but I was wrong. Irpa loves it.

Two things: The children laugh and smile a lot. There is a generosity in the way they have opened up to us and their warmth feels very spontaneous and unforced. There is also a lot of caring in their community. The older children are good at taking care of the smaller ones.

But it is also clear that there are other aspects of their everyday lives that are not so happy. Some of them will tell us that they get beaten up, either by adults or by each other. One of the boys, who has a talent for drawing, had a stone thrown at him when he questioned why a man was pulling his little sister so hard in her hair.

A boy keeps telling me that he wants to be like me, like us. I ask him what he means.

-1

”Pappa vad betyder count?”

”Cunt?”

”Nej, count?”

0

”Nice toilet… you have both hot and cold water…”

1

”I want to be like you like you, like you guys.”

”What do you mean?”

”Like this, with light skin.”

”You should be proud of your skin color, it is beautiful.”

”I wish I was like you. You know George he has bad manners, bad manners, really bad manners.”

”What does he do?”

”He fights. And he always wants to be the boss. When he comes can you chase him away?”

”It is not allowed to fight here, if someone fights here, I will send them away, but I am not going to chase anyone, not for nothing.”

”Ok.”

”You should tell your parents if he hits you.”

”I know what they say, they say I should leave.”

”That is a good idea, you should do that.”

2

”When you go away we will miss you.”

”But we just met.”

”When are you going back home?”

”At the end of July.”

”Why can´t you stay?”

”Well, we have friends and family back home who we will miss, and they will miss us.”

”Can’t you stay for Christmas?”

”Perhaps we can come back one day.”

”Do you have more toys?”

”No, these are the ones we have, perhaps you have some you can bring?”

”No, we don’t have any.”

”Well you can use these when you are here.”

”I wish I had a father like you”

”Where is you father?”

”He is dead. 

”I am sorry to hear that.”

”You know those boys who were here yesterday who were outside the gate. They have bad manners. They wanted to come in but we said no.”

”Why”

”They have bad manners, really bad manners.”

”How?”

”They threw a rock through our window at home and broke it. My mom yelled at them. You shouldn’t let them in, they fight, and they say bad things.”

”What sort of bad things?”

”I don´t want to say.”

3

”You know him we call the boss, he does bad things to boys in the bum.”

”Tell him to leave you alone.”

”He smells others in the bum all the time you should not let him come here.”

”But you are playing with him.”

”He says we have to.”

”Just tell him if there is something you don’t want to do.”

4

”There are many witches like this.”

”Like what?”

”Like this. With light skin and blue eyes. There are many witches who look like this. Not you,  no, not her, but others, many others.”

”That is not true, I know a lot of people with light skin and blue eyes and none of them are witches.”

”Alright…”

”Who said that, who told you this?”

”…”

”You shouldn’t listen to stuff like that.”

A memory from Mukundi village in Livingstone. As the guide was talking about the chief´s hut, she also told us a story. She said that when the first white people came to the village, they were not allowed into the chief´s hut, as was customary when strangers arrived. They were forced to meet him under a big tree in the middle of the village. The reason was that the villagers thought white people were ghosts, because of their skin color. Today, the tree is still being used for formal meetings. It was a long time ago, of course. But we were not allowed into his hut either. Another family, who came from England and visited the village at the same time, but who had brown skin, got to visit the hut.

——

Three days ago, Uzi told me that she had been informed that Irpa could start school. The next day we went there to find out what it might mean. When we arrived, it was completely empty, but we went into the kitchen and met the chef, whose name is Chris. He was very nice and took good care of us. Chris explained that it was activity day and that everyone was on the sports field, but he took the trouble to go with us there and show us a couple of seats. It was full of children and parents. The school maps out what talents the children have so that they can develop them. The children competed in relays and 60 meters.

Everyone is black, or brown, so Irpa and I really stood out in the crowd. “Look, white people!” one of the boys shouted. But from what I can see, they are just curious and surprised, there is nothing unfriendly about their reactions. They greet and wave to Irpa, without having any idea who she is.

Since it was not a regular school day, we could not meet those we needed to speak to, so we had to come back the next day. Then we got to meet a teacher who showed us a classroom. He also took us to the principal. She sat behind her desk with a serious expression, below a frugal crucifix, but it turned out that she had a sincere understanding of children and a compassionate attitude.

The school does have a Christian profile, and I must admit that I have mixed feelings about it. But when I enter the schoolyard, I am struck by the warm and welcoming atmosphere. I have only seen smiles, happy faces and friendliness. 

Irpa is welcome to start school next week. Until then, she will have a to acquire a school uniform and five notebooks, but we will not have to pay her school fees (it is a private school). She will have the choice between going to school until 1230 or until 1530. This will certainly be an experience of a lifetime, and it feels incredibly beneficial that she has been given this opportunity.