Jacob’s Story

As mentioned in my last post, Jacob walks with me across the bridge that borders Zimbabwe and Zambia.  It is incredibly hot this time of year so I suggest we break our journey for a drink and a bite to eat at the cafe on the bridge.  Our cokes arrive, with glasses that are half full of ice (a luxury in these parts) and a slice of lemon.  As we sip our drinks, Jacob begins his story..

Jacob was born in Tsholotsho, a small town near Bulawayo to a family of seven kids.  He was the 6th child and belonged to a poor family, with a dad who did odd jobs so his family could survive.  Jacob attended the local school and studied English, Ndebele and Maths but left school after his O’Levels to look for work.  In addition to English and Ndebele he speaks Shana and the Zambian language Tonga and I am once again amazed at the language skills of Africans who like Europeans seem to master so many languages with ease and speak them fluently. 

Jacob leaves his small town as a teenager for the brighter lights of Vic Falls.  His first job was selling bread on the street just to make ends meet.  He obtained the bread from his brother who was working in a bakery at Vic Falls at the time. 

After saving enough money Jacob obtains his small car licence which enabled him to drive a taxi for 5 years.  The work was not that interesting but it paid the bills.  Jacob then decides to further his passion for singing and dancing and approaches a local dance troupe, Umkhankaso Wamajaha Arts Group (Walking in the bush in search of wild animals).  They perform at street corners and special functions similar to buskers back home but with a lot more talent.  One of the highlights of his career was to perform at the International Airport to welcome Robert Mugabe on his visit from Harare to Vic Falls.  It was Jacob’s first time to see Mugabe in the flesh and quite an experience for him.

Most members of this group of eleven survive on the income they make from their performances and unlike Jacob have no other source of income.  Most days they perform once or twice, singing for 4 hour stints and make from one to two dollars each. 

As he tells me his story we are interrupted by the screams of a traveller who has just bungy jumped off the bridge.  I would never do that he tells me, besides it is so expensive.  I wonder what he really feels about the travellers who spend his entire monthly income on 5 minutes of fun and/or sheer terror!  He doesn’t appear to hold any resentment toward the muzungus who visit his country and enjoy all the fun activities of his city that he and most locals will never be able to afford.  I have often heard fellow travellers complain about the two tier price system at entries to national parks and museums  but I wonder if they realise the huge disparities that exists, between wages here and in the west.

Jacob lives with 3 of his mates, sharing one room in a house in the area.  They have access to cooking and living facilities and make do with a very simple lifestyle. 

Our meal of burgers and fries arrives and I make use of the break in conversation to ask about his normal diet.  He eats the local staple of maize meal, interchanging it with rice for a bit of variety accompanied by meat or veg.  We don’t need something different every day like you guys he tells me.  He talks about the times when food was so scarce in Zimbabwe, they travelled across the border to Zambia just to buy maize and sugar.  I don’t think most of us could even begin to comprehend how hard life has been here for so many.

We get back to his story. 

Jacob has been singing with the group for four years and loves performing for the many international visitors that pass through Vic Falls.   Last year he obtained his heavy vehicle licence and joined the overland company Nomad Overlanders as a truck driver.  His trip of 29 days covers South Africa, Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe.  He loves driving the truck and visiting countries he might otherwise never had a chance to see.  But the work is seasonal and currently, there is a lull in business and he finds work elsewhere driving trucks across the border.

Jacob gets a text message and he passes the message to me.  It is a short message informing him that his mate from the dance troupe has just lost his brother.  He had entered hospital yesterday and today he is no more.  Jacob isn’t sure what he has died off but tells me they will probably visit the funeral house to console the family and sing.  I am once more reminded how fragile life is.  We spend a few minutes in silence and Jacob resumes his story to talk about his dreams for the future.

Jacob has just turned 28 and dreams of finding a partner one day to spend the rest of his life with and possibly start a family.  It has been a year since he broke up with his girlfriend of two years and he hopes it won’t be long before he finds someone special. 

His dreams for his dance troupe include that of making a website so they can better publicise their skills and promote their CD’s and DVD’s.  He hopes to find a sponsor for the group one day which may take them to bigger and better places.  So far, all of the promises he has had of sponsorships to South Africa and Namibia have not come to fruition but he remains hopeful.  His ultimate dream would be to visit the west, perhaps America and perform there.

Jacob’s story leaves me humbled.  We so often feel devastated by our own problems in life and yet they seem to pale in comparison when I hear about the lives of the majority of blacks in Africa. 

It is time for us to leave as Jacob needs to get back to work.   They have another performance that afternoon by the Zambezi River.   Over lunch he has made up an African name for me.  He calls me ‘Intombi ehle’, and tells me it means pretty girl :)! I wrinkle my face and laugh.  Is he serious? 

He walks me to the Zambian border and bids me goodbye.  I have one more day in Zambia and he promises to visit to say goodbye.  See you tomorrow ‘Intombi’, he says as he hugs me goodbye. 

“The fact is, life is not a dress rehearsal. We have one life to live and this is it. Yesterday is gone forever. Tomorrow is not yet here and none of us have any guarantee of tomorrow. True, we need to plan for tomorrow, but today s the only day we ever have. One thing is certain, once this day is over, it is gone forever”.

Source: Unknown.