Kuyafana

“He has showed you o human, what is good

And what does the Lord require of you?

To act justly and to love mercy and to work humbly
with your God.” (Micah 6:8)

In the morning, Pule and other veteran street children led the horde into Braamfontein. Braamfontein community seemed quite warm, welcoming and accommodating. At McDonalds, the patrons were quite generous with their leftovers. My income from begging that day was quite encouraging. I guess because of my age, abelungu (givers) were very generous. I made over two pin (R200.00) on the first day. The only not-so-kind people in Braamfontein were the shopkeepers who sold impenga. They said there was nothing for mahala (nothing for free). I bought one tin for the night. The previous night I had learnt the hard way, that glue-sniffing was not for the fun of it but convenient for survival. It numbed the body and made it possible to sleep in the open without any need for blankets. (Excerpt from the book)

“This is a really beautiful, although heart-rending book, which should be made into a film! It follows the bitter-sweet stories of street children’s lives in Johannesburg, South Africa.”

Editor’s comment