It was on October 3 when we laid to rest our jovial old man at the church cemetery in an emotional ceremony attended by family and friends from various parts of Bongo and beyond.
After we’re done with the various sombre activities and bidding kwa heri to those who have to travel immediately to their different destinations, it’s time to relax and explore.
Yeah, time to head to our side of Mount Kamwala’s shopping centre to see what’s on offer at Kwa Dada Anna, Kwa Temu and Kwa Sammy drinking joints.
A younger bro, Dullah, had stayed close to me most of the day, impressing me with what has been going on within the Muyanza family and the village in general.
Who has married whom, and who has divorced whom? You note with interest that the incidence of divorce in the villages is much less than what we’re witnessing in the urban areas, where some marriages break up within a couple of months, if not weeks.
And nobody raises eyebrows!
Dullah leads you to Kwa Sammy, where we find the place full to the brim.
Some drinkers are having their booze while standing. There are two vacant tables without chairs, but your kid bro says no to the suggestion that we take our beer standing as a handyman goes out to look for chairs.
“We’ll just remain standing idly as we wait for chairs; my bro is an important man from Dar (ha!), and won’t have his beer standing up like a villager!” asserts Dullah.
It only takes a few minutes before chairs arrive and we settle down for our beer. Dullah is a young and strong man, which explains why he orders a Safari.
I ask for my usual, a warm Castro Laiti, which Dullah dismisses as maji matupu, sheer plain water!
I’m literally dying of thirst, because it’s been more than 24 hours since I took my last sip of beer.
I get hold of a bottle, ready to lead it to my waiting mouth, but I return it to the table and shout, “Hey, mhudumu, I had ordered a warm beer…this one is chilling cold!”
“But that’s warm beer, mzee,” responds the mhudumu. “actually, we don’t even have a fridge here… nobody owns a fridge in Usangi!”
I dislike cold beer, but there’s nothing I can do other than take the beer the way it is. Climate change has done us in because, in the not-so-distant past, having wintry weather beyond August was something unheard of.
Rest in peace, dear Mzee Josiah Gerson Marisa – WM.
