Page 24 - The Mending Season

threeChristmas holidays could not end soon enough. The day we were going to buy my new uniform, morning dew glistened on the leaves ofour lemon tree, the suns rays turning it into crys­ tal beads. I woke up earlier than everyone else in order to clean the house and hasten our departure. Mma Motseis house was quiet, as she had gone to work. The other children were busy with their street games and for the first time since I could remember, I didnt care about whether they needed an extra member on one team to make them even. I just wished I had a friend with whom I could share my good news.My two younger aunts had taken the day offwork so that we could all go. I could not remember the last time all four of us had left the house together. I wore my white dress with blue chiffon at the hem and blue flowers everywhere, the one which Mmamane Mabatho had bought for my birthday. I had on my only pair of shoes with a heel, the ones that made me look a little bit taller. I had slept in large, prickly blue rollers so that my hair would look perfect. I combed the curls lightly now, still marvelling at how straight and long my hair was - it touched the nape of my neck. Mmamane Malebone had relaxed it herself, not allowing me to go to a hair salon because it was too expensive. I had doubted that she could make me look like Robin Williams, the Coloured girl who had almost won Miss South Africa but didnt because, as Mmamane Mabatho explained it, South Africa was not ready for a Black Miss South Africa. (Mmamane Mabatho called Coloured people “Black” and said “Coloured” was offensive.) I now24