God save the Queen, and long live the King

Dear nephew Milambo

GREETINGS from this confused land.

My dear son, I hope that by the grace of Limatunda you and your small family are all doing okay, and I hope that the presence of the ancestors has been watching over you.

I hope too that the people of my beloved Ukumbisiganga are also in good shape, and that the protection of Liwelelo has been hovering over them.

Here in the city, things are not bad, the weather is the same way I told you the last time, hot during the day and freezing cold during the night.

But apart from all that, things are not that bad, and we thank the ancestors led by Chief Mirambo for protecting us all the time.

Your aunt is just recovering from a serious flu she contracted recently, and I thank Limatunda because it was torture on her part.

You know that your dear aunt is a very delicate woman sometimes, that is why when she falls sick, it worries me greatly, and I have to make sure that she recovers as quickly as possible.

It is good that she is finally returning to normal, because my dear boy, she was sneezing her head off like a great mfumu from Tabora.

I think it was the dust I told you about the last time I wrote to you, because the way it blows during the day, it is a miracle I am still healthy.

I think if Limatunda wishes, she might come over earlier than she anticipated, because as luck would have it, she is supposed to represent her boss in a meeting in Tabora later this month, and according to her, she will not return to Dar es Salaam when she is done with the meeting, she rather opts to come directly to Ukumbisiganga.

She is all excited with the upcoming trip, and I somehow got the impression that your aunt, apart from loving me, is bored stiff with this city, and she has told me this on several occasions.

You see son, there was a time she brought the idea of the two of us relocating to another region when she finally decides to retire, and I thought it was a brilliant idea.

I know you would expect us to relocate back to Tabora if we decide on the move my dear boy, but I hope we will not disappoint you because Tabora was not in our options, but that is a story for another day my son.

I hope that your son is finally okay, because your aunt informed me that once again the boy fell from a tree and dislocated his shoulder.

When your aunt told me this, I was not mad at the boy for being naughty, but rather glad because he is exhibiting true character of a young warrior, which means that he is not confined to the comfort of the house all the time.

You see son, here in the confused city, people believe that locking their children in the house and buying them expensive video games is a sign of loving them, without knowing that they are damaging their children permanently.

I remember the good old days when children spent a lot of time playing outdoors, making friends and getting into trouble, which is slowly disappearing in our African culture.

People are now raising boys who go straight home from school, who are expert video game players but feel lost if you put them in the company of other boys.

I still do not understand how a perfectly healthy boy can return home from school with his uniform still sparkling clean, and still smelling fresh after a long day in school, without any sign of dirt in his shoe.

I remember when you were growing up how your mother would search the whole neighbourhood looking for you in the evening, only for you to emerge later looking as if you were thrown in a hole full of mud.

It is not that I am advocating for children being naughty, far from it, it is only that I believe that children should be given an opportunity to grow like normal children, with ample time to play outside and feel free.

My dear boy, I guess by now you are aware that there is a woman in a far away land who passed away recently, and who is said to hold a title of a Queen.

If you know your history my dear boy, then you will know that this old woman who was the Queen of the United Kingdom has been holding that title for more than 70 years.

It is said that Queen Elizabeth II had a special relationship with Africa. She turned 21 on a visit to South Africa, and was in neighbouring Kenya when her father died and she ascended the throne, and that as the British monarch, she undertook numerous tours of Africa.

Queen Elizabeth II, my dear son, happens to be the longest-serving monarch in British history, and she died at the age of 96 somewhere they say in her Scottish summer residence on Thursday.

If you were not aware my dear boy, Elizabeth II was Queen of Tanganyika from 1961 to 1962, when Tanganyika was an independent sovereign state and a constitutional monarchy.

They say that she was also the monarch of other sovereign states, including the United Kingdom, although her constitutional roles in Tanganyika were mostly delegated to the governor-general of Tanganyika.

I hope you will get an opportunity to follow these events my dear boy, because right now her son, who is currently 73 (younger than me) is now the King.

Anyway, these things do not bring food on our table my dear boy, I just wanted you to know a little history, because I am proud that I was already in this world when many world changing events were happening.

Please give a big hug to your family, and tell them that I love them very much, and don’t forget to greet the people of my beloved Ukumbisiganga for me.