I remember that when I started earning my wages on a regular basis is the time I started buying things we did not even need in the house. I bought a garden umbrella, a heater and a bread bin.
It was the bread bin that did it.
Whenever I visited my friends, to impress me they would flip the lid of the bread bin up revealing the loaf or slices of bread. The bread looked special and appetizing than the bread I ate at home. It made a big impression on me.
It was not surprising when I started earning, the first thing I bought was a bread bin. Mai VaMaidei did not have any use for it. She preferred to put the bread on top of the freezer. Even the heater I bought afterwards, Mai VaMaidei did not like it.
“It’s not good for blood circulation, it gives me headaches,” Mai VaMaidei said one day. That was the end of it. We packed it in the box under the bed and forgot about it.
It was only that I did not have money and I thought of selling the items. Tigere, the landlord was coming the next day to collect his rent. I needed to raise money.
I had a great idea. There were potential buyers at Zororo Bar. I had seen people selling stuff in the bar before. Others even sold off their watches and phones just to support their drinking habits.
“What do you think you’re doing?” Mai VaMaidei said. I had collected the electric heater and the garden umbrella from under the bed.
“We’ve no use for these. I might get some buyers and raise money,” I said.
“You’re forgetting that we promised to give my brother the heater as a present,”. Mai VaMaidei said. She took an empty bucket, went to the kitchen and filled it with water.
We had agreed to gift Tsano Joshu with the electric heater some time back. A brilliant idea suddenly came to my mind.
“But, we all know that where Tsano lives, they have no electricity,” I said.
“It doesn’t matter, we should keep our promise,” Mai VaMaidei said.
“Why should we give him something he’s not going to use now?” I said.
My words sounded hollow. I was also struggling to convince myself.
The way Mai VaMaidei cast her eyes at me made me feel guilty.
I quickly thought of a plan.
“I’ll sell this now, and we then buy Tsano Joshu a gift he can use,” I said.
She took a dish full of vegetables, poured some water from the bucket. She rinsed the vegetables with water.
I stood by the door. There was no dispute about the garden umbrella. Mai VaMaidei had used the garden umbrella at the market a few times. The huge colourful umbrella attracted the attention of the municipal police.
They all demanded bribes from her leaving out the other stalls around her. Afterwards she stopped using the umbrella and the extortion came to a stop.
“If you’re sure you’ll buy another present for Tsano Joshu , you can go ahead,” She said.
She was forgetting that we needed to raise money for rent. “Tigere is coming tomorrow,” I said quietly.
Mai VaMaidei heaved her chest. Instead of looking at me, she closed her eyes as if in prayer. She started praying silently. That’s how I left. I closed the door quietly. I did not wait for her to say “Amen.” The mention of the name of the landlord was never a subject of joy in our family.
Rasta was at Zororo Bar when I arrived.
“What’s the deal?” He said. He looked at the electric heater and the garden umbrella. When I kept silent, a new dawn came to his eyes.
And I was happy I had met him. He was good at these things. I knew that he could easily find buyers before the day was out. But of course I had to return the favour. I would buy him a beer or two.
“I know someone who’ll buy the umbrella. He comes a bit late, but he’ll buy it,” he said.
“We can easily sell the garden umbrella. The electric heater needs a bit of persuasion. No one would buy a heater in this heat,” Rasta said. He wiped some sweat from his brow.
If anyone could sell the heater, it was Rasta. Rasta stood up. He took the electric heater with him and went towards the table where some of the gold panners were sitting. The amakokoroza were known big spenders.
He came back after a few minutes. He had no luck. The gold panners had no use for the heater. It was going to be a long day. I had a feeling that I was chasing shadows.
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