A CHILDHOOD GONE by Renae Naik (electronic reader TXT) 📖

she calmly held her face and as a tear rolled down her cheek, she asked him “what was that for”? He starts swearing, calling her the worst of names, making her feel worthless while slapping her continuously. All she can do is cry and hope it will end; she wouldn’t dare stand up to him because if she does he will surely throw her out. He’s asked if she had cooked anything for supper and she stares back at him while covering the right side of her face and says “No, I didn’t, I couldn’t because....” she wasn’t even allowed to finish that sentence and she was violently pushed to the floor now enduring multiple kicks to the ribs and back, he turns around and looks at the lounge display cabinet and picks up a white and slightly pinkish porcelain horse ornament and strikes it on her head. Neema looks at him an at that moment doesn’t realise what has happened to her until a few seconds later she feels a warm and sticky liquid drizzling down her forehead, across her eye and cheeks. It is in that moment that she decides that she has had enough. Her life was indeed in danger; this man was capable of almost anything and the worst part of it all was that he wasn’t even drunk at that time! Thankfully a neighbour alerted the police while all the commotion was going and they arrived not long after. Neema was then taken to her mother’s place and a restraining order was opened. Not like that stopped him as thereafter he harassed her every opportunity he got. His threats became too much he would show up and harass her even if she was with her family, friends or even going to work. Neema decides that she isn’t going to be in peace anytime soon and after many days of thinking of a way out she decides that she is going to leave Pietermaritzburg and hide out in Johannesburg as she has an elder brother there and figures that this is the only way she will be able to give her children a life without the abuse. Definitely a brave decision made by a very brave woman although it was brave it definitely wasn’t easy, having nothing and going to a foreign place as a single mother was the scariest feeling ever.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER 3

 

 

CHAPTER 3

 

 

The following Monday, Neema takes Sadie with her to visit her eldest sister Radha. Radha was married to Jimmy Thomas and they had 4 children together, Shanice, her moody husband Barry, Chantel, Michelle and Mark. Shanice was the only one married in the household and Radha was the only one working at the time. Jimmy on the other hand was a builder, the craftsmanship of his work was outstanding and in his free time he loved to plant, his back yard was filled with different fruit trees.

Radha has a special lunch prepared for Neema and Sadie and out of all her nieces and nephews, Radha like Sadie the most. Her children always considered Sadie as their little sister. That evening Neema tells Sadie that she’s going to the store to buy something and will be back shortly, an hour passes by and Radha hands Shanice a letter and asks her to read it aloud to Sadie. The little girl wobbles towards Shanice who’s seated on a red velvety couch with wooden frames, knocking her elbow while climbing on and stares at Shanice. Shanice begins reading and the letter said:

 

 

Dear Sadie,

You a big girl now and you are about to start your first grade in a few days. It is not easy for me but I hope that you understand that mummy needs to make a new life for us, we could not live in peace and I am going away with the hope that I can start a new beginning for us. Stay nicely with your Radha mummy, I know she will look after you because she loves you just as much as I do and she always treated you as one of her own. I have already found place for you at the school around the corner and I am very sure that you will make lots of friends, behave yourself and I promise I will come and get you when I am settled, please do not cry for me I will be back sooner than you think. I love you always

From: mummy.

 

 

 

Sadie sat there, so lost and painfully confused. She was a girl who was rarely physically able to show emotion and just then a tear drizzled down her chubby cheek, she was hurt. She wanted to know what did she do wrong, how come her other siblings got to be with her mother but not her? What did she do wrong? Why did her mother abandon her? The only person, who could have answered these questions and take away the guilt from this little girl, had disappeared.

Its 8:11pm and Neema and her two children are on the highway, without a cent in their pockets, hitchhiking a lift to Johannesburg. After a few unsuccessful tries, finally a black couple pulls over and is willing to give the family a ride. The man and his wife were both teachers at a school in a place called Soweto; they were a very friendly couple with no children of their own. Few hours later and they make a stop to freshen up and the couple makes sure that they get the family of three some food and hot coffee for the road, By 3:25am Neema opens her eyes after a tiring trip and finds that she has arrived in Soweto, not very far from Lenasia where her brother stays. The lovely couple assures the family that later in the morning they will take her to her brother’s house. At first Neema was a bit sceptical about the safety of her kids as they have come so far, but she has hope in a heart and god on her side. She closes her eyes and mumbles; “GOD, I know you didn’t pick me up this high only to make me fall again, our lives are in your hands.” She then closed her exhausted eyes and her last thoughts were that; in a matter of a few hours her life is going to change and she is hoping for a new beginning, a new life away from all the drama and she doses off into a much needed slumber.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER 4

 

 

CHAPTER 4

 

 

13 January 1996 and Neema wakes up to the sound of rain on a zinc roof so loud, that she can barely make out the voices to the match faces on the black and white television in front of her. She turns and sees that Justin is wide awake staring at here with warm eyes. Elly is already up and is talking the ears off the kind couple who housed them for the night. Neema gets up and the lady hands a towel and a bucket of water that she should use to was her face and further explains that they will be taking her through to Lenasia in 30 minutes. Neema digs in her pocket and finds the crumpled piece of paper on which her brother’s address is written and hands it to the lady.

After a few minutes, the kids are dressed and their hair is combed and the family is ready to face their new destiny. After a few bad directions, they reach the address of Neema eldest brother Sanjay. The couple wishes Neema everything of the best and leaves as they have to attend work shortly.  Sanjay lived with his wife Lavina and their 5 children in a 3 bedroom in Lenasia extension 13, a small Indian community. Sanjay and his family Welcomes Neema and Lavina gave Elly a gentle kiss on the cheek. After a few hours of chatting Sanjay tells Neema that he has arranged for a place for her to stay for the month as there is no place for Neema to stay with him.

Lavina packs a few groceries and odds and ends and Sanjay drives a few roads away and stops in front of a faced brick double story house in extension 8. An old lady comes out and hands him the key and guides them to a door at the back of the house. Neema opens the door and it unveils a small room with a kitchen sink with a cupboard, a 2 plate stove and a single bed with small separation that leads to the shower and toilet. The stench of dampened floors fills the whole room as if there is water pipe leak somewhere and there are a few cracks on the walls and the place is in serious need of a painting. Neema puts her bags down and Sanjay leaves closing the door behind him. This is the start that she was waiting for but now that it’s here, where should she start?

She weeps up the room and then begins unpacking the things that her sister-in-law had given her to get her started as well as her bags that she had brought with. She them begins to start supper as Elly and Justin now seem hungry. Elly makes a bottle of formula for Justin and then helps her mum to prepare the food. The family eats and then decides to call it a night. The next morning Neema gathers all her important documents and heads to the school to enrol Elly for the 3rd grade, she is lucky enough that the principle sympathises with her and grants her a place in the school. Not only was he kind enough to do that, but he also provided Neema with school uniform and stationary for Elly to begin class the very next day. Elly was a very bright girl and once she heard that she had been accepted in school, happiness filled her eyes.

Two weeks down the line and things are finally falling into place. Neema starts work as in insurance broker and is lucky enough to be earning enough pay the upcoming months’ rent. Elly has settled well in her new school by now and has made plenty of friends and as for Justin well he