Njabulo Residency in Ufafa with Woza Moya

We have just completed 2 artist residencies in Ufafa and Umqatsheni, KwaZulu-Natal, working with Woza Moya Project and Project Khuphuka to provide psychosocial support to children and guardians. 

Over the past 10 days, our core staff have told stories, played games, explored mindfulness, and reawakened a sense of joy and community in the hearts of over 30 guardians and 80 children affected by HIV/AIDS and poverty. It truly was a magical time for everyone involved.

Many thanks to the National Arts Council, Canadian International Development Agency, Europcar, and the support of many individuals like you for making it possible - especially the staff at Woza Moya who were so generous with their time and love! 

Please take the time to read this update from the field from one of our core staff members, Sibusiso Khambule, about his experience working with the guardians.

It was my first tim to facilitate workshops with elders. I was very nervous and a bit scared as I have lots of respect regarding the elders - not that what we were doing is disrespectful at all. We brought some light to their problems and hope and joy to their families. But in many ways in life, you look up to the elders for advice, direction, or enlightenment. Throughout this residency, I realized that as much as we looked up to the elders, they looked up to us as well. We say in isiZulu, "Indlela ibuzwa kwaba phambili" - in essence "we look for advice to the the elders" - because they have already past the path you are going through.

It was amazing how they openly shared their personal stories and difficulties affecting the community. In many ways, they hold each other together to find ways to move forward in spite of the challenges they face. One of the stories what almost broke my heart was from a gogo (grandmother) of 76 years old who had 9 children as a mother and now only 2 are still alive. Her grandchildren stay with her and depend on her for support. I was touched because I have only one chld and don't plan to have another. The thought of losing a child as a parent is heavy on me because children are supposed to bury their parents and not the other way around. But here in Chibini, that is reality. 

When you ask youth today about where do they see themselves in 5 or 10 years, they always say, "If I am still alive..." because they are expecting death soon. Those words should not exist at all in their vocabulary but because of HIV/AIDS, death is a reality. 

Another story that almost pulled me off was from ugogo Babongile. She had 2 sons who were both killed in a matter of months in Johannesburg - one was planning his wedding and the other was stabbed. Now she stays with her grandchildren supporting them with her pension fund. She worries about what would happen to them if she dies. How would they survive without her pension fund? She prays daily that she will continue her life.

What I recognize here is loneliness, hunger, pain, and abuse. Another day, a story came to Woza Moya about a child who was raped over the weekend. Her mother left her with her older brother who abused her. She didn't want to report it or press charges because it would disrupt the family. It is so difficult to hear stories like this and continue to have faith. But we do what we can.

Indeed, prayer, hope, and faith is what keeps this community surviving. I couldn't have chosen better work than this because it really feels we are contributing in some small ways to bring about change in people's minds. The exercises we played and taught the guardians were very helpful. My favorite is the sock monkey that helps them connect with their children. And the mindfulness activities that give them space to connect to their own experience. To notice, to relax, to play, and to share. 

The best is when we are all telling izingane kwane (stories) about their own lives. I loved one about 2 girls who played family with their chickens when they were little. They would wrap them around their backs pretending to be mothers! Another one is about a girl who would steal sugar and eat it all herself. One day she stole laxatives thinking it was chocolate and spent the whole day on the loo! It is wonderful when these stories get retold to their children.

I read somewhere that when older people are involved in activities that interact with children and exercise their bodies, their lifespan becomes longer. Hopefully, the happiness and sense of family we have helped to create here will continue to enrich and transform their lives.

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