Today I visited Themba Ngwenya's house.Themba is 12 years old. He has six brothers and sisters. We picked Themba up at school so he could show us his house. No one else was home.
About two months ago, Themba's father murdered his mother with a knife. No one knows why, for sure. What they do know is that shortly afterwards, Themba went looking for his dad. He found him. He had hanged himself from a tree near the house.
This family has no relatives. Social workers moved the seven children into a neighborhood where they thought the neighbors would be tolerant, and possibly helpful. The "parent" of the family is the 16 year old sister, although everyone works.
The astonishing thing is that these children are surviving. The house, such as it is, is relatively clean. They're getting some government help. But the biggest help are the Nhlengelo caregivers. "We visit them. We help them with transportation and solving problems with the government. We give them hugs," said Zelema. There's not much else they can do. The caregivers themselves aren't rich. But as you see here, Zelena loves Themba, and vice versa.
Themba is simply stunned. He doesn't meet your eyes, but he does answer questions. There is no response to a hug. But I am so impressed that this family is getting by.
The danger, helped by the Nhlengelo caregivers, is that they will be taken advantage of. The girls are especially vulnerable.
No comments:
Post a Comment