Living Zimbabwe

Tag: Death

  • 30 Seconds After – Mugabe’s Motorcade Motorcycle Crash

    30 Seconds After – Mugabe’s Motorcade Motorcycle Crash

    I am one of those people who believe that caring and emotions are definate indicators of being human. Lack of the above makes you any other. While I almost respect RG, I also have my issues with his 80% none human attributes. It is my personal opinion that for the last 32 years this guy has no clue what it is to be Zimbabwean today. You do not need to be informed every minute while you are in your little heaven, experiencing the ups and downs with your people makes you human.

    As for the accident a few days ago, I find myself asking what was going through the minds of

    1. the President, if he was there
    2. the other bikers
    3. the rest of the entourage and the people, witnesses or bystanders thirty seconds later

    Categorically,

    1. I never saw a thing and seriously thinks, “who drives into the back of a lorry mfana angware next time (he should watch out next time)”
    2. if I stop I will be fired or be a victim of an ‘accident’
    3. Sorry, Tiripabasa. Aenda uyu. (we are at work and he is gone).
    4. Ko zvavamusiya achitsva? (how can they leave him to die).

    The burning man represents the real Zimbabweans and where we are 30 seconds later.

    This has been a submission by Rodney Chenge Katsidzira.
    You too can become a Citizen Journalist by submitting your story here: Citizen Journalism by Living Zimbabwe  
    The views expressed in the article are those of the author and not necessarily Living Zimbabwe.

  • The Cost of A Zimbabwean Dying In The Diaspora

    The Cost of A Zimbabwean Dying In The Diaspora

    A Zimbabwean mother living in the Diaspora lost her son a few days ago. This was a particularly difficult time for her because her husband is still in Zimbabwe putting together the necessary documentation to allow him to join his family. This lady does not have a very strong support network where she resides which means, she has no-one of significance to turn to and has to wait for her husband to make the two to three day journey to be by her side.

    One fact of life that all of us will one-day face is our death. For some, that day comes after a long and hopefully prosperous life. For others, it comes at an unexpected time such as the example above where parents are burying their child.

    Many Zimbabweans living in the Diaspora say they would eventually want to return home at some point to live out the rest of their lives. This for some also holds true in death; some people explicitly state that in the event of their death, they want to be laid to rest at home in African soil.

    Left with such wishes, family members and/or close friends of the deceased pull together to fulfil the wishes of the deceased. Making the wish a reality presents a number of challenges with the main ones being the logistics of repatriating the body and the associated costs. CNN Marketplace Africa recently aired a piece where Robyn Curnow covered what some Zimbabweans living in South Africa go through in the event of a death. It also covers the services a Zimbabwean entrepreneur is providing to try and ease the cost of burying a love one. Its gets you thinking about how prepared you are for such situations.

    Would you rather be buried at home or in the Diaspora?