RENTED LIFE 27

AKANWA KANDI 68

Aunty June managed to hold on to Miriam and she whispered the words “Miriam has also died. They died together...”

June looked at her aunty in shock.

“What do you mean? So you are telling me that Augustine and Miriam were headed to see my mother in-law together?” she asked

“yes… they both were headed to Kasama…. Take heart my daughter…”

June burst into a hysterical laugh. “No… you are joking… they can’t both die… they owe an explanation”

Aunty June held on to her as they leaned against the bed while sitting on the floor.

“Mulima remove all the beddings from here and go and burn them” Miriam said.

Mulima did not oppose. She got up and begun packing everything that belonged to Miriam but made sure to leave the baby bag.

“Even that baby bag carry it… is it Augustine’s baby?” June asked

Aunty June looked at Miriam without an answer but clearly her face was telling it all.

June got up with force and picked the bags with her before marching past the mourners to head outside. Miriam asked for paraffin form her workers and a lighter, they watched her set everything ablaze after which she returned to the living and refused to be confined to a corner like a widow.

“The widow has died with her partner….” She said when her mother tried to get her to join them in the living.

June decided to sit in the spare bedroom and she asked for food. Her heart ached in ways that she could not comprehend but she stayed strong and reminded herself that he was not worth her tears. Some moments she would sigh heavily as she browsed through her phone and looked at her mother who was in the room with her. Miriam saw many things that were posted on Facebook and her heart did not get moved. She simply smiled and sighed. The shock was too much to react to the negative comments.

That evening, June took a shower much to her mother’s dismay as tradition suggested that she could only bath once a day and not be looking too clean as a widow. June took a shower and she wore a long black dress that swept the ground. On her head she tied a black scarf with glitter and she wore some foundation and sprayed her finest perfume and lightly applied lipstick on her lips before returning to the bedroom to sit and continue chatting on the phone. The children were affected by their father’s death but were also confused at the happenings. Kabwe cried bitterly every chance she took and that is why aunty Mulima was with her in her bedroom the whole time. The boys were outside chatting with their friends and making plans.

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After the embarrassment that happened, the Mwape family could not mourn together with June. They could not even to the house to multiply her pain but instead they made another funeral house which in Lusaka west at the home of Augustine’s uncle. Mrs Mwape senior had regained consciousness and she was now in Lusaka west after boarding a plane with her grandchildren. Her brother and his father followed by bus. The bodies of Augustine and Miriam were transported to Lusaka and deposited at the funeral parlour and all that was left was preparation for the funeral.

The funeral had been going on for a week and June finally made up her mind with her family to start arrangements for the burial after clear indication came in that the Mwape family would not convene at the farm to mourn. They preferred to stay in Lusaka west. June was tired and frustrated and she no longer had patience for more drama especially after she learnt that Miriam left behind a daughter.

Finally part of the Mwape family agreed to come to the funeral house the night before the burial and they agreed on how the procession would be. The family indicated that they had already secured a burial site at Memorial park cemetery and that the church service was to proceeded with a burial the following day. There was no time for quarrels or misunderstandings as Augustine’s send-off was more important than anything else. It also came to light that Miriam was buried two days after the bodies arrived in Lusaka but details of the burial were kept secret.

June could hardly sleep that night reminiscing over the good days she had in her marriage. She couldn’t help but question whether all that was real, she was torn between wanting to mourn the love of her life and being angry at him choosing another woman after al they had been through together. The mood was sombre at the farm, the church choir was singing outside and people were mourning.

The morning of the burial June bathed early with her children and they all prepared for the burial. June was driven by Mulima’s husband in her Noah bus with her children. The church was beautifully decorated and the pastor preached beautifully. June had refused to have a tribute typed for her as she insisted she could give one herself. The children’s tributes were read and now it was June’s turn. When June got to the front and looked at the audience her strength failed her but she stood still with Mulima by her side.