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Mo toropokgolo e e tlhakatlhakanyeng ya Nairobi, kgakala le botshelo jwa tlhokomelo ya balelwapa, go agile basimane ba ba senang malwapa. Ba ne ba amogela letsatsi lengwe le lengwe jaaka le tla. Mo mosong mongwe basimane ba phutha diphate tsa bone morago ga go robala go bapa le peifemente e e serame. Go ka ithutafatsa, ba ne ba gotsa molelo ka matlakala. Mo setlhopheng se sa basimane go ne go na le yo o bidiwang Magozwe. E ne e le yo o mmotlana mo go botlhe.
In the busy city of Nairobi, far away from a caring life at home, lived a group of homeless boys. They welcomed each day just as it came.
On one morning, the boys were packing their mats after sleeping on cold pavements. To chase away the cold they lit a fire with rubbish.
Among the group of boys was Magozwe. He was the youngest.
O ne a le dingwaga tse tlhano fa batsadi ba gagwe ba tlhokafala. O ile a ya go nna le malomaagwe. Monna yo o ne a sa rekegele ka ene. O ne a sa mo neye dijo tse di lekaneng. O ne a mo dirisa ditiro tse di bokete.
When Magozwe’s parents died, he was only five years old. He went to live with his uncle. This man did not care about the child. He did not give Magozwe enough food. He made the boy do a lot of hard work.
Fa Magozwe a ngongoregela mo go ene kgotsa a mmotsa dipotso, malomaagwe o ne a mo betsa. E rile Magozwe a mmotsa gore a o kgona go ya sekolong malomaagwe a mo betsa mme a re “O seeleele go ka ithuta sengwe.” Morago ga dingwaga tse tharo tsa tshotlego, Magozwe a sia go tswa mo lelwapeng la ga malomaagwe. A simolola go nna mo mebileng.
If Magozwe complained or questioned, his uncle beat him. When Magozwe asked if he could go to school, his uncle beat him and said, “You’re too stupid to learn anything.”
After three years of this treatment Magozwe ran away from his uncle. He started living on the street.
Botshelo jwa mebila bo ne bo le boima e bile bontsi jwa basimane ba ne ba palelwa le ke go ka bona dijo tsa tsatsi le letsatsi. Ka dinako dingwe ba ne ba tshwarwa ke mapodisi fa ka mme tse dingwe ba betswe. Fa ba lwala go ne go sena kwa ba tla bonang thuso teng. Setlhopha sa basimane se ne se ikaegile thata mo madinyaneng a se neng se a kopa mo bathong, mo go rekiseng dipolasitiki le dilo dingwe tse di buseditsweng mo tirisong. Botshelo bo ne bo le boima go feta ka ntlha ya dintwa tsa ditlhophana tse dingwe tse di neng di batla go laola dikarolo dingwe tsa toropokgolo.
Street life was difficult and most of the boys struggled daily just to get food. Sometimes they were arrested, sometimes they were beaten. When they were sick, there was no one to help.
The group depended on the little money they got from begging, and from selling plastics and other recycling.
Life was even more difficult because of fights with rival groups who wanted control of parts of the city.
Ka letsatsi lengwe fa Magozwe a ntse a batla dilo mo thotobolong ya matlakala a bona buka e e makgasa ya mainane. O ne a phepafatsa leswe go tswa mo go yone morago a e tsenya mo kgetseng ya gagwe. Tsatsi le letsatsi fa a bona nako, o ne a e ntsha mme a lebelele ditshwantsho. O ne a sa itse go buisa mafoko.
One day while Magozwe was looking through the dustbins, he found an old tattered storybook. He cleaned the dirt from it and put it in his sack.
Every day after that he would take out the book and look at the pictures. He did not know how to read the words.
Ditshwantso tse di mo bukeng di ne di supa kgang ya mosimane yo o neng a gola go ka nna mokgweetsi wa sefofane. Ka dinako dingwe o ne a ikanya go nna mosimane yo o mo kgannyeng eo.
The pictures told the story of a boy who grew up to be a pilot.
Magozwe would daydream of being a pilot. Sometimes, he imagined that he was the boy in the story.
Go ne go le serame fa Magozwe a eme go bapa le tsela a kopa batho fa monna mongwe a tsamaela kwa go ene. “Dumela, Ke nna Thomas. Ke dira go bapa le lefelo le, koo o tla kgona go bona sengwe sa go ja.” ga bua monna. O ne a supa ntlo e e serolwane ka borulelo jwa mmala wa loapi. “Ke solofela gore o tla ya teng go bona dijonyana.” ga bua monna. Magozwe o ne a leba monna a bo a leba le ntlo. “Gongwe” a bua a ntse a itsamaela.
It was cold and Magozwe was standing on the road begging. A man walked up to him. “Hello, I’m Thomas. I work near here, at a place where you can get something to eat,” said the man.
He pointed to a yellow house with a blue roof. “I hope you will go there to get some food?” he asked.
Magozwe looked at the man, and then at the house. “Maybe,” he said, and walked away.
Mo dikgweding tse di latelang, basimane ba ba senang malwapa ba ne ba tlwaetse go bona Thomasa le mo gare ga bone. O ne a rata go bua le batho segolobogolo ba ba neng ba tshelela mo mebileng. Thomas o ne a reetsa dikgang tsa matshelo a batho. O ne a tlhoafetse le gone a le pelotelele, a sa tlhokele ope maitseo. Bangwe ba basimane ba simolola go ya kwa ntlung e e serolwane le mmala wa loapi go ya go ja dijo tsa motshegare.
Over the months that followed, the homeless boys got used to seeing Thomas around. He liked to talk to people, especially people living on the streets.
Thomas listened to the stories of people’s lives. He was serious and patient, never rude or disrespectful. Some of the boys started going to the yellow and blue house to get food at midday.
Magozwe o ne a dutse mo peifementeng a lebeletse buka ya gagwe ya mainane fa Thomas a tla go dula go bapa le ene. “kgang e e bua ka ga eng? ga botsa Thomas. “E bua ka ga mosimane yo o golang go nna mokgweetsi wa sefofane,” ga araba Magozwe. “Leina la mosimane ke mang?” ga botsa Thomas. “Ga ke itse leina la gagwe ka gore ga ke itse go buisa,” ga araba Magozwe kwa tlase.
Magozwe was sitting on the pavement looking at his picture book when Thomas sat down next to him.
“What is the story about?” asked Thomas.
“It’s about a boy who becomes a pilot,” replied Magozwe.
“What’s the boy’s name?” asked Thomas.
“I don’t know, I can’t read,” said Magozwe quietly.
E rile ba kopana, Magozwe o ne a simolola pele ka go bolelela Thomas ka botshelo jwa gagwe. O ne a mmolelela kgang ya ga malomaagwe le lebaka goreng a siile go tswa kwa gae. Thomas o ne a sa bue thata e bile ga a a ka a mo bolelela se a tshwanetseng go se dira mme gone o ne a tlhola a reeditse ka kelotlhoko. Ka dinako tse dingwe ba ne ba bue fa ba ntse ba ja kwa ntlong ya borulelo jwa mmala wa loapi.
When they met, Magozwe began to tell his own story to Thomas. It was the story of his uncle and why he ran away.
Thomas didn’t talk a lot, and he didn’t tell Magozwe what to do, but he always listened carefully.
Sometimes they would talk while they ate at the house with the blue roof.
E rile Magozwe a dira dingwaga tse lesome, Thomas o ile a mo naya buka ya mainane e ntsha. E ne e le ka ga mosimane wa motse yo o golang go nna motshameki wa kgwele ya dinao wa maemo a a kwa godimo. Thomas o ne a buisetsa Magozwe kgang eo ga ntsi go fitlhela letsatsi lengwe a re, “Ke akanya gore ke nako jaanong o ya sekolong o ye go ithuta go buisa. O akanya jang?” Thomas a mo tlhalosetsa gore o itse le lefelo le bana ba kgonang go nna teng ba tsena sekolo.
Around Magozwe’s tenth birthday, Thomas gave him a new storybook. It was a story about a village boy who grew up to be a famous soccer player.
Thomas read that story to Magozwe many times, until one day he said, “I think it’s time you went to school and learned to read. What do you think?” Thomas explained that he knew of a place where children could stay, and go to school.
Magozwe o ne a akanya ka lefelo le lentsha leo le ka ga go ya sekolong. A ga se gore malomaagwe o ne a bua nnete le gore ke seeleele sa go ithuta sengwe? Jaanong fa ba tla mo itaya kwa lefelong le lesa? O ne a boifa. “Gongwe go botoka go nna fela mo mebileng,” a akanya.
Magozwe thought about this new place, and about going to school. What if his uncle was right and he was too stupid to learn anything?
What if they beat him at this new place? He was afraid. “Maybe it is better to stay living on the street,” he thought.
O ne a abelana poifo ya gagwe le Thomas. Fa nako e ntse e tsamaya, monna a tswelela ka go mo tshepisa gore botshelo bo kgona go nna botoka kwa lefelong le lesa.
He shared his fears with Thomas. Over time the man reassured the boy that life could be better at the new place.
Magozwe a fudugela mo phaposing nngwe mo ntlung ya borulelo jwa mmala o motala. O ne a nna le basimane bangwe ba le babedi mo phaposing eo. Go ne go nna bana ba le lesome mo ntlung eo ka palo. Ba ne ba nna mmogo le Mmangwane Cissy le monna wa gagwe, dintswa tse tharo, katse le podi e e tsofetseng.
And so Magozwe moved into a room in a house with a green roof. He shared the room with two other boys.
Altogether there were ten children living at that house. Along with Auntie Cissy and her husband, three dogs, a cat, and an old goat.
Magozwe o ne a simolola sekolo mme go ne go le thata. O ne a tshwanela go ithuta le tse di mo fetileng. Ka dinako tse dingwe o ne a batla go ineela mme a akanya ka mokgweetsi wa sefofane le motshameki wa kgwele ya dinao mo bukeng ya mainane. Fela jaaka bone, a seka a ineela.
Magozwe started school and it was difficult. He had a lot to catch up. Sometimes he wanted to give up.
But he thought about the pilot and the soccer player in the storybooks. Like them, he did not give up.
Magozwe o ne a dutse mo jarateng mo lelwapeng la borulelo jwa mmala o motala a buisa buka ya mainane e e tswang kwa sekolong. Thomas a tla mme a dula go bapa le ene. “Kgang e bua ka ga eng? ga botsa Thomas. “E bua ka ga mosimane yo o golang go nna morutabana,” ga araba Magozwe. “Leina la mosimane ke mang?” ga botsa Thomas. “Leina la gagwe ke Magozwe,” ga araba Magozwe ka monyenyo.
Magozwe was sitting in the yard at the house with the green roof, reading a storybook from school. Thomas came up and sat next to him.
“What is the story about?” asked Thomas.
“It’s about a boy who becomes a teacher,” replied Magozwe.
“What’s the boy’s name?” asked Thomas.
“His name is Magozwe,” said Magozwe with a smile.
