In my life, I have grown in the face of challenges. My arrival on earth was welcomed with great shouts of joy (I am told). My background is that of a family that lived entirely on peasant farming. My dad was quite a handyman, builder, carpenter, painter, plumber and farmer. He was many things in one. However he was also abundant in terms of wives and children as well which meant that he had to more than double up in everything to meet the growing demand for resources. This is why I mentioned earlier that I experienced what shoes were at age 14. Life always seemed to be a struggle. Though we never went without a meal, looking back I realize and reflect that the challenges I faced were teaching me perseverance, resilience and determination. It was never rosy and now I can see the reason why. My future was being shaped. At the time it was normal to walk ten kilometers a day to go to school, it was normal to have one pair of uniform, washing it after school hoping that it dries up in time to wear it the next morning, having five boys share a bedroom sleeping on the floor on a mat of reeds, having the same boys share a plate of ‘sadza’ (Zimbabwe’s staple food – hardened mealie meal porridge). With each challenge came a lesson on life. Its either I learned how not to do it to my own children or I learned how fight for what is mine.
