Magreth Nunuhe
IT is with a heavy heart and tears in my eyes that I bid farewell to my two favourite holiday months, April and May. You came and left too soon.
I just cannot understand how some people kamma complain about having vacation that they don’t have to fill in a leave form for or feel guilty about.
Etsê, some of you can aangaan. I would understand if you were Harold Pupkewitz (rest his soul) or Oupa Indongo’s heirs and you were concerned about losing profit when the whole country goes to syp, sorry, I mean goes to sleep.
But hearing such a complaint coming from a kaferende working as a government clerk at one of the most notorious ministries known for ignoring and belittling people with their eyes and attitude, I could just not believe it. I can only think that this clerk missed her office computer where she can play cards all day.
You just gotta love Namibians. We love to complain about everything and once we get what we want, then we will complain some more tot nangok.
I was just reminded again of how good we have it here when I met some of my friends who have lived outside Motherland for many years.
They just could not believe the snail’s pace at which things are moving here and how everyone is just relaxed, even in the face of danger or hardship.
We don’t make appointments for anything here; we just show up when it suits us.
Yes, the only time we really adhere to appointments is when we have to go to a job interview or to the doctor, but even then the interviewees or the doctor could care less about wasting our time. There’s always that unforeseen eventuality, which is why when we say, we will arrive within the next 30 minutes, we actually mean within an hour. I mean, how do you expect us to control some onbeskof taxi drivers if the gatas have given up on those kangaroos?
We can postpone meetings at the blink of an eye when something more important crops up, like an old friend whom we haven’t seen for years.
Eto, do you think we are robots poo? We have feelings too. How can we leave when Tate Eliphas decides to welcome us with respect and invites us for a delicious meal of ondjuhwa (chicken) or some uncle we haven’t seen for years decides to slaughter a kajona (lamb) as a welcome gesture?
That’s why when you become one of us, we may decide to adopt you with a new name. Don’t feel bad, if we start calling you Inaa zotite because you like shopping, or Inaa tumwe because you can be irritating like a mosquito at times, or Inaa zondo because you are sexy slim, don’t feel bad. It’s just our way of showing that we love you and care about you. Other people don’t complain about having been given names like Makutsi because they were mischievous as children and their parents had to literally pull their ears hoping that they would listen.
We were taught to love people and use things, not the other way around.
Sorry Ngo!
mnunuhe@newera.com.na