My Friend Borealis has always been just slightly entrancingly loopy.
Not quite "off the wall" but rather leaning towards an engaging
eccentricity.
She is the sort of bewitching person who might sudden;y eat a
flying
ant washed down with a good quality Scotch, but last week she went
just a tad too far.
Rain had been needed desperately, the heat had been appalling,
crops
and gardens were wilting, dams were drying beneath our very eyes.
American Indians do a rain dance to attract rain but African
superstition has it that if you catch a scorpion and hang it by its
tail in a tree, multitudinous rains will occur.
And so my crazy friend, in the heat of the midday sun, took it upon
herself to literally dig up a scorpion and hang the hapless fellow
from the branch of a wilting Mopane tree.
Twenty four hours later, a veritable hurricane hit the suburb in
which we both live ........ It was the Mother of all Hailstorms to
use an urban cliché.
The epicentre appeared to be Kumalo where they had 100 mls rain and
vast drifts of hailstones. After the storm Kumalo residents made
snowmen out of the ice !!
Cars and houses were crushed by falling trees, gutters blocked with
the ice and fallen leaves and debris, then overflowed into homes
which were awash. Ceilings filled with water and collapsed. Roofs
were ripped off by the winds.
It was an insurance salesman's nightmare as virtually every home in
Suburbs, Malindela, Kumalo, Killarney, Parklands and Ilanda had
extensive water damage.
The hail came in totally horizontally powered by gale force winds
and
in twenty minutes, that little scorpion got his revenge on us all.
We in Suburbs received 40 mls rain, our carpets were flooded, trees
uprooted, gardens smashed beyond recognition.
Our gigantic Mozambican Fig tree, the Faraway tree to every child
in
Bulawayo, haven to hammerkops, gymnogenes and hundreds of bats and
doves, received a battering that denuded it of seventy percent of
its
foliage.
But the most bizarre happening was that we found thirty two dead
doves under the tree when we returned unwittingly from dinner to
find
the storm devastation.
The cats were having a field day !! The dogs brought me dazed dove
after dove gently in their mouths to be transported to a warm dry
recovery ward. But we still counted 32 casualties in the morning.
However when the sun came up the next day the doves were despatched
as dinner to a friend who runs an owl sanctuary. The Food Chain
perpetuates !!
The loose carpets were hauled out into the sun and the fitted
carpets
may or may not survive.
The damage will be costly to all the residents in that area and
Borealis was chastised liberally for her secret arachnid sin !!
But hey, in spite of the storm, we in Matabeleland are grateful for
every drop of rain no matter what shape or form it comes !!!
To Fiona Hackland (nee Ross) and Andrew Hackland
a daughter Sarah Francis Hackland in Capetown on Friday 3 November
Second granddaughter for Dave and Judith Smith and Malcolm and
Lesley
Ross
DAVE CINAMON TRAGICALLY KILLED, DEEPEST SYMPATHY TO TESSA AND TTHE
CHILDREN
++++++++
DAVID CINAMON
John and Hedy, Your son changed our lives when he entered it and
he
has changed it once again now. There are so many lessons to learn
from him and we are going to miss him so very much. It was a
privilege to have him as our friend and the love felt for him by so
many is a testament to the Cinamon Family as a whole. Tess my
dearest friend, we are here for you the the girls always.
Much love and prayers to you all
Wishing you long life - Heath and Nadine Streak & Children
++++++++++++ +++++
AVNER ELKAIM PASSED AWAY ON THE 11TH NOVEMBER 2006 AFTER A LONG
ILLNESS MOST BRAVELY BORNE. BELOVED HUSBAND OF RONNIE, ADORED AND
RESPECTED FATHER OF ILAN, ROBIN AND DANNY AND GRANDFATHER OF
GABRIELLE, ZAC CHELSEA AND ADAM.
++++++++++++ +++++++++ +++++++++ +++++++++ +++++++++ +++++++++ +++++++
DEEPEST SYMPATHY TO THE FAMILY OF
Graham Valentine Wilkinson
A memorial service for the
Late Graham Valentine Wilkinson will be held at
10.00 a.m. on Tuesday, November 21st, 2006,
at the Baptist Church, George Silundika/2nd St.,
Bulawayo. The service will be followed by tea in
the Church hall.
++++++++++++
CONDOLENCE
Graham Wilkinson - Passed away in the U.K. on
November 6th,2006, after a long illness. Deepest
sympathy to Dee, Graham, Ian & Sean in the sad
loss of their husband and father.
Our love & thoughts are with you.
Brenda & Don Ferguson
++++++++++++ ++
ANDERSON - TINA. A WONDERFUL MOTHER AND FRIEND, YOU SUFFERED FOR
TOO
LONG, MAY EVERYDAY FROM NOW ON BE PEACEFUL. WE WILL MISS YOU
DEARLY
AND CHERISH ALL THE WONDERFUL MEMORIES YOU SHARED WITH US. FOREVER
IN OUR HEARTS IS WHERE YOU WILL BE. THANK YOU FROM THE BOTTOM OF
OUR
HEARTS FOR BEING SUCH A SPECIAL MOTHER - LOVE YOU ALWAYS SHAYNE,
CARL
AND LIZA
THE MEMORIAL SERVICE FOR TINA ANDERSON WILL TAKE PLACE AT THE
ANGLICAN CHURCH OF ASCENSIONS, 73 LEANDER AVE, HILLSIDE AT 3:30PM
ON
TUESDAY 21ST NOVEMBER 2006. NO FLOWERS BY REQUEST, DONATION IN
LIEU
OF BREAST CANCER ASSOCIATION CARE OF SHEILA GILL 242486
++++++++
I read in an issue of Morning Mirror in the condolences that Brigitte
Robas passed away. She came to us for financial help earlier this
year and
we saw her on a regular basis but I did notice that she did not
appear as
usual last week to collect her donation. This did raise my concern
but I had
no way of contacting her so when I read her name in condolences I was
extremely shocked as she was so young. Does any one know what
happened to
her? I am just curious and concerned.
Thanks very much
Wanya Cooper repton@gatorzw. com
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
7 TIDBITS
The Zimbabwean is proud to announce The WOZA Primary School
Children's story competition (named in honour of the WOZA women's
brave protests against exorbitant school fees in Zimbabwe)
Our exciting new competition is open to all children who will be
going into Grades 5, 6 or 7 next year (2007). 100 lucky children
will
win school fees for a year, payable to a rural or high-density
council, government or mission school only.
Fees will be paid directly to the school.
How to enter:
1. Write a story about something important that has happened in
your
life.
2. The story must be true. It must really have happened to you.
3. Write the story in the first person.
4. Tell what happened and how it made you feel
5. You can use false names for people and places if you want to.
6. The story must not be longer than two pages, neatly written.
7. Be as descriptive as possible.
8. Nobody except The Zimbabwean will know your real name and address.
9. All stories published will appear under your Pen Name.
10. Make sure you post your story to us in good time to reach our
office before October 31, 2006.
Competition Rules: 1. The judges' decision will be final and no
correspondence will be entered into. 2. The story must be neatly
written, not longer than two pages, on lined paper. 3. Stories can
be
written in Shona, Ndebele or English. 4. Entries must be mailed to:
The Zimbabwean My Story Competition, P O Box 6560, Harare, and must
arrive before October 31, 2006. 5. Winners will be notified in the
first week of December 2006. 6. Only one entry per pupil will be
accepted. 7. Please mark your name and address, and the name and
address of your school clearly on the top of the first page. Your
name and address will be kept confidential by The Zimbabwean. 8.
Please also choose a Pen Name for yourself and write it next to
your
real name. 9. School fees will be paid directly to the school each
term and an attendance report will be requested from the
headmaster.
10. Copyright of the winning stories will be held by The Zimbabwean
and we reserve the right to publish them as we see fit. The top 10
stories will be published in The Zimbabwean.
+++++++
"Never save something for a special occasion. Every day in your
life
is a special occasion".
++++++++
TO ALL ZIMBABWES SCATTERLINGS ALL OVER THE WORLD
Normal day, let me be aware of the treasure you are ... Let me not
pass you by in quest of some rare and perfect tomorrow. One day I
shall dig my nails into the earth, or bury my face in my pillow, or
stretch myself taut, or raise my hands to the sky and want, more
than
all the world, your return. --Mary Jean Iron
PLEASE NOTE THAT THE MIRROR CAN ONLY DEAL WITH E MAIL QUERIES, PLEASE DO NOT PHONE IN YOUR ADVERTS AND QUERIES... ONLY E-MAILS WILL BE CONSIDERED