The Sunday Mail
THE cold is here.
An acute dip in temperatures this week took me down memory lane, back to the seasons of my youth when we would sleep under a pile of torn home-made blankets and huddled together for warmth in my grandmother’s hut.
Whether one’s parents were more economically privileged than others was not a factor.
Those who snored and bed-wetting specialists were part of the mix as we were bound together by the common denominator of being her grandchildren.
The nights for us seemed too short as we chatted all night long about how to approach a girl, the good news to tell and how best to win her love.
However, it was not usually rosy as we would fight when one either broke the wind or wetted the blankets and ascribed the blame to someone else because to grandma, wetting the blankets was a punishable offence.
More challenges also emerged each morning when those who woke up early would help themselves to the few jerseys available, leaving those who slept longer in the lurch.
It was worse in instances where visitors came and granny would take the few blankets we had to ensure the visitors slept in reasonable comfort.
Gentle reader, the cold is unbearable.
It is just too difficult to deal with, especially against the backdrop of limited resources.
In this day and age, things have changed a lot and we can make a difference that we do not give our hosts headaches by caring to carry enough blankets whenever we travel.
Let us also spare a thought for the poor by buying them blankets.
“Maive muGweru, panomira zvitima. Kunze kwaitonhora, juzi raiva nyoro, gumbeze raive rimwechete, ndakashaya chokufuka. Kana mbaramatonya hairwadzi Zvakadaro. Kana arohwa nemheni haafi achidaro. Chando chinouraya,” sang the late lyrist Paul “Dr Love” Matavire in this all-time classic “Chando Chinouraya”.
True to the singer’s views, the cold is just difficult to deal with if you have no resources even to light a fire.
Gentle reader, did you know that the cold has the power to expose even senior executives who splash on beer at the expense of warm apparel?
To beat the cold, it is not unusual to find someone wearing a thick layer of clothes to warm themselves. Both men and women often wear two jerseys each.
Others see it fit to absent themselves from work for lack of proper attire.
“I am sorry I cannot make it to work this week, the doctor booked me off because I have a terrible headache,” some will tell you.
“I have serious chest pains and I will see what the doctor says before I report for duty,” bosses are told.
Gentle reader, cold weather also results in people missing family gatherings like funerals which require mourners to sleep outdoors.
There are serious health challenges associated with cold weather like flus, coughs and colds.
Countless people have often found themselves on the wrong side of the law by cutting down trees indiscriminately to keep themselves warm. Others have also become subjects of ridicule after being caught stealing blankets in their communities.
Some people compromise their health and that of their families by using coal braziers which produce harmful fumes like carbon monoxide that can lead to death.
There are women who put their lovers between a rock and a hard place by turning up for appointments without warm clothing. This often results in the boyfriends being left at the mercy of the cold as they naturally donate their jerseys and overcoats to keep their heartthrobs warm.
Let us take care to survive this cold season along with our crops and animals. Shamwari tenga gumbeze!
Inotambika mughetto.
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