Christmas letter from a ghetto kid

Dear Maliza,

Thank you for the money you sent us for Kulisimansi. Papa went to Owino for shopping and today everyone was celebrating with clothes bigger than our sizes. Papa says they will help us grow since he is yet to buy clothes again in the next five years.

We are doing well, we now live with his new wife our mother, you are slightly older than her. Papa beats us, and her as well when he is annoyed and sometimes when he is drunk. She is now pregnant and papa is happy to be able to make a total of ten children.

Our new house down in Katwe is by the water channel, some days back it rained, and the dirty water, mixed with sewerage covered our floors. We used basins to cast it out, this place is better because the water never fills up all the house like our previous home you know. And the roof also doesn’t leak, in the dry season we sleep like the Lord Mayor. Papa is happy he sold the house to enable you go to Dubai, now you are working and helping us.

My sweet Maliza, tell me what is happening to you my dear sister. I saw your photograph last time and your cheek had swollen, did that woman, the wife to your boss stop beating you? Or are you still negligent like papa says you are and that is why all that family you work for beats you. Please tell me sister, you’re the only one I have.

We are all so happy with you Maliza, because of the money you sent, we are going to eat meat on Christmas. Papa says the price of everything has gone so high but he managed to buy a kilo of meat. We had taken so long without tasting “matooke” (plantain) but we bought a bunch and we don’t expect to eat any posho on Kulisimansi.

Like I told you Maliza, we all don’t go to school anymore. Please help us to see that in 2019 we can go back to school. I told you I wanted to be a head mansiter and now my dreams are all dying. Thank you sister and Meli Kulinsimansi.

Ssegawa

This letter first appeared on Jerry Sesanga’s Facebook wall.