adminbeach of this world and eat from top restaurants but one thing that is consistent about me is that in the midst of all this scenery and beauty, I begin to miss home.
God has been good to me in that I have seen the world and have been to quite a good number of places in different countries. While this has been fun and remains fun to this day, after a while I always begin to pine for home and the food and other attractions that only home brings. It is not unusual for me to order the night before my return from a foreign destination sadza, maguru (tripe) and vegetables so that upon my arrival that will be my first meal.
That is how good it is, my home, my Zimbabwe. I hear there are many other people who are like me as well. They may enjoy the occasional trip here and there but nothing ever beats home for them, no matter where home is, it could be a plush double storey in the northern suburbs, kwedu kughetto, a flat in town, a cottage somewhere or a rural dwelling.
This week Zimbabwe marked its 33rd birthday as a free country and I was thinking, being more or less the same age with Zimbabwe myself, what it is that is so great about this birthday, or more importantly the Independence holiday and what it signifies. What came to mind first was the ability, the knowledge, the power that I, along with my age-mates and every other young Zimbabwean, have to be able to forcefully proclaim that this is our home. No matter where I go, I am able to shout it from the rooftops, without any apology that I am Zimbabwean and I take pride in that.
Yes, there are places and there have been moments when being from Zimbabwe was not looked at in positive light, especially outside our borders. But for me, there has always been great pride in identifying myself as Zimbabwean. I always smart in anger when an outsider wants to criticise my country.
I would rather do that myself; after all it is my country. No matter that I may not have money in my pocket, that things are very difficult for young people in this country and many of us have not been able to achieve quite a lot of what we would have wanted to achieve by the age of 33, we should never take for granted the fact that we are free.
I can never take for granted the fact that I am a Zimbabwean and by virtue of that can go anywhere in this country whether it be the most exclusive club or residential area and do what I want.
By carrying that green passport, I can confidently walk around knowing that I belong somewhere.
Speaking to a couple of friends about what Independence truly means to young people aged between 18 and 35, I realised that young people do appreciate the fact that we are free as a people.
One young woman who is aged 32 said for her the fact that in a free Zimbabwe she can walk into any shop, mall or restaurant and demand a service is not one she takes lightly.
As she spoke I could not help but nod in agreement with her. While we have only read about a time when people of our skin colour were not able to go into certain shops or live in certain areas, because we were not born yet when these abominable things happened, truth is there are many places in this world where walking into a particular restaurant will still earn you a couple of hostile stares. You can feel the drop in temperature when you walk into such places and you know that you will be the wrong colour.
While the service will never be denied, you can sense that you are not entirely welcome. At such moments, though words are never spoken, I always long to be back at home where nobody would dare do that to me.
Home is where I can shop in any mall, work in any company, exercise in any gym, send my children to any school, live in any neighbourhood, drink in any pub, and do whatever takes my fancy as long as I can afford it. I love that freedom. I always long for home when I come across fellow African brothers and sisters outside our borders who you can see are not happy serving you but are happier serving someone who is of lighter skin.
They practice what is called “black on black” discrimination. Not to blame them though. When you trace the origin of this practice it is easy to see that it emanates from their being told that it is fine to serve as long as the one you serve is of a “superior” colour, if I may call that. This is what Independence liberated us from. When we talk independence, as a generation in our 30s we must think of the fabulous opportunities we have had; to go to school with children from all the different races of this world and forge friendships across the races based on mutual interest.
Some among us even fell in love across the racial divide and today are raising children together, which would have been frowned upon back then when the yoke of colonialism was around us. That is what Independence brought us. Because of it, girls are able to get an education and pursue their dreams, which did not happen in the past. Today a boss can be of any colour and not just one colour. This is because as a country Zimbabwe got its independence. It is that special.
I was talking to some colleagues in broadcasting the other day and one of them was sharing how she had to come to Zimbabwe to realise her dream of having a career in the media because in the Western country where she grew up, making it in media when one is of her colour was going to be tough, if not impossible.
While the world would like to forget that such injustices exist and existed even more in the past, the truth is there are certain jobs that a dark-skinned person could not dream of having before Independence and even now in certain countries.
Are we not glad that because of the Independence we attained in 1980, here one gets opportunities based on merit rather than the colour of their skin?
Yes, I have my issues as a Zimbabwean that I would like addressed urgently but all in all, it feels good to be free.
Online Reporter