Memoirs Of A Play-White: The Autobiography & Other Writings

Memoirs of a Play-White

Trilogy Part 1

Memoirs of a Play-White

Trilogy Part 1

Helene Louiesa Mynhardt

Copyright © 2018 Helene Louiesa Mynhardt

Published by Helene Louiesa Mynhardt Publishing at Smashwords

First edition 2018

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or any information storage or retrieval system without permission from the copyright holder.

The Author has made every effort to trace and acknowledge sources/resources/individuals. In the event that any images/information have been incorrectly attributed or credited, the Author will be pleased to rectify these omissions at the earliest opportunity.

Published by Helene Louiesa Mynhardt using Reach Publishers’ services,

Edited by Lorna King for Reach Publishers

Cover designed by Reach Publishers

P O Box 1384, Wandsbeck, South Africa, 3631

Website: www.reachpublishers.co.za

E-mail: reach@webstorm.co.za

Dedication

In loving memory of my late mother, Doris Maynard, who made numerous sacrifices and faced many challenges to enable me to graduate from high school.

Contens

Dedication

Acknowledgements

Chapter 1

Early Days

Chapter 2

Birth Registration Woes

Chapter 3

Segregation

Chapter 4

Accomplice In Crime

Chapter 5

Standard Chartered Bank Employment

Chapter 6

Entertainment

Chapter 7

First Democratic Elections

Acknowledgements

I wish to express my sincere gratitude to my employer Standard Bank of South Africa Limited. Long before BEE became law in South Africa, Standard Bank provided me with a contract on their vendor panel. This opportunity and experience enriched my life and that of my family immensely. A big thank you to them for this gesture!

To Reach Publishers: I would not have been able to publish this book without your guidance, support, dedication and commitment. You helped me turn my dream of becoming an author into reality.

Last but not least, a big thank you to my husband Harold Thomas who was prepared to sacrifice my income to enable me to live my dream. Without his sacrifice and encouragement, I would never have been successful.

Chapter 1

Early Days

In the poorest rural areas, it was a given fact that women were in the majority, and often they had to take on the role of caregiver, meaning it was difficult for them to get employment opportunities. Elena was a frail 13-year-old Coloured orphan when she gave birth to her daughter Doris, a healthy baby weighing four kilograms at birth with a crazy mass of brown curls on her head. Elena had no parents or siblings to guide her on parenting, but she was nonetheless proud of her baby and took care of her as a single mother. Although the child’s father was absent from her life, he provided financially for their upkeep. His support did not amount to much, but it helped to keep the pots boiling.

Elena’s auburn curly hair was always neatly tied in a bun. She had a distinct birthmark on her cheek, and clearly noticeable dimples. She was a softly spoken person with a generous spirit and gentle smile. Her kind and caring nature made her a favourite with the locals, and she was an active community member who truly cared for her fellowmen. Elena nurtured, educated, nursed, dressed and fed Doris. Despite not being able to work because she was taking care of Doris, she was still perceived as the person responsible for feeding the family.

Elena planted a large garden of potatoes, carrots, lettuce, pumpkins, beans, and radishes, which ensured the family ate daily nutritious meals. She also cared for chickens and sold eggs. Fellow community members planted other types of vegetables and fruit and bartered with each other. Their protein intake consisted of mopane worms – large edible caterpillars found mostly on the Mopane tree. That was how they survived in rural Transkei. The spouses of these rural women living in the villages, all stayed in single male hostels in affluent suburbs due to the lack of employment in rural areas.

Doris’ home language was Xhosa, with English being her second language. Xhosa was her mother’s home language and English was her father’s. Women were not expected to concern themselves with matters outside the home – that was the domain of men – and economic activity beyond the home was acceptable, but not considered feminine.

Doris lived with Elena in a rural area of Umtata in the Transkei. Her primitive mud house had walls of unbaked earth, which was built from moulded sun-dried blocks mixed with straw and manure to provide increased strength. It was brightly painted and had a thatch roof made from straw which shed water and provided thermal insulation. However, often when it rained the house would be consumed by water.

Locals would steal sheep from the farmers and misled the children into believing that they consumed meat on the day it rained. They would pour water on the roof on the day of the theft and meat consumption, so that when the investigators turned up to find the culprit who stole the sheep, they would ask the children when they last ate meat. The children would respond: We last ate meat on the day it rained. It goes without saying, the thieves used to make sure they did not steal sheep on rainy days.

The floor of their house was manure that had been dried out after it was laid. This proved to be dangerous as it could easily be set alight by negligent visitors or smoking. Locals were unable to buy cigarettes due to their limited income and vast distance from shops, but they used to buy Horseshoe Tobacco which was sold in a white bag closed with a shoestring. The tobacco was rolled in brown paper, the sides were sealed with spit, and the front and back were cut off. This was called a zol and was freshly prepared because tobacco tends to dry out quickly and lose its flavour. Smokers would light the front portion of the zol and inhale the smoke, thereafter exhaling it while puffing out smoke bubbles. This puffing continued until the zol was completely finished. Smokers used to gather in circles and enjoy their smokes. Tobacco supplies were scarce and they worked frugally with what they had, because if they ran out of tobacco they would have to wait until someone brought additional supplies from the suburban areas.

Collecting water was traditionally considered a woman’s role in Umtata. It may have seemed like a simple task, but for many women it was very difficult. Wells were far from home, forcing women to walk long distances to collect water. They had to carry large buckets of water on their heads, and if you weren’t sure how to balance it, water could be spilt and another trip would be required. This valuable time could have been used doing other important activities.

There was no clean water source near Elena’s home, so she was forced to collect water from a nearby source that was not clean – a river or swamp, contaminated with garbage, chemicals, as well as human and animal waste. That was dangerous! At the tender age of four, Doris was tasked to take over the water collection chore. Her other duties included assembling firewood and assisting in the picking and preparation of vegetables for their daily meal as well as washing dishes. When she was afforded free time, she engaged in sports activities that were challenging and aggressive. She was a husky, muscle-bound female, built solidly. She was as strong as an ox, and had the power to move heavy weights or perform physically demanding tasks boys would usually do. Her voice was raspy and was easily mistaken for that of a boy. Because her characteristics were masculine, she was convinced God had intended for her to be a boy, but had a last minute change of plan.

Doris’ parents were young and inexperienced. Her dad, Arthur, was well aware of his masculine authority and her mom had to serve him hand and foot. Her mother was forbidden to be gainfully employed because her father was the main breadwinner. Male dominance and superiority were important, and showed the man’s masculinity. He was a strict disciplinarian who had difficulty displaying his emotions or affections. Doris and Elena were scared of him, and Doris was nervous about meeting him when he returned home from his work expeditions. They saw each other several times in her lifetime because he worked in urban areas and lived in grim male hostels found around South Africa's main cities – especially in Johannesburg where everyone flocked to work on the gold mines. Migrant workers flocked to Johannesburg because they believed the streets were filled with gold. These hostels were built with the intention of providing accommodation to males only, while their partners and families had to remain in the rural areas.

Doris’ mom, Elena was baking bread when the postman arrived with an urgent telegram. She was nervous to open it because she suspected it might be news of her husband. She opened it nervously, trembling while reading it. Arthur died in an accident on Friday. She collapsed, and as Doris was nearby she went to call the elders who gave her a dose of sugar water for the shock. Elena informed them that the telegram notified her of her spouse’s death – no reason, explanation or burial details. No one knew if Arthur had a proper burial or a pauper’s burial. The priest was called for counselling, and most of the villagers came to sympathise with Elena. They held a memorial service for him because traditionally they believed a deceased man’s spirit will return to his homeland. They simultaneously celebrated his life and mourned his death.

Often men living in male hostels usually had another wife and children in suburban areas too. Elena never visited his place of employment and was unaware of his lifestyle in the suburbs. She did not receive any death certificate or benefits. Yet, she was not sad because she missed her partner. No, she was sad because she was now deprived of a partner and was left with a daughter to take care of without any financial support. Doris did not know her dad for most of her life, but she was sad because of the way her later life turned out and how she ended up. Her mom never spoke about him before or after his death – and she simply accepted his passing.

Doris’ mother, Elena, was an elegant, humble, polite woman who had no difficulty in finding a new partner. She met and briefly courted another widower, Vusi, who had three children of his own: one son and two daughters, aged 15, 17 and 23. He was a wealthy farmer who had been married twice before, and both of his wives died tragically. His farm grew many different crops and cared for a wide variety of animals. He was a hefty, tall, muscular man who displayed dominance and superiority. He was hard-headed, emotionally distant, and did not want to discuss things with Elena because she was a woman and he was the head of the house. He was a typical Zulu man, and tended to bottle things up because of their superiority complex. He did not want Elena to discuss her feelings with him and he refused to display his affections and emotions towards her.

Many of the tribal scars on his face were made with rudimentary cutting tools such as sharp pieces of stone, glass and knives. Face scarring was acceptable in the village, but in the city, it was embarrassing. Yet he was proud of his facial scars because they were part of his identity. He once said: If I met someone with similar scars, I will know we are related. The Zulu King displayed his scars and everyone looked up to him. During wars, tribes would recognise each other by their facial scars and therefore would avoid killing one another. It was a form of recognition.

Before Elena and Vusi could get married, they had to submit an application to the civil registry office of Umtata, Transkei. This document included each partner’s current marital status as well as their identity numbers. Where previous partners were deceased, death certificates were required. The ceremony itself took place after 10 days – once the marriage had been authorised – at the local magistrate’s court with two adult witnesses present. The civil marriage took place without any religious affiliation, but met the legal requirements of the government. Vusi was boastful and always told her: You are so fortunate to have met someone as accommodating as myself. Who else would take a widowed woman and her child into his house?

Her in-laws welcomed Elena as a new family member and she had to undergo a ceremony where they shared family secrets with her that had to remain family secrets. She had to wear a blanket that had to cover all the bad of the family she was marrying into, and Vusi was required to wear a headband as a way of showing he was married again.

Elena was subservient to her husband, and brought him food to eat to his heart’s content while leaving the remainder for his family. On his farm they planted corn, oats, wheat and barley, and raised cattle and hogs. Vusi paid more attention to his herd than his wife – but that was part of the Zulu tradition, men regarded women as inferior.

One of Doris’ responsibilities was to blow the leaves from the corn to clean it before it was crushed to prepare their staple food known as maize meal. The amounts were huge, and she had