A BROKEN HEART

Short story by TIISETSO THIBA

Like any other enamoured partners showing love to each other in the beginning, S’putla and Dimakatso resided in one of the locations near Kuruman Town. They started everything together after their beautiful marriage in the early 80’s. This pair essentially typified people that believe in the live-stock, like cattle and farming because it seemed like it was a pedigree because both their parents owned pairs of cattle and sheep.

Three years after their marriage they were blessed with a baby boy, which was huge! To celebrate this many cows were slaughtered for honourable guests and uninvited guests from the location and afar. Some wags maintain “darkies” love meat so much and we always scrutinize the party or funeral before we attend and make sure that the meat and free booze is available!

Sputla and Dimakatso lived a happy and lovely life together in their marriage, while God continued to bless them with children and wealth. Dikamatso wa a teacher in profession and Sputla had a degree in Agriculture and worked at one of the Agricultural department around Kuruman, and he also adored his animals and farm – perhaps even more than his wife but he was the only one who knew this! One day Sputla took a huge risk, a precipitous decision by resigning from his permanent job that made them survive. Dimakatso didn’t have much to say because her husband convinced her, though she kept unpleasant feelings inside and flashed a pretentious grin apparently showing that she supported her husband.

Things changed from good to bad when Sputla thereafter spent most of his time in the veld with the animals he loved, because they were multiplying in number and needed special attention.

As time went on Dimakatso started to get lonely and missed S’putla a lot because he was absent from home most of the times, and when he came home during the week or on weekends, he arrived home with his tongue out, tired like a location dog! What he wanted was bed only and nothing more. In his mind he was doing it for his family to survive and make their life better, so poverty or hunger did not dog them; but it was killing his wife without him knowing it.

In the past they had decided to hire a gardener, George, to help around when S’putla was not around and they offered him a backroom in their yard because he was coming from a remote area few miles from S’putla’s location. George used to go home on weekends and his toil was to look after the yard as a whole including pats in the yard.

It was on a fateful Tuesday evening around eight when Dimakatso lay in the bed she shared with her husband S’putla watching TV with the children asleep that time already. Alas. This was when evil visited her mind and she was deep in her thoughts, missing her husband as if he were dead. It had been two weeks not seeing him and not hearing from him because “network” in the jungle was inadequate and she missed him really. Presently, she called George to come and keep her company and gulp some mature wine together.

George was confused after she got a phone call from Dimakatso, thinking of lots of things - but in the end he felt that he had no choice but to come because she was the boss!

He arrived in S’putla’ paradise with lots of blood flooding abnormally in his veins, sweating as if he was going to testify in court! But Dimakatso told him to feel at home and granted him a comfortable chair to relax on. They had a chat and Dimakatso also offered George a glass of wine with refilling going on non-stop. George started to relax and chat like they were buddies from high school. After three hours of a good conversation Dimakatso lost sight of his mind...

The next morning she was aghast as she espied, on the customary side of her husband, George fast asleep with blankets running around his bare chest. She thought she was dreaming but it was reality and she wished she could ask God to open the earth and swallow her as she profoundly regretted her deeds. She blamed S’putla for chasing animals and money and leaving her in the lurch...it was as if she was single those times she wished she could speak to him or touch her. She died inside with her secret and for a long time did not tell S’putla what she had done because she was avoiding parting ways with S’putla.

On one Friday when S’putla arrived home in the evening during the time of hen’s and cattle’s to sleep, before he kicked out his boots, after sweating the whole day, Dimakatso overwhelmed him with fake happiness and said: “My Husband we are going to have our fourth baby.”

S’putla jumped like he was no longer tired and hugged her with happiness etched on his round face like a ball, pity he did not know that he was not the father; it was George the gardener’s child. Yet he raised the new child with love and sometimes took him along to the farm during holiday’s time until hair harvested itself under their armpit.

Dimakatso decided to come clean after 19 years of keeping this gnawing secret away from her husband and she felt guilty and dishonest each and every breath she counted; and that was when all hell broke loose. By now she and S’putla were grey; S’putla was relaxing under the tree enjoying the shadow of the berries’ tree. She broke the news wearily, as if she did not care for S’putla’s acceptance of the news.

Her husband seemed transfixed; he didn’t say a word and opened wide his eyes. How could this be? It was the last straw of his life. He was pole-axed, his life became a terrible hell. He just could not cope and the secret became known to the world. It was a shock to society, with many pondering whom they could trust, married or not...