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Kenyan Sunrise, Chapter One......................... |
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Read Kenyan Sunrise by June Coeln, chapter one here... To buy this book please email:june.c@hotmail.com Editorial Reviews Chiru
is an eleven-year-old Kikuyu girl. She lives on a tea
plantation in Kenya with her father, who is the foreman on the
plantation, her mother, who is an ayah and her baby brother
who she adores. Chiru dreams of one day attending school.
Sitara, twelve years old but going on twenty, arrives from
India to live with her father who manages the plantation.
Friendship quickly blossoms between the two girls. Sitara's
mother is against her daughter's friendship with an African
girl and initially tries to put a stop to it. Her qualms
eventually evaporate as she realises that Sitara can in fact
learn a few things from Chiru. This is a warm story of
friendship, racial differences and how two cultures get along.
their daily trials and tribulations. their joys and their
sorrows. Beautiful sceneries and the interaction between these
two families come alive on each page. Will Chiru's dream come
true?
Chapter
One
‘Jambo Chiru,’ the askari greeted her, on his way home
from night duty. Chiru guessed that it was 6:00 am as that was the
usual time the security guard finished his shift. She waved to
him, calling out a cheerful jambo.
‘I thought I’d find you here, Chiru, you like the
morning don’t you?’ Mama Jane, Chiru’s mother said, coming
up behind her. She touched Chiru’s smooth chocolate coloured
skin fleetingly before sitting down beside her. Chiru turned to
look at her mother lovingly, thinking how short she was for a
Kikuyu woman, not more than one metre fifty. Her black hair was
braided in neat little lines, clearly outlining the white of her
scalp. Her full lips always had a ready smile and her smooth ebony
skin shone in the dawn light. Mother and daughter sat in silence
for a while just watching the glorious orange ball creep further
and further up the sky, leaving the Limuru Hills behind. Suddenly,
a gust of wind blew, making them wrap their kangas tightly around
their shoulders to keep the cold at bay. ‘Well
I have to get the fire started,’ mama Jane said, absently
rubbing at the dry skin on her lips, ‘although I wish I could
stay seated in this position the whole day. Will you help me Chiru?’ Jumping
up, Chiru quickly knotted the kanga around her small shoulders.
She went over to the jiko; charcoal stove, and deftly prodded the
coals, starting the fire. Placing a blackened saucepan with equal
amounts of water and milk on the fire, she then added a handful of
tea leaves picked from last year’s harvest. In a while the
strong aroma of milky tea filled the air. Chiru carried the
saucepan into the house and poured it into three enamel mugs. She
could tell from the chipped, cracked paint and blackened edges;
that these mugs had been well used over time. ‘Jambo
Chiru and how is my girl today?’ Chiru’s father asked, picking
up his tea cup and sitting on the rickety chair by the wooden
table. The old chair made a loud protesting sound from under his
weight. ‘I’m
fine father,’ Chiru replied smiling broadly. Her white teeth
gleamed and the gap between her perfect front teeth stood out
visibly against her pink gums. Entering
the kitchen, Mama Jane took a small white plastic bowl from the
cracked table top. A couple of ants crawled around the edge of the
sugar bowl and she quickly flicked them away. Carefully she poured
two teaspoonfuls of coarse brown sugar into each mug, stirring
quickly. Then sitting down between Chiru and her father, they all
drank their morning tea. ‘Today,
help your mother Chiru, as you know that tomorrow evening Mr.
Kumar’s family will be arriving from ‘Yes
father,’ Chiru replied. Standing
up John Kamau picked up his big straw hat from the nail on the
kitchen wall and walked out the door, telling them that he would
see them in the evening. Chiru
watched her father stride away, his lithe frame barely touching
the ground, his milk chocolate coloured skin glowed in the morning
light. Breaking off a long blade of grass, he stuck it in his
mouth and started to chew. Chiru giggled, her father just
couldn’t seem to break his grass chewing habit!
The sound of her mother’s bare feet on the cement floor
made Chiru turn. Mama Jane explained what she required from her
during the course of the day.
Then waving to Chiru, who, once again was leaning against
the doorway, she too left to start her day at the Kumar household.
Daniel’s
whimpering, jolted Chiru away from the entrance. She found him
lying on the thin mattress in the corner of the tiny bedroom they
both shared. The paint was peeling off the walls and the once
white colour was now almost cream. Chiru hoped that her father’s
new boss would consider re-painting the small house. From the
conversations father held with mama, Chiru could guess that her
father preferred Mr. Kumar to the old boss, a mzungu - white man,
who was often mean and very grumpy. Chiru
tickled Daniel under the chin before she picked him up, playing a
while with her brother. Daniel gurgled calling out, ‘Ru! Ru!’
Unable to pronounce ‘Chiru’ as yet. Bending to take the kanga,
colourful piece of material worn by African women like sarongs,
from the mattress, Chiru skillfully tied Daniel around her waist,
knowing that this way she would get more work done without having
to look for him in different parts of the house. Even though he
had only just started walking he could be as fast as lightning,
sometimes surprising Chiru by his rapidity. In the kitchen Chiru
poured some milk from the white and green tetra pak pyramid into a
small blue plastic cup and handed it over her back to Daniel.
Grabbing the cup from her, he spilt a few drops on the floor,
while he greedily drank the cool milk. Once through, Daniel
cheekily threw the cup on the ground chortling gleefully. ‘Naughty
boy! It’s a good thing that cup is plastic. How come you never
do that with mama eh? You think it’s funny every time I have to
bend down to pick the cup up.’ ‘Up,
up,’ Daniel said wriggling his plump body, in an effort to get
off his sister’s back. Daniel
was fifteen months old, the chubbiest baby ever. His skin colour
was like his father’s, milk chocolate. His bald head was finally
beginning to grow fine black curly hair. His wide black eyes were
permanently twinkling with mischief and when he smiled you could
just see his four milk teeth against his small lips. Chiru loved
him dearly and didn’t mind that she had to take care of him when
her mother went to clean the boss’ house. Sometimes she
considered herself his miniature mother. Bending
to pick up the pile of clothes from the colourful plastic bucket
in the kitchen, Chiru headed outside. Today there was a lot of
washing to get done. Reaching the outside tap, she quickly soaked
the clothes in a bucket that was half filled with water. Knowing
that water was scarce, Chiru used it sparingly. Water only ran in
the outside taps from six to nine in the evenings. During this
time Chiru or her mother meticulously filled several buckets and
jerry cans to enable them to do the washing, cooking, cleaning and
bathing. However, in the boss’ house water flowed freely in the
taps the entire day. Pouring a small handful of very blue
detergent into the bucket, Chiru started to scrub the clothes.
Daniel, who was quite content to be on her back, cheerfully
gurgled and cooed while Chiru talked to him about how much she
loved life on the plantation and her dream of going to school one
day. ‘Hello
Mary, helping your mother with the washing?’ Mr. Kumar stuck his
head out of the car window; a dark green Morris Minor that was so
well washed and buffed that Chiru could practically see her tiny
face reflected in the door. ‘Yes
bwana,’ Chiru answered timidly, surprised that she hadn’t
heard the car drive up. ‘Good
girl, you know that my wife and daughter will be coming down
tomorrow from Chiru
let out a slow breath, thankful that he had finally driven away.
That was the longest time Mr Kumar had spoken to her. She was
terrified of the big boss, even though she knew that he was a kind
man. He had called her by her Christian name, Mary. Mr Manish
Kumar was shorter than her father but much broader. His
pitch-black hair was always well oiled, with the parting to the
right. Chiru thought about his tawny eyes twinkling when he said
that Sitara could learn from her. What had he meant by that? How
Chiru couldn’t wait for tomorrow. Would she like this Indian
girl? He said that Sitara was twelve, so just a year older than
her. She had wanted to tell Mr. Kumar that she was eleven years
old but was far to shy. She and Sitara would have lots to talk
about Chiru hoped. She didn’t get the chance to meet many
Indians here on the plantation, especially not children. Sometimes
when she went to the small kiosk she would see Indian women at the
grocery store opposite. Chiru enjoyed looking at their colourful
saris and the way they were so elegant. She wondered if it took
them a long time to get dressed. Maybe if Sitara and her became
good friends she would ask her. Having
rinsed the clothes, Chiru straightened up, wriggled her shoulders,
while at the same time she tried to get Daniel into a more
comfortable position on her back. Then, she walked over to the
clothesline, wrung each item thoroughly before hanging it up to
dry. A tiny droplet of sweat slowly trickled down her brow.
Lifting her right shoulder she wiped it away on her blue cotton
blouse, then untied the knot from the kanga and carefully lowered
Daniel to the ground. ‘How
heavy you are Dan, soon I won’t be able to carry you on my back
any more.’ No
sooner on the ground, Daniel grabbed a handful of red soil and
tried to stuff his little fingers in his mouth. ‘No
Dan, you can’t eat mud!’ Chiru said, dusting the soil away.
‘Come let’s go back home and I will give you something better
to eat.’ Chiru
gave her hand to Daniel who unsteadily got on his feet, then
flopped down again. Laughing out loud, Chiru grabbed hold of him,
placed him on his feet, and told him that he was like a baby
elephant. Daniel gingerly took a step forward and waddled at her
side. They giggled all the way back to the house. The
cool interior of the house was a welcome relief from the already
hot sunrays. Shading her eyes to look at the sun Chiru guessed
that it must be a little past noon. Propping Daniel on the cool,
clean cement floor, Chiru turned to open the small wooden cupboard
with wire mesh in front. Poking her little head around the
confined interior she finally found half a bread loaf between the
sugar bowl and a tin of dried red beans. On the shelf below she
spotted the small yellow and blue tub of Blue Band margarine.
Spreading four slices of bread with margarine she made sandwiches
for herself and her little brother. Hungrily they both ate. Every
now and then Chiru dusted off breadcrumbs from her rounded chin.
Going back to the cupboard, she removed a small enamel jug with
red roses on it. The water from the jug was wonderfully cool and
Chiru poured it into two plastic cups for herself and Daniel. ‘Don’t
you feel better now that we have eaten Dan? Tonight mama will cook
us some fish with posho- Kenyan beans, you’ll like that. Come
now let’s go to the big house and see if I can help mama.’ Once
again Chiru tied Daniel on her back. Grabbing a small green
blanket from his mattress, on her way out, she then walked the
short distance towards the Kumar’s house. The garden looked
forlorn with not a flower in sight and the red soil felt hot
against Chiru’s bare feet. The previous boss had no family and
therefore wasn’t interested in a garden even though mama had on
several occasions suggested planting a few flowers or even
vegetables. The house was big and the whitewashed walls were
dazzling in the afternoon sunlight. Two bright orange plastic
chairs stood on the large wooden veranda. Chiru had only been here
a few times but she was always awestruck by the immensity of the
house. She carefully wiped her dusty feet on the coir mat in front
of the steps and entered through the kitchen door. ‘Mama,
where are you?’ She barely whispered. She could hear her mother
singing softly in Kikuyu and silently followed the sound. Mama
Jane was on her hands and knees busy mopping one of the bedroom
floors with a thick rag. Her headscarf had almost come undone and
hang lopsidedly on her right ear. By her side stood a metal bucket
half filled with soapy water. ‘Mama?’
Mama
Jane’s hand slipped over the wet floor and she almost toppled
over in her surprise. ‘Chiru,
what are you doing here?’ her mother asked worriedly, wiping her
wet hands on her green and white checked apron. ‘You gave me
such a fright, I almost slipped.’ ‘I
didn’t mean to frighten you,’ Chiru said, trying hard not to
giggle at the sight of her mother almost toppling over. ‘I just
came to see if I could help you with anything. I washed the
clothes and Daniel and I ate some margarine sandwiches.’ ‘Good
girl Chiru,’ mama Jane said. She untied her headscarf and then
re-tied it carefully behind her damp neck. The collar of her
floral dress was damp with perspiration. ‘Come,
you can wipe all the shelves in the kitchen for me as that’s the
only thing left to do,’ Mama Jane said, caressing Daniel’s
smooth cheek. Chiru
followed her mother to the kitchen, then placed the green blanket
on the floor in the corner, un-knotted Daniel, and laid him down
for his afternoon nap. Yawning widely Daniel stuck two fingers in
his pouting mouth, shut his eyes and in no time was fast asleep. Mama
Jane bent to stroke his partly bald head and gently kissed him on
his cheek. Turning, she kissed Chiru too. ‘Thank
you my daughter for being so good,’ she said. Bending
over the stone sink in front of the big kitchen windows, mama Jane
filled a small basin with water from the tap, then handed Chiru a
rag with a little bit of detergent and explained how she wanted
the shelves cleaned. ‘Be
very careful Chiru not to break anything, as you know that we
cannot afford to re-pay what has been broken.’ She rubbed her
smooth brown forehead, something she did Chiru knew when she was
tired. Immediately
Chiru began working on the shelves. The sooner she finished the
quicker they could go home allowing mama to relax a bit. Carefully
she removed glasses and plates and placed them on the long wooden
table in the centre of the kitchen. The wide shelves were coated
with a thin layer of dust. Quickly Chiru wiped the shelves clean
then, finding a clean soft cloth in one of the drawers she
diligently wiped all the glasses and china plates. Once through
with her work Chiru surveyed the kitchen with a hawk’s eye. Mama
had sparkled the cement floor with red polish. The big kitchen
windows gleamed with not a streak in sight. Chiru opened the
window and stuck her head out. She caught sight immediately of the
enormous Jacaranda tree that was in full bloom, being early
January and ever so pretty. The purple bell-like flowers
completely covered the entire tree, the long stalks of tiny green
leaves, could only partially be seen. It was a breath-taking
sight. Several of the delicate flowers had fallen creating a
purple carpet at the foot of the tree, which was an even lovelier
vision. Chiru absently wondered why these flowers didn’t last
long on their branches. Further ahead she could see the green
Limuru Hills, dusky in the falling light. ‘Chiru,
it’s time we went home. Have you finished?’ ‘Yes,
mama’, Chiru replied. She turned and shut the window behind her,
careful not to leave her finger marks on the panes. Mama
Jane picked up Daniel who was awake now and busy chewing at the
end of the green blanket. Chiru checked that she hadn’t
forgotten any nook or cranny, and then mother and daughter left
the house firmly closing the door behind them. Tired
but happy they walked back home. Twilight was quickly falling,
turning the cloudless sky from sapphire blue to varying shades of
grey. Chiru thought about tomorrow when she would meet the new Indian girl, Sitara. Perhaps life would be different for her on the tea plantation with a new friend, she fervently hoped..................................................... To
buy this book please email: june.c@hotmail.com
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