Tierra in Botswana: Kanye

Statue outside of the home

What can I say? It is impossible to summarize my 2 and a half day experience in Kanye. I can only imagine how advanced I would be in speaking Setswana had I stayed there for a week or two. The people in Kanye are more traditional than those who live in Gabs. Yes there are times when people do not greet you or acknowledge their elders, but for the most part, everyone is kind. Their lifestyle is similar to the country life.

The animals roam free and share the roads with the people. There are donkeys with black, white, grey and tan fur and they are much bigger than Donkey in Shriek. The cows have not been dehorned and their cowbells reach your ears before they reach your sight. The goats are so sweet and child-like. They just walk along the roads and look at you. The dogs are everywhere, jumping up on you to play and be fed. I've never seen so many loose dogs in my life.

The Kgotla is an advisory board led by elders and chiefs who settle civil disputes. They listen to the grievances of both parties then decide which action is best. The entire process follows a traditional format. For example, there is a circle dipping into the floor; it is positioned directly in front of the chief. Whenever someone is heading towards the chief, he or she must walk around the circle and then proceed. To walk through the circle or along its sides would be taking a shortcut and that is unacceptable. Another tradition is the seating procedure. Women are to always sit behind the men in the Kgotla or wait in another location until the hearing is over. Clothing is important too. Men are to wear long pants (not shorts) and long sleeve shirts. They must look presentable. Women are to wear skirts below the knee, long sleeve shirts or a scarf drapped around the shoulders and a hat or scarf to cover their hair.

The man I am photoed with is actually a chief. During our Q&A session he addressed our questions about marriage, polygamy, diviniation healing and so forth. My question was, "Before Christianity, what were the traditional beliefs?" The chief offered his keen insight and then suggested I marry his son. He said he was my father in law now. During the mock Kgotla meeting, he even called me up as his daughter in law. We couldn't stop laughing because from then on, he introduced me to everyone as his daughter in law from America. This man was also an oral poet which I thought was impressive.

He is then pictured with a woman wearing a brown top and blue scarf. This woman is the sister of a previous chief. Her brother died in 1994 and was the last chief to be burried in the yard. After speaking with her one on one, I learned that her home was a resting place for Nelson Mandela. He passed through Kanye in order to safely reach his next destination. But she was just a little girl then. And now she is loving alone, caring for a house built in 1928. Nana, as she instructed me to call her will be turning 70 in the next couple weeks.

Pictures from the Kgotla