Tsidi's sad story

When we moved from Johannesburg to Bloemfontein four years ago a miracle walked into our lives. Isabel was far along and about to give birth to our first born. We were on the lookout for a domestic help with no luck. That is until an angel named Alina knocked on our door. From the first day we got along very well. We decided to pay Alina far above the minimum wage required in South Africa and helped her with what we could. Alina is a truly remarkable women. She once made the newspaper when she took in a homeless white family into her humble home for a few days.

Alina had a husband and a daughter called Tsidi. Tsidi were about five at the time and my son immediately developed a bond with her. So it came that Tsidi visited us often and one time even went along on a family vacation. We came to notice that Tsidi was quite eager to learn and smart, always asking questions and listening attentively to everything we say.

Then I took my current position in Delmas. We told Alina that we were about to move and thanked her for her faithful service. To this she simply replied that she refuse to work for somebody else and that she is willing to move with her husband and Tsidi to Delmas. Things worked out well. Our home had a sufficient servant quarter and Alina liked the place. By the time we moved here, Tsidi were grade 1. I made arrangements for her to be put in an Afrikaans Primary school. To our horror we learned that in the six months she was in her township school in Bloemfontein, she learned neither to read or write a word. Every evening my wife faithfully sat with Tsidi and tried to make up for lost time since her own mom and dad could barely read or write. It bore fruit. At the end of last year Tsidi finished as one of the top in her class and did her work and even read extra books in her spare time. We felt glad and excited about her future.

Then her mother aged 46 fell pregnant. We found this strange because while we were in Bloemfontein she developed problems and was put on a waiting list for a hysterectomy. Being pregnant at such an age put strain on Alina. Her work quality and attitude declined. She announced that she wanted to return to Bloemfontein and rest until the baby was to be born. We gave her her allowed four months maternity leave on which she still is. The baby was born and apparently healthy. Tsidi and her dad stayed behind in Delmas so that Tsidi could continue with her schooling.

For a while everything went well. Then Tsidi started to miss her mother which one can understand. All of a sudden, Alina demanded the child be brought back to Bloemfontein promptly. She barely finished the school term and was taken to Bloemfontein which we thought to be a good thing as long as she would return in time for the next school term. However to this day Tsidi still hasn't showed up. What's worse she hasn't been put in another school for two terms now. She was already to old for her year group and even if she returns now the school will not take her back in. A future wasted and there is nothing I can do about it. I want to cry when I think about it.