The Little Mermaid of Mbare

OUTCAST – THE LITTLE MERMAID

An adaptation of The Little Mermaid by H. C. Andersen - written by Victor Mavedzenge, January 2005

The sun shone brilliantly on this fresh October morning. The night had been tormented by an indecisive storm that seemed to come and go at odd hours of the night. She hadn’t slept well that night. Her thoughts were muddled as the storms. On the street, upon which she stared so gaily, was the goings on of the morning in the “high density” suburb she dwelt. The drunkards were still trying to figure out the way home as their knees bent to the weight of an uncoordinated body that was fighting the effects of too much alcohol in the system. There was a lady who sold floor polish every morning: one would not need an alarm clock in this area as loudly announced her product on a very regular time slot. She made it sound as though it was the first of its kind the world. The girl watching all this couldn’t help but smile to herself.

There were problems every day in the Ghetto but the energy and genuine spirit of joy was never completely effaced by this. The little boys played with their homemade plastic balls on the street – school uniforms flying unbuttoned - they didn’t have to go to school because it was weekend. This whole scene of happy activity made her smile to herself and the world around her.

In her family she was known for her smile, it was the same on the streets and everywhere she went. She had every reason to smile for she had two beautiful sisters who were wonderful to her and always had time for her. Her father too was a kind man with wise words. A waiter in the big city who was sadly taken away one fateful evening at work by a heart attack prompted by pressures of a tough economy. The three girls were now left with their unemployed mother. Of late she had resorted to selling her wares at a busy bus terminus to supplement the family income.

There was always a joyous spirit in their home. Though money was elusive, love was abundant. Sometimes it was this love that pulled them through the day when things were really tough. Her eldest sister worked odd jobs in the city, never at the same place for too long. Coming back home, she would complaint about the conditions and male chauvinists at work; how her sexuality would be taken advantage of and so on. These were the reasons she gave for quitting so many jobs. Her other sister was more