Uprooted Interview

(translated from Shona) 

Poet - Samantha Vazhure

Editor - Daniel Mutendi

Editor: What is poetry to you, and can you take me through your process of writing it? 

Poet: Poetry is a product of deep consciousness which is different from talking or storytelling. A poem is a story in itself, written like a song but without the gluing words that lengthen a story. The ability to produce a meaningful story without gluing words is the poet’s challenge. They have to come up with a few powerful words that leave the reader satisfied. Poetry, like prose, is a reflection of real life. It touches what happens to us at home, work, and within our society. As such, there will always be a poem out there that resonates with a reader or someone they know. I love to empower, raise awareness and consciousness, as well as highlight what I think is right or wrong. For example, a person might be a victim of hidden abuse without realising it, due to their static cultural upbringing or religious beliefs that encourage forgiveness of repeat offenders. Such beliefs cultivate hidden abuse, misogyny and narcissism, which could have devastating effects on a person’s wellbeing. The intention of culture and religion is good, but people need to be aware that there is a limit to the benefit of these beliefs (which were created by people by the way) and we should recognise when such beliefs are being used to manipulate and abuse others. Writing poetry begins as a personal journey which I would equate to writing in a diary that no one has access to, so my thoughts are authentic and precious to me. What happens after I pour my thoughts into “my diary” is I garnish them with various poetic devices to make them palatable to others. Sometimes the poems just come out ripe and ready to go, with nothing to add or subtract from them. 

Editor: So this is your debut title – what inspired you to write it?

Poet: For a very long time I quietly observed life unfolding and thought I would like to write about some of my experiences. I have learnt a lot from life, directly and through others, and I feel the time is right to share some life lessons. I am an introvert but to people with whom I am close and comfortable, I use a lot of humour in conversation, and they have always asked when I would begin to write. I had a barrier in my mind which made me think I could not handle writing for leisure. Then I learnt to meditate, a practice that brings me close to God and sharpens my creativity. Words just flow to me like downloads through meditation. 

Editor: How long did it take you to write the original poems in this collection? 

Poet: It took a few months to write them, and I continue to write every day. I selected seventy-five poems that I felt were suitable for this collection. When I started writing, I would sometimes meditate and produce up to twenty poems a day. I would go back to edit some of the poetry whilst producing more. 

Editor: And what does the title “Zvadzugwa Musango” mean? 

Poet: I am a collector of rare exotic plants, specifically cacti and succulents. One of the lessons I learnt from looking after these plants is that, plants uprooted from their natural habitat serve a purpose of adorning our homes, but us home keepers sometimes forget that the soil in our gardens is different from the soil where the plants came from. In order for exotic plants to survive, they need conditions they are acclimatised to in nature. For example, if I found an Aloe that was growing in sandy or gritty soil near a hill, when I plant it in a pot, the soil I use for it must be sandy and gritty so that it is tricked into thinking it is still in its natural habitat. If a plant got little water in its natural habitat, then I too give it little water. I see Zimbabweans and other immigrants living in the diaspora as plants uprooted from their natural habitat. As such, they should not forget where they are from by losing their authenticity, so that they stay rooted and grounded wherever they are. 

Editor: The original poetry is written in the Karanga dialect. Could you please illuminate your reasons for that? 

Poet: I am proudly of Karanga origin and love speaking in that dialect. It is my desire to see more books written in this dialect so that it does not go extinct. My view is that a lot of Zimbabweans are hugely influenced by foreign cultures and do not make enough effort to learn and preserve their own. While it is important to embrace diversity, we must not forget who we are. 

Editor: The things you write about – did they actually happen or are they figments of your imagination? Can you give examples? 

Poet: Yes, there are personal experiences in my poetry, some are other people’s experiences that evoke emotion and the energy to write. Sometimes I just remember a Karanga word that I like, and I find a story or life lesson to attach to it, so that I may raise awareness of that word and prevent its extinction. “When will you return” is a lamentation of the disappearance of my brother who went to South Africa and never returned. “It slipped” is a poem mourning the loss of an unborn child. This happened to me and many other women close to me. “Cancer” is a poem describing the hurt caused by the affliction, which took my mother and other close family and friends. Poems such as “Misfortune”, “Adversity”, Elderly white man” are experiences of other people that I felt the need to write about. Poems such as “Bones”, “Dare me” “Take this needle” all started with Karanga words I liked the sound of, and I found themes and lessons to attach to those words and turned them into poems. 

Editor: Am I right in thinking that you are drawn to issues such as equality and abuse of women? 

Poet: You are right. The subjects of inequality and abuse are very important to me, because I am a woman and I have a daughter who will one day become a woman. I attribute the issues we’re having to deal with as grownups to individual upbringings. My wish is for all children to be raised mindful of love, equality and positivity, to hopefully eliminate issues such as abuse and inequality in adulthood. These issues may seem unimportant to some, but they certainly affect the mental wellbeing of women, some of whom are mothers with a huge responsibility to raise children. The cycle must be disrupted. Some women end up in mental health institutions, and some commit suicide, depending on the extent of abuse to which they are subjected. It truly disturbs me that a creation of God might have such an effect on another creation. My anger on these matters is demonstrated in poems such as “Man is a bedbug” and “Possessed by the spirit of Manyuchi” to name a few. The poems also raise awareness to those who do not fully understand abuse and its outcomes. 

Editor: What else could be done to remedy the issue of abuse, other than how we raise our children, given that the problem is rife now in adults? 

Poet: I think if women were more united, respected each other more and lifted each other up, we would have a better chance of winning this war. Currently, we compete against each other, belittle each other, fight over men, and things like that. How do we win the battle for equality if we are abusing and weakening one another? If we as women carry on this way, we are strengthening the patriarchy and the abusers, and are cultivating the ‘divide and conquer’ ideology by weakening ourselves. The way I see it, any woman who hurts another woman is on the patriarchy’s side in the battle for equality. I touch on these issues in poems such as “Cakes with no icing”, “Beautiful just the way you are”, and “Letter to the girl child”. In “Damn it!” I congregate all women and encourage them to fight in unity against equality. 

Another way we could help ourselves is by refusing to crown undeserving men as kings. I say to women, if a man does not treat you right and you treat them like a king, this gets you nowhere. It is better to outright declare that you are precious and should be treated as such. The poems “My lord”, “Jackal”, “Blessed to be Vhudzijena’s” and “Corona” address this point. 

Poet: How did you as the editor find the poetry? 

Editor: As the elders say, eye-witnessing produces a fuller account of an event than hearsay. I learnt a lot from this poetry, and I was thoroughly fascinated by it. In most of the poems, I know at least one person who the poem might relate to. I cannot wait for my own daughters to grow up to read and learn from this book. 

Poet: Could you talk through three of your favourite poems from this collection and why they appeal to you? 

Editor: Why would you choose to corner me like this? I feel like a parent who has been asked to name their favourite child. Anyway, I will attempt to answer your question. Let me start with “Jackal”. This poem is weaved using several poetic devices that leave me riveted by how you were able to come up with the word combination. The poem is hilarious yet rhymes throughout, whilst thoroughly scrutinising the energy depleting behaviour of a foolish man. Then “Sleep paralysis”, something I experience myself if I fall asleep on my back. The story told in this poem reminds me of sleep paralysis, how the experience terrifies me when it is happening, and how I laugh it off afterwards. Even the way the verses are arranged in the poem induce a minor sleep paralysis attack on me as I read the poem. Finally, “Mother’s Tongue”. The issue of our African languages is crucial. It is believed that if you want to destroy a people, you start by destroying their culture. Our culture is engraved in our language, so death of our languages is death of our culture, and we end up as people with no roots, trailing blindly where we are persecuted like mice. So this poem which encourages the preservation of our mothers’ tongue warms the cockles of my heart. 

Poet: I believe you are the first to write in Karanga, spelling out the onomatopoeic sounds of the dialect. When I read your novel “Mazai eMheni” I was motivated to follow suit and spell out the sounds of the Karanga dialect. What is your message to successive writers on this matter? 

Editor: The first thing is, I was not the first to write in Karanga. If you look at the early Shona bibles, they were written in Karanga, using “X” for example to bring out the sound of the dialect. I however took this further and wrote the words as I heard them, in order to preserve how the dialect is actually spoken, by using alphabetical letters such as “Q” and “L”. To the writers of today and tomorrow, I say be free to write as you speak. This is very important in the preservation of our good traditions. A lizard suns itself within view of its hiding place. I feel elated and am honoured that another author saw what I did, followed suit, and encouraged it. 

The end