Continued from last week

HAVING seen his mentors depart for war, my father decided to join the liberation struggle.
For him there was no other option and he so much wanted to be part of the brave men and women who had left ‘lucrative’ jobs like Cde Webster Shamu.
He left home and headed east to Mozambique.
Knowing that his departure would be difficult for his family, he left without bidding them farewell.
The only person he told of his mission was his neighbour, mukoma Raymond.
My father used the Chipinge route to get to Mozambique and with the help of one Mai Japa, father and friends of his that had joined him crossed the border to start a new and difficult life.
The crossing alone was one of his happiest moments, it was the first hurdle and they had been successful.
They were now on the other side and he felt that the crossing would not be in vain, the country would be liberated.
Across the border they met Mozambican soldiers who took them to Machazi where they stayed for two days before going to Chibawawa.
The jubilation soon faded as the realities of war started sinking in.
They were yet to face the brutality of war but immediately they began to sense and see that it was no easy exercise.
The comforts of home were nowhere to be found, people were going without some of the basics that were taken for granted.
For instance, the thousands of people at Chibawawa had no blankets and father was one of them.
At Chibawawa he met Nick Zoro, a man he knew from Mbare. They shared a blanket.
While at the camp he underwent rigorous checks, health as well as security.
Father says at first he could not eat.
Being a city boy he was used to the ‘luxuries’ of town life and adapting to the food he found in the camp was difficult.
But he soon realised that war was no picnic and he could not afford to be choosy.
To sustain his strength and survive the war he adapted, fast.
Immediately he found out that he had more battles to fight, he was not only contending against the Rhodesians but also fighting hunger and disease.
In camps diseases such as ‘Hurricanes’ and ‘Matekenya’ wreaked havoc and were a huge challenge.
Sometimes people would go for days without food.
People devised strategies to obtain food and one of these was one known as chirenje.
The strategy was a barter trade system with villagers; they would trade clothes for food.
The situation was harsh and thoughts to go back home crept in but these he soon dismissed.
There were many others that had come before and after him that were enduring the hardships and going back would be betrayal.
At Chibawawa father met Cde Teurai Ropa Mujuru, the Camp Commander was Dave Tondhlana Mataire (Dave Hondo).
Father spent almost a year at Chibawawa before moving to Chimoio.
Father wanted to receive military training so he faked illness to be transferred to Chimoio where he could receive the training.
At Chimoio, father reunited with comrades Shamu, Tongogara and Mako Vheremu.
He started basic training and specialised in bombs.
His enthusiasm to fight saw him jumping into a truck in transit to Gaza.
Along the way they drove into an ambush and what he had been itching for, a fight, became reality.
Despite being green, the training was sufficient for him to know what to do; he jumped out of the vehicle and sought cover before engaging the enemy.
Unfortunately the vehicle carrying landmines and bazookas caught fire and exploded leading to the death of its driver Jonah Kay.
The fighters continued with their journey to the border.
What was left for the men was to cross Gonarezhou.
To be continued…