I Hated the Church!

When I was a naughty pupil at the Mafhikana Primary School, I hated church. Mainly because I never went to the annual Kanye Agricultural Trade Fair Show – simply known as ‘’Show’’. The Show generated a lot of spectator interest and was renowned for the main event of horseracing. Some of the famous horses, according to my classmates, particularly the eloquent Shele, included: ‘’the galloping black horse, the bar owner’s chestnut horse, the brown horse, and the fast bay stallion, with a white star’’. Weeks leading to the famous Kanye Show, the captivating discussions – orchestrated by Shele – were always about the various horses, the fearless and skillful jockeys, and the multitude of people in attendance. The apparently rich, racehorse owners were equally admired. Among the horse owners were: butchery owners, taxi owners, general dealer owners, politicians, and the Paramount Chief of the Bangwaketse. And allegedly, they all had very big farms – outside Kanye –‘’polasi’’, Shele called the big farms.

My very descriptive classmates never paused singing about the different types of stalls at the action-packed Show. I was told of a true feast to both the eyes and the mouth: colourful and tasty sweets, special fat cakes, chicken wings, chicken feet, sparkling Pine-Nut drink. And the smell of the grilled maize, the Peter Stuyvesant smoke, and the freshly fried chili flavoured chips wafted through the air. As well as a multicolored choice of balloons – which were all sold at discounted prices.

On the long awaited glorious Saturday morning, Shele and my classmates – among families, groups of friends, and older men – flocked to the Showground. They were just separated from the newly constructed dirt racetrack – circling the football field, with the silver goalposts – by only a big barbed wire. Possibly, chewing on the cheaply sourced toffees, and definitely beaming with excitement, screaming, cheering, and jumping for joy at the top of their small voices:

“The galloping black horse! The chestnut horse! The bay stallion!’’

Meanwhile, I was inside the synagogue, right at the front; closer to the ‘’Jesus Is Love’’ white and red drape graced, and shining brown pulpit – with other children – knelt down on the big brownish rug, with my eyes fully shut, head bowed down, and mumbling: “the lo-lo-rd-lord, is my shepherd; I shall not want!”

©