Behind me, is Mama le Papa’s used-to-be General Dealer Store. They finally opened it in 1994; I am very convinced that my deeply rooted love for sweets can be traced to this building. Although often rebellious, my brother and I, particularly between the years of 1995 to 1998, were part-time cashiers at this store.
Often, Papa, authoritatively, would wake us up very early on Sundays at around 6 am, we would be very angry. We would mumble between us, and fondly long for the time when we are old, when we could sleep until whenever, have ‘nice’ jobs in Gaborone, the capital city. We didn’t want anything to do with di-sweets, the sugar, the milk, the bread, and the talkative customers.
Between 2012 and 2016, I worked, full-time, as a cashier at Sainsbury’s. I was reunited with di-sweets, the sugar, the milk, the bread, and the talkative customers; it is here where I re-discovered my passion for social sciences. To get ready for work, I woke up very early, sometimes at around 4 am. Today, my brother, Nkgotla, is opening his store (co-owned) in Gaborone, the capital city. Himself, too, will be reunited with di-sweets, the sugar, the milk, the bread, and the talkative customers.
Today, I feel honoured and privileged to thank our late, very strict father – with Mama and our elder sister Molly’s constant love – for waking us up, for teaching us, and for supervising us.
P.S. Nkgotla is 33 years old; remember 33 from the Dear Papa letter?
Blessing Kgosi e tsile Kgasa 