Beans – Water Once, Firewood Once

 

Adeladius Makwega – Mbagala

Isimani Ujamaa Village gave Mwanakwetu a house to live in while he paid rent of 6,000 shillings per month. This money was received by Mama Sekadinda, who was also the CCM Ward Secretary for Economy and Finance in in 2005.

At Isimani Secondary School, Mwanakwetu was the only teacher for the Kiswahili subject. Therefore, he taught the subject from Form One to Form Four across all classes and streams. Some classes had gone a whole year without studying Kiswahili before Mwanakwetu arrived. The number of streams kept increasing every year—Forms Three and Four had few students while Forms One and Two had many.

 

Apparently, the Member of Parliament for Isimani, Honorable William Lukuvi, requested from the Ministry of Education and Vocational Training at Magogoni in Dar es Salaam a Kiswahili teacher, since the school did not have one. Therefore, when Mwanakwetu applied for a job, he was assigned by the Chief Personnel Officer of the ministry, Mr. Mwenda, to Isimani Secondary School in rural Iringa, Iringa Region.

Thus, William Lukuvi, the MP for Isimani, knew about the arrival of the new teacher from the ministry level, at the school through the Headmaster Mr. Ndimbo, and also through the Ward Executive Officer Mr. Kiseo and the Division Secretary Mr. Makendi.

The teachers who arrived at the school at the end of 2004 were three: Robert Katula (Basic Mathematics), Lilian Mwamanda (History and Geography) and Adeladius Makwega (Kiswahili and English)

 

Robert Katula was given a house in the village. Adeladius Makwega was also given a house in the village, while Lilian Mwamanda alone was given a house within the school compound.

At that time the headmaster, Mr. Ndimbo, said the following words:

“Makwega, welcome very much to Isimani. Personally, I know your father Francis Makwega—we studied together. I know you come from the city, but please don’t run away from us. Here at school I am not only the headmaster to you; I am also like your father. You and Katula will stay in the village. For now we have given this girl a house at the school, but houses are being built here and once they are finished you will move here, because the government’s goal is for this school to have a boarding section and eventually Forms Five and Six.”

The village house given to Mwanakwetu had three rooms, a living room, a kitchen, a store, and a toilet.

 

However, someone else was already living in the house. It seemed that this person had been using the entire house. When the new teacher arrived, the village leaders spoke with the previous tenant so that she could give up one room and some shared spaces for the new teacher.

The house was in very poor condition and had not been maintained, although it appeared to be a good house built with cement blocks and roofed with gauge-28 iron sheets.

Mwanakwetu was shown the house and introduced to the other tenant, whose name was Katarina.

This introduction was done by Mama Sekadinda together with some village leaders of Isimani and the assistant headmaster.

Mwanakwetu moved into the house and began living there.

When entering the house, Katarina occupied the first room facing the living room. Mwanakwetu stayed in the next room after Katarina’s, which faced another room where Katarina stored some of her belongings.

When Mama Sekadinda introduced Mwanakwetu to Katarina, she whispered a few words privately to Katarina that Mwanakwetu did not hear. After that, they shared the keys and Mwanakwetu left, later returning to move in.

 

When he moved in, Mwanakwetu found all the rooms well cleaned. Katarina was not there that day, but around midnight he heard the door open as Katarina returned home.

The following morning, as Mwanakwetu prepared to go to work, Katarina called:

“Teacher! Teacher! Teacher! Don’t leave yet—let’s talk.”

Mwanakwetu came out and said, Come.Katarina approached and said:

“Teacher, welcome very much to Isimani Division. What tribe are you and where are you from?”

Mwanakwetu replied that he is Mpogolo from Mbagala, Dar es Salaam.

Katarina then led the conversation:

“Thank you for getting to know you. I am a Hehe woman. I lived for a long time in Dar es Salaam working mostly as a housemaid. Later I decided to return home, to Chamundindi Village, but life there was still very quiet, so I decided to stay here. I live here alone. This house was unused by the village, so I asked to stay here while paying a small rent. They told me that if a government worker came I would have to move out. But when you came they said you have no family, so we could stay together in the house, and I am very grateful for that.

I live here alone while running my business of selling traditional alcoholic drinks. These containers you see hold local brew, and I hide some of my drinks in the store and behind the house. Don’t be surprised when you see them. I keep them there for safety.

Here in Isimani there are no police, but sometimes they come if something happens. I also have a partner who comes here; he has two wives. One lives with him there, and I am the second who stays here.

Teacher, I just wanted to tell you these things. Now go quickly to work.”

After that conversation, Mwanakwetu hurried to school to teach Kiswahili.

 

Every day he left home in the morning, returned at noon to cook and eat, and then went back in the evening to teach the subject again—since, as mentioned earlier, there was no other Kiswahili teacher.

Katarina usually woke up late because she slept late. Around ten in the morning she would leave her bed, wake up, and receive shipments of alcohol—both regular brews and stronger spirits—often delivered by bicycle, especially by the man she called her husband from a nearby village.

These drinks were sold in a special village bar where customers came to drink.

Life in the house was very harmonious between Mwanakwetu and Katarina, a Catholic woman who was a well-known alcohol seller in Isimani Division.

My reader, let me tell you something very important: in life, regardless of a person’s character or lifestyle, there is always something good you can learn from someone who lives near you.

 

Katarina taught Mwanakwetu one very useful thing: how to cook beans using very little firewood.

She said:

“Teacher, I have noticed that you don’t like eating in restaurants—you cook your own food every day, which is a good thing. But are you afraid of the Hehe love charm called Litambulila?”

(Litambulila is a type of love magic among the Hehe people, believed to attract a man to a woman, often placed in food or drink.)

Mwanakwetu replied no. Katarina then explained:

“When you are here at home on Saturdays you cook beans often, but you make a mistake. You cook them with a lid and keep adding firewood as it burns out. That uses too much firewood and exposes you to smoke.

When we Hehe cook beans, we put water in a pot, sort and wash the beans well, and place them in the pot on the fire. Then place another clean pot on top of it and fill that top pot with water. Add only a little firewood and leave it cooking. Then continue with your work—even go to the farm or go to school to teach.

When you come back, your beans will already be cooked. Then you simply prepare them properly, cook your ugali, and eat. There is no need to sit in the kitchen the whole time… Teacher, you don’t need to stay in the kitchen all day.”

Indeed, this advice helped Mwanakwetu cook beans even while he was away at school.

Mwanakwetu did not stay long in that house; later he went to study at Tumaini University in Iringa, pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism.

 

What does Mwanakwetu say today?

These are memories from his time in Isimani Division long ago. My reader, you may have learned many things from this article, but remember just two lessons:

First, observe how open Katarina was about her life with someone who shared the same house. Even if someone does bad things, leaving those bad habits can become easier.

Second, pay attention to how Africans cook beans using very little firewood, as Mwanakwetu learned from Katarina in Isimani Division in 2005.

“Sort your beans, place them in a pot, add water and put them on the fire. Then place another clean pot on top and fill it with water… Add firewood once, and later your beans will cook.”

That is the origin of the Swahili saying:

“Beans – water once, firewood once.”

Mwanakwetu, are you there? Remember:

“Beans: water once, firewood once.”

Have a nice day.

makwadeladius@gmail.com
0717649257