Somewhere around the world
Elevens into Life
Private Bag 30 June 2031
5 October 2020
Hey Girl….
It has taken a lot of courage for me to pen this letter with so much joy, love, excitement and mostly a feeling of ambiguity. I was and still am afraid to merely think about who we will be at the time you are reading this. Yes the 19 year old me penning this letter and the 30 year old you reading this letter and reminiscing on the past days. I am pretty sure this letter will bring a slight smile to your face and some tears I guess because as I write to you I am fighting a little bit of emotion.
Where do I start?
I am proud of everything that we have accomplished and also the failures we have managed to propel past, not forgetting the constant challenges that come our way. Be strong Pfungwa, you have always been. I have heard a lot of stories among them myths and tales about life in one’s 20s and how they either make or break you.I am ready for that honestly and for most things I have decided to take as little advice as possible and have life teach me its own dynamic because I feel that we all aren’t going to have the same experience in life. How has that gone for you? I do hope this decision is working out well for us.
It’s been eleven years now and I can only imagine what we look like right now. Lately I have been fixated on the mirror admiring my slim and round face and my almost chubby cheeks ( I hate them chubby though). I look at the glow in my eyes and admire how beautiful they are, I would say they are my best feature followed by my well rounded nose and my petite lips. I hope you have taken good care of the face. Would you mind looking into the mirror just to confirm? I love how our ears literally stand aside our face and I can confirm nzeve dzedu dzakatiza musoro. We are beautiful regardless and don’t make anybody change that about us.
By now you are probably a rising star or even still a big name in the STEM industry, I can only conjure imaginations of how exhilarating it is to work around such big machinery. It’s a big feat for us honestly because the more we conquer such complexities we are redefining a plethora of concepts perpetuated by society, on the highest note the prejudice against women and girls in engineering.
I am proud of you Pfungwa, I honestly am. I am super sure you have a foolproof plan for the revolutionalization of the African science platform amongst other Africans of high intellect and ambition. Surround yourself with people that challenge how you think, people who push you forward, people ready to unleash and deal with the beast in you. Be ready to learn Pfungwa and most importantly be ready to grow, Life lies ahead of you. Do it for me and you, do it for your people and do it for your pride.
You have travelled and seen the world, your perception of life right now is probably yards away from mine right now but I do know we still hold a lot of beliefs in common. The most important one for me at this point and the one I hope you push forward the agenda is the empowerment of women. I trust very well that you are moving for change and redefining expectations throughout communities. We love seeing African people make waves but most importantly African women. Do not get carried away.
This sounds a bit corny but I hope you have someone who loves you the way we have always known we are meant to be loved. There sure is a lot of negativity out there but I believe the one for us is out there or we already have them holding us tight and pushing us forward. Okay listen a bit, as I write this I think I can safely say I am in love, whether it’s going to end in premium tears or not, I do not know but I do hope not. I know I am only 19 but I can assure you that whoever loves you will be there to push you forward, motivate and inspire you, walk by and with you in the most horrendous of challenges and knowing me and you, I am a hundred percent sure we are ready to do the same for whoever’s son walks our way. I am inspired to be a better person each day and I am more than assured that I am enough as I am, I do not feel any less important and a whole lot of other things I cannot write down but I am sure as you read through this you will be able to remember how we feel right now. Do not let anybody make you feel any less. Please do not let the pressure of life and mostly societal pressure drive you into the wrong arms, I BEG OF YOU. Just promise me we will never settle for less.
We live and we thrive
We serve to survive
We love and we learn
Yours
Pfungwa @19
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