Chemakanda the Storyteller

By Mrs. Martha Matsvai

Martha Matsvai, in this her third book, waxes lyrical as she digs deep into the cultural reservoir of folk tales to present stories around the mysterious and enigmatic Chemakanda whose magnetic attraction to children knew no bounds.

In these truly engaging short stories, with some of them being anthropomorphic (where an animal acts like a human being) like the golden folktales of the Shona people of Zimbabwe, the reader is invited into an atmosphere of captivating intrigue which makes it impossible to put the book down before the story is done. The stories are full of adventure, humour and perennial lessons on human living across the age spectrum which leave one with a sense of deep satisfaction and therapeutic engagement. One cannot wait to ‘devour’ them all. Welcome to Chemakanda’s world…

Dr Paul Matsvai Series Editor

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse UK
• Release date: Feb 29, 2020
• ISBN: 9781728399386

Mrs. Martha Matsvai

Mrs. Martha Matsvai (nee Mutamiri) is a Christian, wife, storyteller, mother to four grown up children and grandmother to four lively grandchildren to whom this book is dedicated. She is a nurse by profession and was born in Harare, Zimbabwe where she was steeped in traditional folklore from the cradle mediated in large measure by her late father Mr. GDF Mutamiri whose own stories will be for another day. She is passionate about the positive contribution that women and children can make in the family having been born in a family that was initially dominated by girl children but where the children were valued equally. She is an advocate of agency in human interaction and encourages all people to discover their voice that can lead to better community relations. In it all, being one with nature is the hallmark of harmonious co-existence between man and the natural habitat of flora and fauna. Dr. Paul Matsvai Series Editor and privileged husband of 35 years.

Book preview

Book 1

Chemakanda The Storyteller

O NCE UPON A TIME IN the District of Buhera in the Southern part of Africa, there lived a young man, Chemakanda, who was little understood by many of the people of his age and those older than him. He was so child-friendly that he seemed to draw children to him like a magnet. They understood him and he interacted with them in ways only another child could interact with another child. Chemakanda was unique, very intelligent, creative, and innovative and most of all he was known as a story teller. Chemakanda’s stories ranged from historical to fantasy but each was told in a way which mesmerised his listeners and no matter how many times he told the stories, they always seemed as if they were new stories.

As to who he really was, no one seemed to know as one day, unexpectedly, a baobab tree in the neighbourhood was turned into a house and in this house lived Chemakanda. They named him Chemakanda the one of peculiar skin as his skin colour was something which the villagers had not seen before. His stature was also unique. He seemed like a complete alien, but he spoke their language quite fluently and understood and could relate to their culture and beliefs that he was accepted and respected eventually after the villagers had speculated a lot of stories regarding him. Some of the speculations were that Chemakanda was a man eater; it was told that Chemakanda had some dark magic whereby he would woo his prey by trying to befriend them and then, when he had gained their trust and confidence, he would turn them into pigs or any animal he chose to turn them into and then kill them and eat them.

Much as the villagers tried to shun him, Chemakanda had this aura around him which just made people want to draw near to him and his charm was more appealing to children. The children’s parents tried to discourage them from having anything to do with Chemakanda, but a boy called Chimusoro broke the social barrier. He was considered as a hard headed, wild, and uncontrolled young man whose spirit was as free as a bird and who was also very inquisitive. Chimusoro used to go near the baobab tree and call out to Chemakanda playing a ‘catch me if you can’ game with Chemakanda.

One day Chimusoro saw Chemakanda make what seemed to him as a basket and he drew near and went and asked Chemakanda what he was making. Chemakanda informed Chimusoro that he was making a story. This made Chimusoro more curious about the basket and the story Chemakanda was making and he asked Chemakanda how the basket was part of a story. In response Chemakanda instructed Chimusoro to enter the basket and see what would happen. Chimusoro did enter the basket although part of him pulled from this desire but he did succumb to it and found himself going to sit in the basket despite all the warning signs he sensed. The moment he got into the basket, Chimusoro got into another world and this ushered in Chemakanda’s stories.

Chimusoro and the flying basket

W  OW, CHIMUSORO FOUND HIMSELF BEING the main character! He was a boy with seven sisters, and he was living in the period where the people wore animal skins as clothes, and they were barely covered. His father Museve was a chief of a tribe of hunters therefore Chimusoro and his whole family were highly respected in that community.

Chimusoro’s sisters were all eligible for marriage but seemed not to have found suitable suitors. This was a big issue to Museve the Chief who expected some dowry to be paid to him. He was beginning to lose hope, and he was having sleepless nights trying to devise a way for his daughters to get married off. He started inviting suitable suitors though his daughters used to find some faults with the young men to such an extent that the father ended up agreeing with them that all the suitors to date were not eligible.

One day as Chimusoro was playing with his friends, there appeared seven young men carrying different animals they had caught ranging from the buck, kudu, impala, and many others. They got to where Chimusoro and his friends were and asked for the directions to Chief Museve’s place. Chimusoro quickly identified himself and told the young men that he was going to take them to his father. Chimusoro went with the young men and he was literally running as the young men’s walking was like trotting. Chimusoro got to his father breathless from the running.

Father, he paused to get his breath,

Not now Chimusoro, said Museve. Today has not been a good day for us as we have failed to bring home at least one animal so that we can have food for our families. It seems as if all the animals were in hiding but we do not know from what. There was not even a hare in sight and all our traps were empty. Museve continued, I am trying to devise a plan whereby my people can have food today, this is the winter season and there are no vegetables for us to pick so what are we going to do? Do you have any suggestions Chimusoro as I have completely run out of ideas and my men are too tired and hungry to even come up with anything constructive?

Father, there are some strangers here with a solution to your problem. At that moment Museve raised his head which had been buried between his knees lost in thought and in humiliation, for never in his life had he experienced such an embarrassing situation as this. Even on the days they considered to be bad Museve and his men always came back carrying something. When Museve heard about strangers who had a solution to what was troubling him, he raised his head and behold in front of him were seven men with all kinds