Children of Fire

23rd May 2013 12:18:00 AM



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Linda Nana Tshbalala

Linda Nana Tshabalala registered at Marakolong Primary School, near Hammanskraal in North West Province on Wednesday January 15th 2003 and started schooling in earnest on January 21st, at the age of 13. On January 16th though, she returned to Carstenhof Clinic in Midrand, to have the staples removed from her neck, following her December 2002 surgery. She was escorted to and from Carstenhof by Children of Fire, and will return there again on March 18th 2003 for a further checkup.

In mid February 2003, Johanna Matijila, Principal of Marakolong Primary School, said that she found Linda's attitude hard to deal with but that the staff were doing their best. Johanna was given money by Children of Fire to ensure that Linda got the uniform that she needed. However instead of buying the two different sorts of school dresses as had been agreed beforehand, Johanna said that Linda's behaviour in the shop was so embarrassing that she instead got her one kind of dress, a jersey, belt, socks and another school bag - even though Linda had been given a good school bag by Children of Fire and also good leather school shoes. Johanna said, wearily, 'The child is very naughty. She asks me for Simba Simba (potato chips/crisps) every day and keeps complaining that the other children are swearing at her, though they seem to have accepted her well. We even held an assembly for the whole school, where Linda could go in front of them and we could explain to the pupils that she is just the same as them.' Against her better judgment, the Principal has placed Linda in Grade 3. She says that the child is not remotely equipped for Grade 3 but that she got worn down by the child's attitude and the attitude of the parents. 'They even brought a transfer letter from the school they said Linda used to attend in Bosplaas, to place her in Grade 2, but it was just a forgery. The years don't even tally!' For now Mrs Motshadi Masia, the class teacher, is accommodating Linda in Grade 3 but giving her Grade 1 work to do. Linda is co-operating with the other children and performing at a Grade 1 level, but Johanna says: 'I think that Linda was disturbed. She is very rough in talking, standing in a doorway and shouting at a teacher.' Linda has precious few positive role models. The Principal says: 'Even the parents are naughty.' And they expect her to deal with matters beyond her remit as a male relative allegedly assaulted Linda one Saturday in late January and the family expected the Principal to lay a charge with the police the following Monday. Johanna explained to them that her responsibility for Linda was during school hours, not weekends. On Monday January 20th 2003, the UMashesha went to Linda's school to perform a play that they had scripted about a child who fell into a fire through epilepsy, and was seriously burned. The play was intended to depict facts and dangers in an easy-to-understand form, and also to tackle the issue of tolerance. The script of the play and others that are written by the UMashesha, will be put on the website, for use by other safety organisations that are not working for commercial gain. Unfortunately on the due date, the charity was - without prior warning - asked to sit in on a length meeting that included the ward councillor, the ward committee and representatives of the school, to deal with the fact that Linda was refusing to be placed in grade 1! We suspect that the high level of attention related to Linda having been seen on a TV talk show called 'Felicia on e'. Maybe the ward committee hoped to be on TV too - or maybe they are simply an unusually conscientious committee. This delayed matters considerably, and also the commitments of our companions for the day Rajesh Latchman and Mona Kgwadi of Epilepsy SA, meant that a much curtailed version was performed. Sadly Mona seemed to dislike the fact that the flickering light of the flames had triggered Linda's fit, even though this is a matter of common knowledge in the medical profession, particularly in reconstructive surgery. Mona told the UMashesha that they were 'blaming' epilepsy for Linda's burns. The play was not 'blaming' anyone - just explaining one of the many different causes of burns. A woman in Epilepsy SA offices who is herself an epileptic, told us of another problem. She is a cigarette smoker and has accidentally burned herself more than once with the cigarettes during the course of a seizure. Children of Fire also arranged with Francina Zwane of the local Methodist church, that a roster of helpers would keep an eye on Linda and check her homework daily, but the family remain obstructive when such help is offered. When Linda stayed with Children of Fire in December 2002 and January 2003, we got to know a lot more about her. She is one of thousands of South African children that did not attend school in 2002, or the year before that, or the year before that. Actually the figure could be hundreds of thousands - or millions - for all anyone knows or seems to care. Most stay away because they cannot afford fees - or uniform - or both. Their parents are poor or illiterate, or the children are Aids-orphans or they are street children. Linda says that she stayed away because of the teasing about her appearance. The tiny amount that Linda understands of the world around her is frightening. She cannot read at all. Nor can either of her parents. When I met her, she could only write L I N. By January 2003 she had progressed to her full name and she can now make a fair copy of her surname if someone else writes it first. If Linda copies a sentence from a book, she puts no spaces between the words. She is not clear why one writes on lines, or at least linearly, and letters with little 'stalks' and long 'stalks' e.g. the letters a and d, confuse her. She knows what numbers are and seems to read them easily. But ask her what five plus one is, and she answers 'seven' - even though she is shown five fingers and one extra finger brought close, as the additional 'one.' We used plastic bottle tops as 'counters' to try to at least teach her addition and subtraction of numbers below ten. She knows what time TV programmes are on but cannot tell the time on a clock face, unless, maybe, it is exactly on the hour. She has no concept of what a 12-hour-long journey means, but thinks that maybe it means you arrive at 12 o'clock. Linda can wash clothes but says that she cannot iron. She has little understanding of hygiene and does not wash her hands after using the lavatory, nor does she understand why it is important to do so. Linda could not knit but Children of Fire PA Baida and classroom assistant Busi started to teach her. Linda says that she can crochet. Given a crochet hook and wool, she could not get started at all, though maybe she would have managed with a different sort of yarn. Her spoken English is largely restricted to 'Oh my God' for surprise, 'I'm so tired' if she is asked to concentrate for more than a few minutes, and 'boring' for anything alien to her. She yearns for loud music, partying, and fireworks (which she calls 'crickets'). Linda is highly acquisitive. Give her new clothes and she asks for more. Give her toys and she asks for more. Give her sweets or chips (crisps) and she asks for more. She frequently asks for 'Simba' and most other consumables are referred to by a brand name - toothpaste is 'Colgate', washing powder is 'Omo', rice is 'Tastic' and plastic bags are 'Checkers'. Linda likes lots of salt and lots of sugar with most food. She does not like vegetables, especially green ones, and her hair has a reddish tinge that hints at dietary imbalance. She is very demanding - either unaware of social norms - or not caring to conform. When she is confused or unhappy, she will laugh to hide her discomfort, and then appears rude. To what does one attribute Linda's state of being? Apartheid is not to blame. Hers and her family's ignorance cannot be blamed on imperialism or colonialism. The fact that Linda is mildly epileptic and a little disfigured by burns, are insufficient reason for her never to go to school. So why does the system fail Linda and the hundreds of thousands of other uneducated children? Linda hasn't a clue about what she is missing and what she has already missed. She is unlikely to ever achieve her full potential. For her it is too late. If she matriculates, she will be 25 years old when she leaves school. Her home is a rural corrugated iron shack in a dusty yard. Her parents are both working for some R200 a week each, as swineherd and sausage-maker. They could grow vegetables, especially if they recycled domestic water, but choose not to. They have provided their child with a safer, cleaner environment than a squatter camp, but barely so. NOTE: If your closest school tells you that there is no space for your child, they have to provide you with details of the second closest school, and that school must accept the child. If you cannot pay fees, officials may check on how you live, but your child can attend school without money. It is illegal to insist on a deposit of R200 and it is illegal to keep a parent from seeing their child's report if they aren't up to date with paying school fees. A waiting list is no excuse not to educate your child. South Africa's education department has to make a plan to provide enough teachers and, if need be, mobile classrooms. If you live in Gauteng and have problems, ask for a copy of Circular 59 of 2002. You have the right to ask for the English document in Sepedi, Afrikaans or isiZulu. Tel: 011 355 0632. Linda went in for surgery to ease her neck and facial contractures on the afternoon of Tuesday December 17th 2002 at the Carstenhof clinic in Midrand. Dr Alastair Lamont and his anaesthetist Dr Linda Blesovsky, gave their services pro Deo; the Afrox hospital, likewise, gave the use of its facilities for free. Two large grafts were taken from the front and side of her right thigh and moved into the neck and face. The leg graft became malodorous a day after she was discharged as a Granuflex-type dressing had been used and accumulated too much of the wound discharge. Children of Fire replaced it with an Opsite-type dressing. At the charity's request, Linda was given a surgical collar to wear, to ensure that she holds her head up high and the neck skin is less likely to re-contract. Nurse Lorraine Doyle visited her in Auckland Park and volunteers Jimmy Mathye, Lisa Hutchinson and Prakash Naidoo, helped to teach her. Linda was born on 12th May 1989 to Margaret Tshbalala and Samuel Phiri. She lives in a little grey-and-blue-painted corrugated iron shack in Marakolong outside Hammanskraal, some distance north of Pretoria, with her parents, her five-year-old sister called Yolanda, her uncle Velapi (Margaret's brother) and Togo, her cousin (referred to as the aunt's daughter). The home has electricity enough to power a refrigerator and a television but the family still cooks on a primus stove. There is no ceiling and the shack is unbearably hot in December and January at noon. The wiring is quite dangerous with cables joined together with adhesive tape and plugs with no backs on. Electricity is bought with prepaid cards. Water is supplied to a tap in the corner of the yard, which is twisted on and off with some difficulty as the top has been removed. Linda shares a single bed with her sister, which is curtained off from the kitchen-come-family room at night. Her parents' bed is the best piece of furniture in the home but they also have kitchen units, a table and a few chairs. Her uncle sleeps on a 'sponge' - a mattress on the concrete floor. There is a white goat tied in the sandy yard, a smattering of pink flowers, a sisal plant and a couple of trees. A small shelter was made for the goat and the family uses a hand-dug soakaway latrine, with a concrete floor. There is no mains drainage. No books were visible in the home until Linda went to stay in Auckland Park for just over two weeks, and returned home with a bundle of them, as well as writing paper, lots of pens and crayons, a new school bag, takkies (plimsolls), other slip-on shoes, school shoes, several dolls and puzzles and several new outfits. Linda has epilepsy. She takes Epilim 200 three times a day (Valproate Sodium 200mg). During her time in Carstenhof Clinic and a couple of weeks in Auckland Park, she did not have a fit at all. The family seem quite vague about times for Linda to take tablets and it would be ideal to source a watch for her that had a pre-set alarm to buzz three times a day. They are poor 'historians' when one seeks any information about Linda's condition. Linda probably started to take Epilim regularly in October 2002. When she came to stay in Auckland Park in December 2002 we were grateful for the Rajesh Latchman of Epilepsy SA for being only a phonecall away when advice was needed. Linda was excited when Jimmy Mathye and fellow-UMashesha Flavia went to visit her at home in late October, and they spent time with Johanna Matjila, the principal of Linda's intended school: Marakolong Primary. Linda also had a visit from Mona of Epilepsy SA on October 26th. Jimmy and Flavia arranged that the UMashesha will stage a safety and tolerance play at the school in the Tswana language, on January 20th 2003, four days into the new school year. We delivered a R500 Edgars clothing voucher to Linda from TV celebrity 'Felicia' as a Christmas present, as well as more clothes, toiletries, books and a tiger-shaped rucksack from Children of Fire. Linda was very excited to travel to Johannesburg but when she went out for a milkshake with Amukelani, she did not want to sit in a busy cafe because people would 'stare at her'. She settled for a quiet fastfood venue in the end, and was astonished that there were no shacks at all in Auckland Park. 'Why are all your houses built of brick?' she asked. The second trip to a continental-style Melville caf� and she started to get into the swing of things, especially cream-laden gateaux. And she seems to love icecream above all else. Baida spent a little time trying to coax Linda into learning to read but the child finds it very hard to concentrate as she has had no formal schooling at all. However she happily played pool, table tennis and ball games with Tristan and Michael, both aged 11. She did not happily watch television in English - wanting only the African-language programmes. Linda was excited about her operation. It was a long time since she had had surgery and she had forgotten the discomfort and pain that goes with such work. We emphasised to her and her family that they should not have unrealistic expectations about improvements in appearance, but that we would be trying to improve function. At her appointment with the charity on Saturday October 12th 2002 Linda explained that her most recent fit was the day before. Her mother thinks that Linda only has a fit about once a month but by use of various translators, it became clear that her mother doesn't understand some of the questions put to her. Margaret, the mother, cannot explain much about the epilepsy other than that Linda had the problem before she was burned and that she still has the problem. Some relatives think that Linda is bewitched. Linda herself remembers falling into a fire when she was seven years old. It is a common problem in South Africa's neighbour Botswana, for the flickering flames of a fire to trigger an epileptic fit that leads to severe burns; the person falls into the fire during the fit; and no-one pulls them out because they are believed to be possessed by the devil. Quite a number of cases were referred to the state-run Princess Marina Hospital in Gaborone. Linda's mother could not remember which date, let alone month, that Linda was burned. With some pushing she thought it was during South African summer, probably January. When Linda fell into the fire, she had been left in the care of neighbours as her mother was at work. Linda said that she remembered making the fire herself, to cook something. Linda has some facial similarity with Irene Peta (see elsewhere on website) and with Evelyn (see other languages section of website). Her neck contractures prevented Linda from turning her head properly to either side [limited extension]. She could lower her chin onto her chest reasonably well, but when she raised her chin as far as it can go, she was again restricted. The movement showed her lower teeth in a peculiar way that I had previously seen with Evelyn Minto and so I asked her mother if she snored loudly at night - and her mother confirmed that she did. I also noticed in the movements that Linda could close her eyelids fully if she concentrated and squeezed them tight but again I asked if she slept with her eyes partially open at night, and she did. Linda had quite a cold on an early visit to Auckland Park. She would be more likely to have infections if her mouth was permanently open at night and she was also at risk of more eye problems if her lids could not close when she is at rest. Linda has good movement of her arms and is able to raise them straight above her head and easily behind her back, though the skin 'crumples' in the shoulder area. She has no burns on her legs. She seems dull of spirit and character when one first talks to her, but when she has a chance to converse in Setswana she is far more animated. She does not smile much though, and it seems only partially due to the physical damage to her face. In the short term the charity agreed to provide eye drops (natural tears) if Margaret was prepared to collect them for her daughter from the local pharmacy and we agreed assist with translating epilepsy information into Tswana and putting it onto tape. Margaret seems to think that Linda used to have pressure garments for her mouth and neck but her mother no longer knows where they are. Linda has had previous quite good skin grafts above the eyes. The family of six live in a 'two-roomed tin house near the Carousel.' Margaret was born on January 2nd, 1971 and has had no schooling at all. Samuel was born in 1968 and got Standard 1. She works at the local meat factory Vleis (Meat) 1. It employs some sixty people and is not unionised. Velapi was born in 1979. He is unemployed and has Standard 4 education. Togo is 16 years old and she is studying Standard 6. Samuel works at a farm in nearby Pyramid. He was off work in mid December and January after injuring his hand. There was a small collection of empty beer bottles on top of a small shed in the family yard. Togo lives with the family 'to look after Linda'. When Togo is in school, Linda and little Yolanda (born 26 April 1997) were taken to their maternal grandmother Letta Sithole. Letta has also had no schooling at all. Linda cleaned the house and washed dishes for her grandmother. As Letta has electricity and a television, I suggested that in the short term Linda should watch the Schools TV programmes in the morning instead of doing chores, but to the family she seemed a Cinderella substitute. Linda had only reached Standard 1 she says, at the time she was burned. Her mother seemed to think that it was only 'Sub A.' Whatever the class, when Linda tried to return to school after surgery, other children teased her and called her a 'spook' (ghost). She could not cope and so left the school. At age 13, she could not even write her own name. An attempt got the first three letters right - after which it is chaos. Linda's mother can only get the first two letters of her daughter's name right, though Margaret can just write her own first name. Linda was happy to start school in January 2003. But first she wanted to look normal. I explained to her that she would never look like her little sister. That it was not a question of money but that so long after her injury it was too hard for surgeons to do much to improve her face. We agreed early on to try to help with neck movement though; we might help improve the shape of her ears; and if she is going under anaesthetic for other surgery, we would look at further grafting around the eyes. The first step was to try to locate her files at Pretoria Academic Hospital (previously the Hendrik Verwoerd Hospital) and establish exactly when surgery was done to her eyelids and elsewhere on her face, and by whom. This was allegedly done by a volunteer called Rita but she failed to find the information so hopes of finding the original surgeon to help release the neck contractures in a hospital that we were told would also no longer carry out such surgery, proved futile. Linda was disappointed that little can be done to help her face. I emphasised that our faces are our life stories and that her face is an interesting one. I pointed to the other people in the room, demonstrating a double chin that tells the story that the person is overweight, that the lines around a person's eyes or mouth can show that they smile a lot; that the plain, unlined faces are in fact rather dull. Elsie Sejeso from Joe Slovo camp helped in translation about the importance of physical strength and mental strength. How people who didn't like Linda's face were not worth having as friends or boyfriends in the first place. It seemed that Linda and her mother had never had any counselling before and it looks like it will take much more than one friendly conversation to get Linda to feel really positive about her life.. Margaret does not seem to understand the limitations of surgery and may have raised unrealistic expectations in her daughter. We showed Linda a lot of pictures of other burned children - many far worse off than her. We explained which ones had been rejected by their families and how lucky she was that her family still, so clearly, loved her. We talked about how precious life is and how vital education is. Thomas Ranamane who heads the UMashesha volunteers in Alex, had intended to go to Hammanskraal to liase with the principal of the Duka Bosplaas East primary school, as her mother said that it was the closest school. But Epilepsy SA made arrangements with the other school, so we will co-operate with what they initiated. Thomas (and other members of the UMashesha team) will maintain a watching brief on Linda's schooling and acceptance by staff and pupils. The UMashesha will also teach some of the classes about fires and fire prevention, especially as the Hammanskraal fire brigade was closed down some time ago... but no one seems to know why. In October the charity gave Linda a Tshirt, a large hardback story book (in the hope that at least Togo might be able to help her to read it) and a writing kit. She needs simple learn-to-read-and-write books written in Setswana. When she appeared on the Felicia show for the second time, we gave her more toys and toiletries. Linda likes presents a lot! Bronwen Jones, Auckland Park, October and December 2002. Busi (a classroom assistant) found Linda's attitude highly frustrating during her time in Auckland Park. Busi told Linda in Tswana: She must not scratch or itch the skin as it heals. It will be very itchy but our fingers are never clean enough - even with soap - so we have to avoid touching any open or damaged skin. If there is BIG pain around any of the wounds (places where she was cut or stitched) or the leg dressing, she has to go to hospital. The problem is that the public hospital in Temba, near Hammanskraal, is not likely to have the proper 'dressings' - the big sticky (and sometimes see-through) dressings that protect the skin much better than gauze or bandage, but each dressing can cost R100 or more and public hospitals usually don't have them. Children of Fire cannot go to Hammanskraal often as it takes a lot of petrol and a lot of time. She had to teach Linda to change her underwear every day and to wash the spares with soap powder, as well as not to just leave dirty clothes on the chair. Toothbrush. It seems she did not brush her teeth in hospital because she did not ask for toothpaste. She must ask for what she needs to live in a safe and clean manner. Exercise: Linda is well enough to exercise and it is important that she does. Even now with her leg dressing on, she should have a ten-minute walk each day. It may be sore but she needs to do it. When the bandages are off, she must do more exercise - and a variety of exercise - not just walking. Working from head to toes, she can gently turn her head from side to side and up and down, to make sure that the new skin graft does not contract (shrink - get smaller). Then she move her shoulders up and down and turn her arms in circles. Then she can turn her body at the waist, from left to right. Then she can try to touch her toes with her hands, keeping her legs straight. Then she can try running on the same place, and she can try jumping. Then she can lie down and try to put her feet over her head, onto the floor. She can swivel (turn) her ankles� and so on and so on� She can even try pressups / pushups. The world is a dangerous place and she needs to be strong and healthy to be able to protect herself. Mental Exercise: When Linda goes to school she is going to find it very hard to sit still and think for four or more hours a day. She must practice now. It is silly to say that she is tired or it is 'boring' after just five minutes of watching a video or a few minutes of writing letters down. If she says it is 'boring', she is only showing that she is rude. She wants to be clever, but it is hard work to become clever. Being rude to people who are trying to help her (and she has been very rude every day) is not a way to help herself. Other people don't have to help her. Exercising the brain (the mind) is just as important as exercising the body. While she is in Auckland Park, she should get up at 8am (not 10am) and she should study for at least two hours in the morning and at least two hours in the afternoon. If she watches TV she should concentrate and try to understand the English. She should be open to new ideas and interested in how other people live. That includes listening to their music and not singing other songs on top of their music! Busi explained that classical music stimulates the brain more than kwaito, rap, pop and similar. Linda has a lot of time to catch up on as she is SEVEN years behind in her schooling. Linda thinks that sparklers and fireworks ( 'crickets') and noisy dancing, with adults drinking beer, is the only way to celebrate Christmas. She needs to understand that there is a MUCH bigger world than her community in Hammanskraal. There are millions of people who do not celebrate Christmas at all because they have another religion or no religion at all. It is not our right to say they are right or wrong - it is their belief and we must be tolerant of people who are different. But if she does celebrate Christmas, then she should think about the message, which is of a new baby being born - the son of God. That it is a holy and peaceful time when we should try hard to be kind to others. People give presents to celebrate the birth of the son of God and also to be kind to others. A present does not have to cost money but can be a drawing, or taking her Mum a cup of tea in bed, or picking a flower for her grandmother and putting it in a glass jar with water. Diet: Some foods are harmful. Sugar - she eats too much. Salt - she eats too much. Green vegetables and other vegetables - she eats too little. Simba chips and especially the chips that are orange in colour, can harm her body. She needs to teach her tastebuds on the tongue to enjoy a different way of eating. This takes a long time to learn, but she can live longer than her parents if she has less sugar and salt in her diet. Most (not all) South Africans will only live to 50 years old when people who eat better can live to 80 years old. It is very rude of Linda to keep demanding 'Simba'. She has to learn manners and to fit in with the way that other people live. Guests do not demand food or drink. They say 'thank you' for what they are given. Bad food will harm her skin from healing well. Many South Africans have a very high rate of diabetes and of heart disease - related to diet. Linda can start to teach her own family how to live healthier, longer, lives. If she is prepared to learn. Good food is cheaper than bad food. There is room in her yard at home to grow more vegetables. She should learn how to do this as it saves the family money and helps Linda to look after herself. The main message is to have a balanced diet - a little bit of everything good and to only have chips and sweets on one day a week. Cold drinks like Coke (and Fanta and Sprite) are very harmful because of the high sugar content and also because of other chemicals that are in them. Best of all is water to drink, low-fat milk and some fruit juice and some squash. Coca Cola also contains caffeine -the chemical that excites the brain too much. This same chemical is in coffee and tea. Where possible, children under ten years old should never drink coffee, tea or Coca Cola and people older than ten years old should also not drink too much of these drinks. South Africans who can afford it, also eat too much red meat (that is beef, mutton, lamb and pork). These load fats onto the heart until it cannot work well. Most of the protein needed from meat, can be found more healthily in baked beans, peas, and other beans. Alcohol harms the body and the mind forever. The same is true of cigarettes. Even if she sits next to a person who is smoking, she is breathing in the poison from their cigarettes. Linda has choices to make. She needs education to choose a good, long, happy, independent life. If she wants to live in a brick-built house, she must study so that she can have a job, earn money and buy her own house. She is old enough now to understand that how she lives as a child will help her to choose how she lives as an adult.

This material is Copyright � The Dorah Mokoena Charitable Trust and/or Children of Fire , 1998-2013.
Distribution or re-transmission of this material, excluding the Schools' Guide, is expressly forbidden without prior permission of the Trust.
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