Growing Up In Uganda – Watsemba Miriam

Life is adventurous, comic , fulfilling, a rear hustle and full of endless lessons and dreams. Only in Uganda!

Meet Mayanja and Kakande; my newly found friends from the lake side in Gaba, Uganda.

Here is Mayanja and Kakande at the Lake Victoria waters in Gaba. — Here is Mayanja (In thick brown shirt) and Kakande (bending in creamish shirt) at the Lake Victoria waters in Gaaba. Photo by Watsemba Miriam.

Me : Shouting from the shore, waving hand. Hey, how do I come over there?

Kakande : Just cross over through the side bushes.

So I make my way through the side bushes, where Mayanja comes to help me cross over with all my gear; a Canon 70D and an extra 10 – 17mm lens. My crossing over adventure ended up with me getting soaked half body with my camera into the lake water where I was rescued by Mayanjja. (Amazingly the loose translation for the name ‘Mayanjja’ is ‘owner of lakes.’

Mayanjja : Webale kujja meaning thank you for coming.

Me: What are you guys doing?

Mayanjja : We are fishing. Ogenda tukubayo akafananyi? meaning will you take a picture of us?

Me : Yes, right after you show me how to fish.

Kakande: Come and stand over here, I will show you how to.

Kakande hands a fishing rod over to me and shows me how to do it. He says, “We tie baits on the strings which are connected to sticks in a knot to make the sticks a fishing rod.” The sticks are layed on the water where the baits float.

Here I am after successfully getting my bait to flow on water. Thanks to Mayanjja's expertise. — Here I am after successfully getting my bait to flow on water. Thanks to Mayanjja’s expertise.

When you see your bait starting to sink, you know you got a fish, so you grab your fishing rod and use it to slap the water to secure your fish and then pull it away to the shore.

Kakande prepairing to lay his bait on the waters. Photo by Watsemba Miriam.

Me : So do you fish everyday?

Mayanjja : Yes, everyday from 5pm EAT after school.

Mayanjja and Kakande doing their thing. Photo by Watsemba Miriam.

Me : So where do you take all the fish that you catch.

Mayanjja : We take some of it home and mum cooks it, then we sell off the rest. We get enough money off to use at school. But we started saving this year and would like to be able to buy our own boat when we get to Secondary School.

Me : Why would you want to buy a boat?

Mayanjja : So that we can catch more fish in a secure and easier way. That means we will get enough money to be able to help mum take our sister to school. Our sister is going to become a nurse and help people who fall sick in the world.

Me : Ehh! That is so good? And how about you, what would you like to be in future.

Mayanjja and Kakande : Both laugh. “Ffe tugenda beera bagaaga nyo.” Meaning ‘for us, we going to be very rich men.’

Me : Then I am proud that I know the world’s richest men now. How do I get these beautiful photos to you?

Kakande : Haaaa… ‘Mummy aliina esimu naye teliko wassup.’ meaning ‘mummy has a phone but it does not have whatsapp.’

So we all agreed to meet sometime, same place when I will deliver to them hard copies of what they called ‘the best pictures of us’ in this life.

And ladies and gentlemen, there’s no other lively hope I have met than a spirit so young and vibrant like the one in these boys. Even with barely any fish caught by 6:30pm yet they had started at 5pm, no nice clothes or fishing gear to boast of, not even a visible assurance of a great education or anything that men think they need to make it in life, these boys are persuaded of their greatness in life. They don’t think they will be rich some day, they know that they know that they will be very rich.

If you ask me, well; I think these chaps already are rich. Because it comes from the mind then walks in life. It is all spiritual before it is physical. Everything thing manifest, was once just a mental intangible idea.