Two Years of Wonder - A Memoir

Chapter 12: Tabitha & Rainbow

The nurse turned Tabitha over to a very nice lady named Gertrude. She had an office that was on the far side of the hospital that did not smell strongly. It was a relief to Tabitha's nostrils.

She asked where Tabitha lived. Tabitha said Kibera. The woman asked where in Kibera. Tabitha said the name of the matatu stage, then she said their house was not far from the video house and was between St. Matthews School and Auntie's mandazi shop.

Gertrude nodded. She asked if Tabitha could find her way there from the matatu stage. Tabitha told her she could. Gertrude said she would leave work early that day in order to take Tabitha home. In the meantime she asked if Tabitha was hungry. She told her yes. It was nearly lunchtime, so Gertrude left and returned with a plate of rice and green grams. Tabitha finished them quickly. So quickly in fact that Gertrude asked her if she wanted another plate. Tabitha said yes. Gertrude returned with more. While Tabitha ate this plateful, Gertrude asked her why she and her mother had come to the hospital.

Tabitha told her about her mother being sick and about how people had called her a malaya. Then she told her about the cursed boy and how his curse had spread to her. Gertrude said that curses were only superstition. Tabitha listened carefully, but was not sure if Gertrude really knew what she was talking about. Tabitha showed Gertrude her fat arm that was turning white. Gertrude said it was not from a curse but from a disease and that she would have a doctor look at it.

Gertrude took her back to the side of the hospital that smelled. She spoke to a doctor in Kizungu, then he looked at Tabitha's arm. While he did so, the nurse that had held the door for the bed with her mother appeared. She said her name was Lucy. She asked Tabitha how she was doing. Tabitha said she was fine but asked if she could see her mother. She remembered when her brother had gone to be with Jesus that his body had to be buried. Before it was buried it had lain in the house for a while on the table. Tabitha wondered if her mother was lying somewhere. But Lucy told her she would not be able to see her. Tabitha assumed this meant her mother was already buried.

When the doctor was finished Lucy spread cream all over Tabitha's arm and even put some in her hair. Then she told Tabitha she would have to take some of her blood. She warned her that it would hurt and she should look away. Tabitha tried looking away but when it started to hurt, she screamed and looked down to see Lucy sticking a long needle into her and blood coming out of the spot. She tried to jump away, but she did not realize that there was another nurse behind her that suddenly held her very still.

That was when Tabitha started to cry. She missed her mother and called out for her. Lucy told her it would be over very soon. She pulled the needle out and put a piece of white cloth over the place where Tabitha was bleeding. Tabitha could not stop crying now. But once Lucy had put the glass with her blood in it away, she came over and put her arm around Tabitha.

She smelled nice although she also had the smell of the hospital on her. But her body was soft in a way her mother's had not been for a very long time. Tabitha suddenly felt tired. Lucy carried her to a bed.

Tabitha woke in the afternoon. Lucy was there as well as Gertrude. They said they both were going to take Tabitha home. Lucy and Gertrude seemed to have lots of money because they boarded the matatu right outside the hospital and did not walk at all. They rode along until Tabitha told them their stop was coming up. They alighted at the matatu stage that stopped beside the road leading to Tabitha's Auntie's house, then began to walk.

Tabitha felt very important with her two guests and she walked quickly because she was eager to introduce them to Auntie. However, when they reached their house, nobody was home. Tabitha guessed that Auntie was still at work so she led Gertrude and Lucy to the mandazi shop.

Her Auntie was there. Gertrude leaned in to the kitchen through the window and asked if Tabitha's Auntie could come out. She did, walking around and sitting down on the benches where people ate, still wearing her apron and hair net. Gertrude told her what had happened and she became very quiet and for a while had to cover her face. She did not cry but she looked at Tabitha many times and shook her head.

Then Gertrude spoke in Kizungu. Lucy asked Tabitha to take her outside and show her where she liked to play.