Author: Ndaba Sibanda

Different birds symbolize several diverse things: still, owls can shake souls even in their dwellings! King, not you, no, just about ten centimeters long, weighing somewhat 9 to 12 grams, there’s nix wrong. Specialists state that the slenderest species of kingfisher is the African dwarf kingfisher. We’re readier and richer! You’re often seen as a symbol of plenty or prosperity. Timing: your nesting in periods of rain boosts positivity. Woodland kingfisher, are you a weather predictor? With a beautiful red and black beak, you’re a victor. Bird, your types are typically tropical in distribution, and you’re fine and found in forests,…

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Where should Dilasi have peace, thrive and live? Into all sorts of assumptions, some souls simply dive. Dilasi is no stranger to being a down, stranded stranger. Is he a terrible trespasser or is misheard? Wonders a ranger. It is not just a physical place for Dilasi, but a really rich location that serves as a motivation: it signifies his forebearers’ origination. It houses his hopes and his heirs’ physical, cultural and spiritual heritage and history.  He arrives home only for The Chief to show him Berlin Bridge. Again, in his ancestral village pregnant with a history of connections and…

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The road looks like it is running away and one wishes one had more than a pair of eyes—maybe two sideways and of course— at the back of the head sometimes the car convulses or gallops especially when it thinks one`s legs on the pedal and brakes are playing fool with its little moody mechanics

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The villagers listened to an agronomist talk. She touched on planning, tilling and ploughing before sowing.  On the need to loosen the soil. Or else, one harvests what one has sown. Sure. “Great growers, plant growth is pivotal. Hence, prepare your prized fields first. Fence off your fabulous fields, shield them. Decently dig the ground to plant seeds.” She shone and spoke on borrowed, burrowing bullocks that had the care, charm and capacity to turn up the earth, and change a resident’s returns, fortune and future forever. Sihle talked on the relaxation of the soil, on how plowing…

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The two tall and talkative teenagers were debating: Mncubunguli and Melusi. Mncubunguli sighed and said,” I’m not going to be a police detective, unlike what you wish to become. I’ll be a special detective. Oceans constitute about 71% of the surface of the earth, and human beings rely on them for the well-being of our atmosphere, our natural world as a source of food, a fountain of fun, natural resources and as a mode of transportation and communication”. Melusi chipped in with, “What do you mean you’re not going to be a police detective but a special one? Your name means…

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Undigested food rose back up. Risen, unexpired and inspired, it hassled through the esophagus.  Regurgitation transpired. Was it foolish food intolerance that the picky calf experienced some regurgitation? Didn’t the food get trapped in the throat like one stuck in a terrible traffic jam? The sheepman invited a vet. She spoke about swallowed food that flies up again to the mouth, about undigested or partly digested stuff that lugs up to the ‘door’ and that, at times, is re-swallowed or spit out with a bit of oh or odor! She stated: The calf’s belly didn’t feel nausea or muscular…

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Before the clock strikes midnight, painter Singabantu will pray and put away all 2024’s slumps and sorrows, and woo and win 2025’s tomorrows, horizons, happiness, healing, and highs with a rosiness that’s unparalleled. Before the clock strikes midnight, portraitist Singabantu promises to renew and refine in terms of New Year resolutions: he’ll neither inscribe them on his forehead, nor on a piece of paper. Till they fit into his feel, and fulfill dreams, it’s real, there’s no deal.

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It enriched the ode with radiant imagery, with its kind of ease, tease and symmetry. He read a memorable verse, and it was so vivid that he could see the object: spherical and solid. The poetess’s sensory diction danced, stirred his mind and heart to seam and sing with its enchanting sound. The bard’s pen built a bond, a beauty that rose into daylight of bliss based on senses of touch, taste, sound, smell and sight. He found himself gravitating to the tune of the rare instrument, dazzled, stringing it like a guitar, savoring its aroma and nourishment.

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What a special sacrifice, Christ’s bold blood will suffice! For it, none is unworthy or less, it’s utmost, atoning and priceless. Its eternal, fulfilling touch we feel and see beyond food, feast, word, trial or an Xmas tree. It’s a wise walk of faith, glory and authority; a solid seed of humility, victory and unity. Christmas, you’re a spring of love and light. You’re a bundle of blessings, hope and delight. For Christ’s sacrifice wasn’t in vain: our salvation. We sing of God’s presence, power and provision. Let’s celebrate and radiate Xmas love, everyone! None at all is less, spread…

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Sadly, some digital platforms are awash with disinformation and misinformation. Fed up with a flood of fake online news and its possible danger to democracy, the Spanish government has come up with a draft law to tackle this challenge. If one is a social media influencer with a large following, say 100,000 on a single platform, or 200,000 across multiple sites, if this bill becomes law, then it will be obligatory for one to correct misinformation or falsehoods or else face court action if one fails to comply. Justice minister Félix Bolaños posted on X: “For those who…

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I will write till my pens protest or run out of ink, I cannot remain silent when in floods breaths sink. I will write about the preciousness of the planet, on how fires rout the rainforests and disconnect humans from the charm, peace and piety of nature. I will write about how I see a logger as a voracious vulture. I will write till nature is rightly nurtured and my pens run out of ink, for forests help control rain patterns, deter droughts: do we ever think of that? That anomalous disasters are fueled by climate change, that wetlands and…

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There is a novel light to be ticked, celebrated or noted. Dear world, word is that scientists in China created a world-first urine test for early, speedy detection of lung cancer. This is an advanced subjugation and a timely feat by all means, definitions, principles, phrases and dimensions.

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Festivities are picking up or are in full swing, and food and drinks in their varieties, values, shapes and shades will flow and feature  as a topmost toast and flavor of the gatherings and merriments.   After all, it’s the end of the year, and a time to tally our triumphs and count our blessings, to let loose and wind up, and spoil oneself, a moment to collect, feast, celebrate and radiate love, liveliness and joy.   Happiness and health are twins, no wonder nutritionists and other health experts help us ditch unhealthy eating habits, not all so-called goodies dished up or…

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When one’s wild mind is calling, camping and crawling in a far, full, funny and fertile forest of adjectives, adverbs, verbs, nouns and exclamations, the warm arms and aroma of flowers and aerating trees turn into silent songs and dances of happiness and healing. One hears the hilarity of hills, the various scintillating voices of oscillating valleys, the musicality of teasing and tweeting birds. As l turn, twist and toast to the laziness and leisure and pleasure of the weekend, putting words on the pages, l pause and wonder: am l weekending or working? One of the bravest birds grins and…

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Somewhere somehow, to someone, it’s a menace that can turn human life into an irksome furnace. Doyens say it’s the reason why there’s premature mortality. A rain of pain, fatigue, rash and nausea: its signs vary in severity. It boasts, bells round since its brutal bites become swollen and scratchy. It tucks into a blood meal from a human being. Sorry, it’s sickening and scary! Parasites, bacteria or viruses, it transmits them when it injects one. You’re probably thinking of COVID-19. Hmn? Experts say: not that one. For now, the ominous mosquito can brag, buzz, bite and…

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Why are heatwaves getting more recurring and alarming? Why should we’ve heated rows while heatwaves hurt our hearts? Is it a hoax that it is getting hotter and hotter and more shattering?   Please pass this word around about our world, our hearts are heavy, hence we need to consider and act on extreme weather conditions that are getting more and more dangerous and devastating. Please pass this word about disturbing downpours around the world, about rising, furious floods that are sweeping away populations and property, about forceful rainfalls that descend and destroy what they should be benefiting. Please pass this…

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They memorialized the liberation war warriors not only through verbal mentions and eulogies, but also, through following lifestyles, principles, ideas and visions that the late and living heroes and legends sought to bring into life, into the nation— for the sake of peace, progress, harmony and justice. They paid moving tributes through living up to their pledges, through being selfless, humble  devoted to the values of dignity and liberty, sympathy, shying away from corrupt men, tendencies and money. They memorialized their heroes through arts and crafts, through paintings, drawings, ceramics, carvings and stories.

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There seems to be that “fading and fooling movement”. Are we not witnessing it? Could this be an illusion? Are people not furious? Do they have a vision for their communities and countries? Hasn’t it been long enough? Well, maybe we shouldn’t be surprised or shocked. They visited this bane upon themselves when they lost empathy. Not only that. When they lost their humanity, ideals, marbles and themselves! Save for their elitism and cronyism. The African nationalist movements were a furious fountain of hope, heroism, wisdom, dignity and pride in the eyes and minds of the downtrodden, majority masses of…

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At times words worsen, drivel or deviate. Mostly, in moments and developments that lure or lead to distress or defeat. Not you. Your polish is peaceful. Steady, you stand at life’s crossroads. You don’t say as much as a whisper or a word. And when you say nothing, there is a tendency to think you are nothing too, yet you’re superb. Wordless, you constitute the critical moments  whose decisions can shape the course of one’s future. In a soul, you can speak volumes. Your language, though, wordless  is profound, glorious and powerful. You are the presence of maturity, the wisdom and…

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The war vets allege that their wallets are waterproof like the very gears and vans found around a fire brigade station on fire.  The meat in the fridges is putrefying. That meat is not delusional. It is not in the dark as to what is happening or not happening. The shaft is dusky and dingy. Please let there be light at the end of that tired tunnel in Bulawayo. Not filthy fibbers and dimwits seeking to bribe days of dimness! For now, the big and brutal burglars claim that they are builders. The fiddly forex exchangers confess that they are…

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The poet sought to fashion a bright image of what she was re-counting in the mind of the reader: vitality, vision and vibrancy. Phethu painted a vivid picture in the mind of the reader, one saw a kitchen in distress as she explored and evoked the five senses. It was a detailed description of the pricy meat: tender, tempting and convincingly tasty pieces  but ruined by an undue amount of heat and salt. The reader got choked by the smoke and smell of the burning meat, the starved eater felt its texture, tucked into its foul taste, shrieked, coughed and retched. …

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I am old enough to know that sometimes it is raw. Since it was ushered in, we’ve been shattered, wondering when it’ll bear fruit, and with us share. This Uhuru is just sterile, not seminal, but criminal.

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She tiptoed into the deep, dense and dark woodland, where nocturnal creepy creatures ruled and roared. She had heard of lethal snakes that could deliver bites so strong that they could drain one, but she strode on. Beyond the hissing hills, in a hushed, hidden cave, midwifed by lazy leaves, she delivered and dumbed. She sought to be ‘liberated’ from maternal responsibility. She desired to feel ‘girlish’ and free, still guilt ensnared her. She was not sure whether that was a beneficial emotion for her to feel. She felt guilty about what she had just done. …

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Her name is Soneni Ndlovu. She is a respected resident of Bulawayo. It is always heartening to see the youth who have a keen interest in community growth, in health issues, in education— especially taking the initiate to educate others. The climate activist Soneni discussed how the management of food at home is of importance. How it can make a positive change. In the face of the worsening climate change calamity, we need to remodel the way we buy or consume food. Food is grown, produced, packaged and transported, and when it goes bad in a landfill, it yields methane…

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As wildfires continue to riot and rage, a state of emergency has been declared in Peru. Smoke is visible from space. This dire, dangerous and devastating scenario calls for more than human sympathy and empathy –but collective and concrete action. With above 53,620 fires having been reported across the Amazon this year alone, and before the wildlife season that is expected to peak in October — the catastrophic impact of the crisis on the rainforest is a cause for concern. This is an 80% upsurge in 2023, with almost 30,000 fires reported in the month of August. Yes, in August…

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Prior to elections, government food aid was handed out as if it were sourced and organised by the ruling party – as if it belonged to the party, even now the villagers can recall. But now — villagers, some as old as ninety years old –are crying foul, are losing sleep, losing their farming fields to bullying and ‘faceless’ invaders who claim to belong to the ruling party, who have the nerve to do all that Ordinarily and historically, the traditional leaders are the custodians of the land, and nobody could just occupy it without their consent or…

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Teacher: Zim has just hosted a SADC meeting. What does the acronym SADC stand for, anyone? Student 1: It stands for the Southern African Development Community. Teacher: Good. What are its key objectives? Student 2: To achieve development, peace and security and economic growth, to alleviate poverty, enhance the standard and quality of life of the peoples of Southern Africa, and support the socially disadvantaged through regional integration, built on democratic principles and equitable and sustainable development. Teacher: Well done! How useful is this organisation? Student 3: It’s useless because it has failed dismally to hold accountable member countries whose leaders have…

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It is not every day that one comes across energizing news of a scientist who is aged 15. Not only that but also one who is breaking ground by seeking to tame and treat a disturbing disease like skin cancer. 15 year-old Heman Bekele — who grew up in Ethiopia, and now lives in Virginia, US– has been honoured by Time magazine for his pioneering work and research into skin cancer treatment. At 4, he was already carrying out experiments at home, coming up with his concoctions, conducting his science. Was he not a scientist in the making at that…

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Hearty congratulations Chidima Adetshina for winning the Miss Universe Nigeria title. This is beautiful beyond the beauty! It goes beyond an esteemed title that affords you the opportunity to represent Nigeria at the 73rd Miss Universe. In all honesty, and in the name of patriotic politics and holistics, that win is miles and miles bigger and older than the colonially shallow and sly demographics of Nigeria and South Africa combined. It’s an African win. For a while, seek to undorn of the mental damages and deceits, undorn of old and new trinkets, tricks, traps and entitlements; unburden of the hyped,…

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