Youthful mother wants to groom and guide young girls
ALEXANDRA – An Alex mother who has endured the hardship of poverty and deprivation and was a victim of teenage pregnancy would like to groom and guide other young women.
A 31-year-old mother of four children, two of whom were born when she was a teenager in school, wants to share her story and the conditions of her upbringing in order to motivate, groom and guide young girls not to fall into the same trap she had to endure.
Makhosazana Twala, was born in Alex’s 21st Avenue but is now a resident of Extension 10, is a former matriculant of Eastbank High School’s Class of 2005. She is now a qualified nurse currently doing her community service at Sizwe Hospital, a tropical diseases institution in Sandringham.
But her life was not all rosy. She had her fair share of bumps along the way, having been brought up by her pensioner grandparents who tried all they could to provide for her with their meagre pension.
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Besides the lack of material things that ‘we women love so much’, Twala said the most important element of growing up – that she missed so dearly and which led to her rocky school life – was parental guidance, especially as a vulnerable young girl.
Twala said her grandparents came from a different era where they believed talking about sex with children was taboo – although, in African culture grandparents, aunts, elderly relatives and siblings played a vital role in the grooming of the girl child. In traditional African society, it is customary that once a girl reaches puberty, she is taken through the steps of sexual education, grooming, and guidance and is also motivated, from time to time, to ensure she continues to stay on the straight and narrow.
Twala said she has a special place in her heart for her teacher, Derrick Guliwe, whom she praises for her success today and the fact that she completed her matric. “There were times when I wanted to abandon the educational ship but he kept on pushing me to the limit and encouraging me, telling me that I could make it.”
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While doing Grade 10 at the age of 16, Twala fell pregnant and had to drop out of the school but her teacher kept on visiting her and encouraging her not to give up. “He would come visit at home and encourage me and urge me to come back to school once I had the baby so I can finish my matric,” she said.
Twala duly returned to school in 2003 and completed her matric, after which she did odd jobs as a model and domestic worker for her church members so that she could provide for her child.
When her grandfather passed away in 2002, her mother returned from her rocky and abusive marriage to live with her mother too. Without a stable income, Twala did odd jobs to supplement the pension of ugogo which supported not just her but her mother, as well as her elder sister and her child too.
Soon after completing matric, Twala had another child but her promising break with poverty and deprivation came when she visited the Labour Department in Marlboro in search of employment. There she found people filling out application forms for a nursing college and she did as well. She was interviewed and accepted, and the rest is history.
While at college she fell pregnant again with her fourth child, took up a gap year in 2014 and returned in 2015 to complete her course the following year.
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She graduated from the Annlatsky Nursing College next to Helen Joseph Hospital in early May this year and started working at Sizwe in January.”I would like to groom young girls in schools and outside to teach them about sexuality and the need to hold their horses and not rush into things. I want to give motivational talks at schools based on my own life experience.
“This will be part of my own small way of giving back to the community in the name of my teacher who took it upon himself to walk me through thick and thin. I don’t want other girls to fall prey to the problems I endured and got trapped in.
“Nothing is as important as being an independent woman, and not reliant on the happiness and success of your male partner. I want to start an information bank and skills shelter where young girls can come for inspiration during hard times,” Twala said.
Details: Makhosazana Twala 079 164 0227; makhosazanatwala@gmail.com
Do you think this is a noble and desired programme that Twala wants to start? Tweet @AlexNewsZA to share your views.
