Question:           I see i see, and this ties in to the part where you say “Ndinombonzwa kuti ndinikarikoga akasiya jira kumasese, nekuti kana usipo hupenyu hwangu ichando correct?

Hey Hey:             Exactly, you are spot on!

Question:           But who is karikoga and what does that phrase mean exactly?

Hey Hey:             There’s a Shona proverb again which says: Zano ndoga, akasiya jira kumasese.

Meaning: people who forsake warnings and advice often fall in into calamity. I had been told to marry and In a way I regretted having to delay. Because if I had done so, I would not have been alone during lockdown. Hahaha, however, I have a habit of ‘pimping proverbs’ when I write poetry. I removed ‘zano ndoga’ and replaced it with ‘Karikoga’. Because;

1) Karikoga is one of my favourite fictional characters from the book Karikoga Gumiremiseve. I always liken myself to a warrior who fights for what he believes in.

2) Karikoga generally translates to: someone who is always alone. Someone who was dumb enough to get drunk at the beer hall and forgot his jacket. Jacket here symbolising my girlfriend, who is my warmth.

Masese is a locally made alcohol in Zimbabwe also known as Scud or super.

Question:           Now you also talk about domestic violence and how it’s been on the rise with families being forced to stay indoors together, Its Quite unfortunate really, Earlier u mentioned that u got into a “mood”, or rather u meditated and u began writing this piece. What advice can you give to people who want to also turn their pain, their affliction into something profound like this poem.

Hey Hey:             Okay, first of all, let me say this, I don’t understand your pain and the situation you’re in right now. Only you do. I cannot promise you healing nor a solution but hear me when I say this: it does get better. And when it does, you’ll hate yourself for failing to keep a souvenir. Something that reminds you of all that you conquered. Because you will conquer the battle you’re facing now during lockdown. At the very least, you owe it to yourself to document it, write about it, how you’re feeling. For poetry, it can be an excellent outlet. And when you have an outlet this means you do not harbour emotions, thus, you’re stable and a person of sound mind.

Question:           One Of the things we loved about the poem was how fluent you were with Shona and your amazing use of vernacular proverbs. Do you like have a library somewhere where you keep these proverbs, or you’ve gone through a lot of local literature?

Hey Hey:             No Library! I just love reading Shona books and novels. I have been, since High School, that’s why I am a bit knowledgeable in that regard. My mother is a Shona guru as well so most of the proverbs i use, I learnt them from her.

Question:           Which one was your favourite scene?