Losing a mother is one of the most terrible things that could ever happen to anyone no matter how old they are. Relatives and friends may try to fill the gap, but it is never the same.
“My mother passed away when l was just sixteen years old,” Sinikiwe Magamba from Hwange, Zimbabwe told The Weight She Carries. “For me, it was hard because l have had to learn through my own experiences how it is to be in a relationship, motherhood and just life in general. Now that l have a daughter, l often wonder what sort of advice she would give me in the various situations and circumstances l [face].”
Growing up, her mother’s cousin always used to say to her mother that having a mother equalled having all the riches in the world.
“I never understood what she meant by that, but now l do,” she said. “There are times when l have felt like giving up and throwing in the towel and I wish that my mother were around.”
“In my line of work, l meet a lot of mothers and daughters who come into the shop for spa treatments, and it just makes me realise how lonely it is without a mother. A mother’s love is just irreplaceable.”
Sinikiwe Magamba
A mother is the only person who will always truly appreciate her child’s achievement from the bottom of her heart; other people tend to undermining the achievements of another person’s child.
“Through work l met a lady, orphaned like me, who gave me a great piece of advice. She said that now that l [am] a mother, l [need] to take the love my mother had given me in those few years l knew her and transfer it to my daughter. Switch the love and transfer it to your daughter. It really helps,” Sinikiwe said.
She has taken the advice and it has helped her become the best parent she can be and, at the same time, try to fill the void her mother left.
“At times, l would be angry at God [for taking] my mother away, but because of the random advice l got, l now appreciate my daughter [more] and try to have the best time with her.”
“I have now learnt to appreciate the miracle that is my daughter through the loss of my mother. Although the void is difficult to fill, l have found some sort of satisfaction by transferring the love my mother had for me to my daughter,” she said.
