Meet TWSC Contributor Phoebie Chigonde!

As we near the end of our Contributor Appreciation Month, I want to introduce you to one of our dedicated writers and a woman to watch. Phoebie Chigonde contacted me in May 2019 and said she had been following TWSC on Facebook for some time.

“I’m a journalist and radio presenter based in Zvishavane, Zimbabwe,” she wrote. “I started following your posts on The Weight She Carries recently. I would like to ask if you are welcome to outside contributors/writers for your website? I hope for your response soon.”

She didn’t expect a response, she later told me. I asked to see her work and when she sent in her writing samples, I was impressed with her writing skills. She was a perfect fit and has been with us ever since. Phoebie is professional and thorough, I know I can rely on her for solid interviews and clean copy.

As you will read below, her husband has been battling cancer for a couple of years. She shared the news with me in January 2020, a few months after his diagnosis. She opened up about the difficult chapter she was going through, the prognosis was not good. My heart ached for her. Despite the circumstances, Phoebie continued to write stories for TWSC. She is an incredibly strong woman. I am so grateful our paths crossed.

Here are some interesting things about Phoebie:

1. What did you dream of becoming as a kid?

Well, growing up, when I was still in primary school, I thought I would be an ophthalmologist. My father had challenges with his sight, so I thought that if I become an ophthalmologist, I’d be able to assist him. But well, when I got to high school, I then realized that I wasn’t very good in science subjects. So I just kind of let that aside and I developed an interest in writing. After I lost my parents, it’s not that I didn’t have someone to talk to, but I didn’t want to sound like I was complaining or unhappy. So I ended up writing my feelings down and writing stories. And that’s how I developed an interest in writing. The stories never got published. I think I’m the only one who read most of them.

Then in my later years in high school, I also started having an interest in radio. I listened to a lot of radio stations, it was about the time when more radio stations were given licenses. I realized that I can actually work for other station besides the stations I grew up knowing.

2. What kind of trouble did you get into as a kid?

I wasn’t really a naughty child, but I remember this other time when my father caught me stealing sugar, I know a lot of people were caught stealing sugar. It was very cool. We did it when we were young. And my dad actually gave me a lecture on the health hazards of taking too much sugar.

3. If you could switch lives with anyone for a day, who would you choose and why?

I’d choose Ellen DeGeneres. I just love her ability to make people laugh and heal wounds. Laughter is actually a medicine, and sometimes when I’m down, I just watch her shows and laugh my lungs out. So I’d really want to exchange lives with her so that I just kind of get to experience how it is to have that much power to change people’s lives like that. But obviously, I wouldn’t want the cameras because I’m not really a camera person.

 4. If you could be mentored by anyone, past or present, who would you choose and why?

Can I choose three? I’d choose Yvonne Vera and Tsitsi Dangarembga because of their rich writing skills and how they write their novels. I also choose Kim Chakanetsa. She just has this voice that is so calm and collected, her voice is like music to my ears. I think I have a lot to learn from his as far as podcasting is concerned.

5. What are you most proud of?

Well, a lot of things. I’m proud of how strong I’ve been. Looking back, if someone would have told me that I was going to go through this and that in life, I would have probably said, “I can’t. I’m not strong enough.” The past few years have been very difficult, but I’ve been very strong. So I’m really proud of my strength. I’m really proud of how far I have come and where I am right now.

6. What is your typical day like?

My days are different, but they usually start the same. I start my days with some inspirational music, especially gospel music. It uplifts when you go abut your day. Even if someone tries to pull you down, I know that no one is going to change my mood or change my thoughts. So, I always listen to gospel music when I wake up. And then I pray after that and bath. Whatever I do, I just make sure that I’m back home by 4 pm to be with my husband, so that I spend some time with him.

7. Which 3 words describe you the best?

I’ll say introvert;  I’ll say fun’; I’ll say determined.

8. Flats or heels?

I’m gonna go with flats; flats all the way.

9. What is your favorite meal?

I love rice; I love chicken, especially chicken stew and I love butternut so any meal that has all three will be okay for me.

10. What is your least favourite house chore?

I’ll go with laundry. I love wearing clothes and dressing up but I don’t like doing laundry.

11. What is your biggest pet peeve?

People who pity you. There’s a difference between loving someone and feeling pity for them. So I would rather have someone who loves me and cares for me than feels pity for me.

12. If you had to go into isolation for 30 days and electronics were not allowed, what would your 3 must haves be?

I’d carry my old diary so that I can read my stories that I wrote, especially when I was growing up and see how much I’ve improved my skills. I’d also carry a new diary, of course. And finally, I’d take Vimbai Chikomo with me, if that’s allowed. I just love how she manages to balance her things. She’s doing this and that but her things just come out well and nice and perfect, if I may say so. I think I really have a lot to learn from her. So it would really use those 30 days to learn from her

13. And hidden talents. Tell us something about you that people would be surprised to know?

I worked at a tuck shop at a supermarket soon after high school before going to college. At that point, I felt like my life had come to an end…my dream had been shattered. You know, your friends are in college and you are there in a supermarket and they are passing by, buying stuff from you and telling me how college is. I felt like there was no hope for me, no future for me.  I really felt like my life had come to an end.

14. Tell us about an embarrassing moment as a teenager.

Well, I remember when I was in Form 2 (Grade 9), and for high school midterm assessment, they would call the names of the top three and the bottom three. So my name was called for the bottom three in accounting. I was so embarrassed. When you’re in the bottom three, you’re supposed to stand up so that everyone sees you. I don’t even know why they did that. I think it really ruins someone’s self esteem. Anyway, I was called out in the bottom three and my accounts teacher later said that there had been an error and my name wasn’t supposed to be in the bottom three in the first place. The damage had already been done.

15. What do you like most and least about adulting?

I love being able to make my own decisions, being able to do what I want and having the chance to love give love.

And what I don’t like…Well, the fact that you’re expected to behave in a certain way, to talk in a certain way and dress a certain way when you go to work. There are expectation everywhere – when you’re at home, when you are at church…even in-laws – everyone just expects you to do things a certain way. Even your hair color matters when you are older. So there’s always someone to scrutinize you and it’s different from when we were younger, you would just go dance in the rain, dance in the mud, say what you want, and get away with it. Now, your words will be quoted.

16. What do you love most about being a woman?

The fact that I can wear a dress, when I feel like it I wear pants, so I love that. Men don’t have that privilege. I also love being a woman in this era because there are a lot of opportunities out there for us as women. It’s different from way back, when they were a lot of restrictions. Right now, women are being recognized and we are being given platforms. I also love the fact that as a woman, I never run out of love. My ability to love, my ability to forgive. I love that about being a woman.

17. What are you most grateful for in this season of your life?

I’m grateful for life itself. You know, with this whole COVID thing going around, people are dying every day. It’s actually a miracle to be alive. So every morning when I wake up and I am breathing, I thank God. That’s the most important thing right now. And of course, my husband’s life. He’s battling cancer and at some point, I thought I was going to lose him, but right now, he’s recovering well and he’s winning his war. So his life is something I’m grateful for. And finally, family. There is nothing as comforting is knowing that there is someone a call away. Whatever you’re facing, you can just call your sister, call your dad, call your brother…call whoever and talk to them. It’s so comforting. So I’m grateful to have a family that loves me and that I love back.