KWEZI AND I: Have I been replaced?

This week, I pick up Kwezi from her grandparents’ house and I just can’t wait. It has been three weeks and I am about to lose my mind. When did I become this person who misses such a tiny human being to a point of misery? The people in our home also miss her, I don’t know how many times they have asked me when I am going to get her back, so I am not alone in this after all. You see, my sister, the youngest in our family and the youngest of her aunties has been around for months but this Thursday, she will be flying back to the US where she resides. Jasmine, who we like to called Sumi, left Rwanda when Kwezi was only a few months old. She only came back to Rwanda on Christmas Day last year and she and Kwezi hit it off and for weeks now, she has “abducted” her. Every mention of picking Kwezi up has been met with emotional blackmail, reminding me how they both won’t be seeing each other in a while. I caved in. Just last week, I attempted to go back and pick Kwezi up but she was still adamant that she will only let her go on the day she leaves Rwanda. It seems the feeling between auntie Sumi and her niece Kwezi is mutual. The bond that the two have built in such a short time almost makes me jealous. Aunt Sumi was in Kampala when I showed up at my parents’ house and spent the night reconnecting with Kwezi last weekend. Everything was going perfectly well but the moment news came in that she had returned and was at the gate, the girl who had clung to me since I had stepped into that compound abandoned me and took off. She hugged and clung to her auntie like I wasn’t standing right there. They were both shameless. Those are my hugs; I thought to myself but those two were uninterested in my sulking. Since Kwezi is not yet speaking properly, I knew it was a matter of time before aunt Sumi was tired of trying to understand her gibberish and move on but I realised that somehow, they understand each other. Is this what people feel when someone that they love replaces them with someone else? I wondered amusingly. Well, Aunt Sumi just has a few days to go and I am happy to have my baby back but for reasons that I don’t understand, I feel sorry for both of them. They have spent a number of weeks together and now they have to part and will perhaps see each other after another two years. I feel bad for aunt Sumi because she has to go to a foreign land and face the reality of being away from love and laughter. I feel bad for Kwezi because she is going to terribly miss her favourite aunt but on a more selfish note, I am happy to have my Kwezi back.

Lifestyle

KWEZI AND I: Have I been replaced?