As FunDza’s content developer, I was invited to the Himeville Arts Festival in the Underberg to run a creative writing workshop. It was the Arts Festival’s inauguaral festival, organised by Kyle Allen who runs poetry workshops for the Family Literacy Project in Underberg, KwaZulu-Natal.
An added bonus in going to the festival was travelling up to Underberg with one of our FunDza mentee writers, Mpume Makhaye. She is part of our Mentoring our Future Writers project (sponsored by the National Arts Council) and has just published her first short story, Nkanyezi on FunDza’s mobi network to great reader reviews.
A highlight for me was reading portions of the story Nkanyezi with Mpume on our cellphones at the opening event, ‘Night of the Storytellers’. Another highlight was hearing talented young writers from Underberg reading their poetry.
Needless to say, ‘Night of the Storytellers’ didn’t end with the performances at the local primary school, but carried on late into the night at the Family Literacy Project’s HQ where we were staying. I felt very old and went to bed before midnight! Luckily there were electric blankets to keep us warm despite the chilly Underberg nights!
The next morning we were up early. A group of us were driven out to one of the Family Literacy Project’s libraries, an hour from Himeville down very steep and – in the rain – impassable roads.
The library was wonderful. But, unfortunately there weren’t teens attending as I had planned a workshop for them, but rather toddlers, and young children, as well as mom’s and grandmothers. I had to improvise (not the first time!) pulling out the tried and tested song: ‘We’re going on a lion hunt’ – a Nalibali favourite which has saved me at events before.
Talking to the librarian I realised just how great the challenge of learning and reading in English was for children in the area and how urgently stories in isiZulu were needed in the library.
The Family Literacy Project is doing such great work in this community and inspiring so many young people to read and write. I am looking forward to being sent poetry by some of the poets who performed at the festival to publish on fundza.mobi.
Thank you to Kyle Allan, the Family Literacy Project and all the other people involved for welcoming FunDza at the festival.