Origin: Luanda, Kenya
“Luhya customs dictate that the dead must be buried at their rural home and not in a cemetery. My husband’s body was taken to his rural home where several traditional rituals were performed. Being his legitimate wife, I had to accompany his body in a hearse. I had to sit beside the coffin. Finally, when we arrived, his body was removed from the coffin and it was laid down on a bed. That night, I had to sleep with his body and I was forced to have sex with him by his clan’s men. That was just the first ritual.”
Origin: Nairobi, Kenya
“He would quote a passage from the Book of Satan and I would counter it with a verse or two from the Bible! What fun it was! And at no time did any religious wars beak out between us. I’m still amazed that my friend, who was very vocal about his alternative beliefs, respected the fact that I was a Bible-believing, Jesus-following Goth...”
Origin: South Africa
“May has told me that there are times when she would like nothing better than to end her life, but she is a person of tremendous faith, who despite all that she has suffered, still believes that she has a task to accomplish in life; a purpose to fulfill.”
Origin: Nairobi, Kenya
“After so many painful fights about our life and finances, I walked into our house one evening to find my wife gone. She could not take any more of the arguments and the debts. I would love to say that this was the turning point for us but things actually got worse. I was really losing it with the drinking and everyone around me was seriously concerned. As they say, the darkest hour comes before the dawn and just when there seemed to be no hope, a new beginning walked into my life.”
Origin: South Africa
“We thought we were invincible and that our marriage was an inviolable fortress. But I was not able to see this one coming...I did not know how to restore the equilibrium to our relationship. All I could do was ask myself - how could this be happening to us?”