| There are no hotels or lodges in the Southern | | | | I went straight to see the mother of William - she gave |
| Paré of East Africa therefore it is difficult to | | | | me a parcel and dispatched me to the Hospital. The |
| reach this part of Tanzania, that is, difficult for a tourist. | | | | Pastor and I met in the hospital mortuary, we chose a |
| This area does not cater for westerners, except for | | | | nice coffin for William. We opened the brown paper |
| those willing to spend time traveling to find these | | | | parcel. William's mother had given me his suit. The suit |
| hidden jewels. I have worked on Serengeti safaris, | | | | William had never worn, the suit for the wedding just a |
| climbed Mt Kilimanjaro and traveled several times to | | | | few days before. The Pastor left to pay the medical |
| Zanzibar. All this was a fantastic adventure but I was | | | | bills and thereby release the body. I watched over the |
| not quite satisfied. I wanted to experience Africa | | | | body of William as the mortuary assistant dressed him |
| proper, to experience as much of Tanzania as I could. | | | | and used super glue to glue his eye lids closed and |
| It was time to visit somewhere where there were | | | | then his lips. |
| few, or better still, no tourists, where I would | | | | William's parents asked me to accompany them to the |
| experience the real culture of Africa. | | | | funeral; William would not be buried in Arusha Town |
| When my chance came it was, unfortunately, under | | | | but taken "home" to the Paré Mountains. |
| tragic circumstances. Now I was finally to journey | | | | We left in a couple of battered 25 seater buses, |
| deep into the Southern Pare Mountains. I wished that | | | | especially hired for this trip. The coffin was in the isle |
| this journey had never presented itself. The | | | | of the bus, and young William's body had begun to |
| circumstances of this journey began as I lived in | | | | smell. We left in the evening at 10 pm. About thirty of |
| Arusha, Northern Tanzania. | | | | us squeezed onto each bus. We raced and rattled |
| The village where I stayed was called Ngulelo just | | | | through the darkness, out of Arusha, then through |
| south of Arusha on the misty slopes of Mount Meru. | | | | Moshi town, when, after passing Kilimanjaro to our left, |
| My near neighbors had befriended me, along with their | | | | we turned south toward the Pare. After about four |
| eight-year-old son, William. My Christian name was | | | | hours of travel, we entered into a very small town |
| unpronounceable for many Tanzanian's and as my | | | | named, Somé. Here we left the comfort of the |
| surname was Williamson I became known in the village | | | | tarmac and traveled for another hour, maybe two, |
| as William. This sharing of a name with young William | | | | along deep sandy roads, lit thankfully by a full moon, |
| forged a bond between the two of us. | | | | shining down from clear skies. |
| Williams Mother and Father had never been able to | | | | Eventually we arrived at the base of the mountain |
| afford a marriage certificate but his business had | | | | range. It was still dark and therefore impossible to |
| looked up and William's father had decided he would | | | | negotiate the narrow rocky roads up the side of the |
| marry the mother of his child. The date of the wedding | | | | mountains. We parked in a one street town. It was so |
| was set. | | | | quiet, I didn't know it was possible to experience such |
| The morning of the wedding William was bitten on his | | | | stillness and quiet. As we stretched our legs our voices |
| face by a dog. He almost lost his eye - he did miss the | | | | echoed and ricocheted about the place and we |
| wedding. | | | | wakened the locals. A few roadside stalls opened to |
| Weddings in Tanzania normally take the whole | | | | sell toothbrushes and hot tea and we brushed our |
| afternoon and evening. Usually, on these and other | | | | teeth out in the open, spiting into the sand. Then sitting |
| community events, William would sit next to me and | | | | on the stone steps of the old buildings drinking black |
| we would talk and meet people, laughing and crying | | | | sweet spicy tea, we waited for the light of morning. |
| with the community. William would share the | | | | William's father and mother never left the Bus. They |
| adventures he had experienced since the last | | | | waited in silence |
| community event - that is, since the last time we had | | | | At 6.00am we were off again, this time a steep |
| spent time together. | | | | assent, up and up and up. The mountains here are |
| I missed William at his parents wedding. I sat alone and | | | | breathtakingly beautiful, rolling into the distance, with |
| the empty seat I kept for William remained vacant as | | | | trees, birds and water everywhere. We took a further |
| his wounds were tendered to at the hospital. The | | | | ninety minutes to get to the home where were to |
| following day some of the elders thought the dog | | | | burry William. The land was terraced and we sat |
| might have rabbis but others said categorically that it | | | | outside a small house under a tree. The whole |
| did not have rabbis. William's father was asked to take | | | | community had come for the burial. The views were |
| William for shots just in case the dog was infected. | | | | breathtakingly beautiful. We were so high, looking down |
| William did not go for the shots as the cost was | | | | onto the tops of lesser mountains covered in thick |
| deemed not worth the hassle and the money, offered | | | | forests and early morning mist. The people were |
| by the elders for the medication, was refused. | | | | warm and welcoming, plying us with more spiced tea. |
| William died very quickly. I was not present at his | | | | The buses had arrived with not only the body but |
| death, so quickly did it occur. Early one morning I met | | | | sacks of rice and supplies to cook to supply the |
| Mama Gifti the wife of the Pastor. It was unusual for | | | | masses with food after we had buried William. The |
| her to be out so early. She stopped me and asked if I | | | | women became busy preparing the food, the men sat |
| heard that William had been admitted with rabbis into | | | | around in silence, broken now and then with murmurs |
| hospital the night before. I had not. | | | | of conversation. |
| I then hit me that Mama Gifti was in tradition dress, a | | | | This trip was full of sadness and regret about the |
| Kanga. The Kanga is two matching pieces of fabric, | | | | young boy. We were all feeling we had not done |
| one tied around the waist, the other used as a shawl | | | | enough to save him. The grave was on a steep incline |
| and instead of the normally colorful print, the kanga | | | | close to the house. As the long funeral dew to a close |
| was plain white. This traditional piece of attire was not | | | | I stood next to the grave and said my goodbyes to a |
| usually worn by Mama Gifti. This could only mean one | | | | very brave little friend whom I shall never forget. At |
| thing. The Kanga is worn by all women at funerals. | | | | this point the Pastor paused and asked that the only |
| White is also the color of death. | | | | non-African at the funeral say a few words about |
| William was dead. The men had split into two parties. | | | | William. I started to speak of our friendship but my |
| The Pastor and some of the men had gone to pay | | | | voice broke and I wept, I could not continue. Every time |
| the hospital bill and make arrangements to pick up the | | | | I speak of this, tears are not far away. Even now, as I |
| body. Others had gone in search of William's father | | | | write about this event, my eyes fill with tears and my |
| who had gone missing, distraught that William had died. | | | | lip it trembles. |
| Blaming himself, he had fled from home to be alone for | | | | One day I plan to return to the Pare Mountains to |
| a few hours. | | | | explore them for myself. To take some time and drink |
| Mama Gifti told me that as William lay on the hospital | | | | in Africa - away from tourist and phony or |
| bed the night, before his mother wept. William | | | | over-organized cultural visits. I will take some flowers |
| comforted his mother telling her pleases not to cry. | | | | and visit the grave of William and even though it is only |
| 'Yes', he told her, 'soon I will die but I go to a better | | | | a grave I will talk to him of all my adventures since our |
| place'. William died soon after these words. The day | | | | last meeting. |
| he died was his eighth birthday. | | | | |