News / National
Joshua Nkomo's love letter to MaFuyana
28 Jun 2019 at 18:05hrs | Views
BEFORE WhatsApp, Facebook posts and text messages, there were hand-written love letters and apparently of all the intriguing love stories in the heat of the liberation struggle nothing is much sweeter than that of one of the country's illustrious liberation war icons, the late former Vice-President Dr Joshua Nkomo.
For people, mostly school children visiting Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo Museum, a gallery set up in honour and to tell the story of Dr Joshua Nkomo, noteworthy artefacts in the museum is a love letter that Dr Nkomo wrote to MaFuyana on 2 February 1977, telling her that he had bought her a car as a romantic present for their 23rd wedding anniversary.
The museum is situated at house Number 17 Aberdeen Road in Matsheumhlophe, formerly Dr Nkomo's house. Dr Nkomo's residence was converted into a museum and opened to the public at the end of January in 2012.
Monday 01 July will be 20 years since Dr Nkomo's death in July 1999.
The love letter, a must-see at the museum, was also a way by Dr Nkomo of expressing his everlasting love for MaFuyana.
To twenty-first century teens, the artefact captures the lost fantasies of love letters that were used to bridge long distance relationships that was very common in those pre-independence days.
So, to kill the long distance and rekindle the affection, Dr Nkomo had to write a love letter showing his love for MaFuyana.
The one funny characteristic in it is the kind of words used in composing it, a testimony of how Dr Nkomo had learnt the art of flattery and creating fantasies of romance.
"My dear Joana,
"Please accept the white Benz that I brought towards the end of last year, it was meant to be a present for you from me on the 1st of October 1976 which was the 27th anniversary of our wedding. …Please my darling accept this gift from me as a little token of love from me after 27 years of our wedding.
"You have been a good wife to me and a very good mother to our children. Use this car and keep the maroon car as your spare car. Please look after my cars. Don't send them to anybody; they are meant for my private work only.
"All my love," reads part of the letter.
It is clear that the gift was a medium to express his love to MaFuyana.
Inside the 10 rooms of the previous main house that make up the museum are also portraits, newspaper cuttings, photographs, clothes, tools, kitchen utensils, including all movable household property that belonged to Dr Nkomo and MaFuyana.
Also noteworthy is a portrait of MaFuyana's humorous way of advising young wives on how to romantically treat their husbands.
It reads: "Perhaps you might know how to cook delicious foods, but you do not know how to cook a husband. Here is the method: some women keep their husbands in hot water and some keep them in deep freezers by their carelessness and indifference and some keep them in a stew with irritating words and ways and others waste them.
"Husbands can become delicious and tender if aged well. When seeing your husband do not use pepper or salt but add little sugar of kisses.
Stir him gently, if so treated well you will find him very digestible agreeing with you perfectly and he will keep you as long as you choose.
"You must become careless and do not allow home fires to grow cold by this life, you will live a good life in your family".
Commenting on the significance of the love letter and MaFuyana's portrait, chief executive director of the Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo National Foundation (JMNNF), which set up the museum and superintends over it, Mr Jabulani Hadebe said:
"It was important for Umdala Wethu to dedicate his feelings to MaFuyana through a love letter since he was not always at home with his family and MaFuyana is one person who has been with him through hard times and that is why he chose their 27th wedding anniversary as a special occasion to express his endless love for her.
"As for MaFuyana's portrait it was and it's still a formula to young wives on what they should do in their marriage for it to survive through tough times. According to MaFuyana one of the best qualities a woman can have in her marriage is resilience since every couple goes through their share of ups and downs," said Hadebe.
For people, mostly school children visiting Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo Museum, a gallery set up in honour and to tell the story of Dr Joshua Nkomo, noteworthy artefacts in the museum is a love letter that Dr Nkomo wrote to MaFuyana on 2 February 1977, telling her that he had bought her a car as a romantic present for their 23rd wedding anniversary.
The museum is situated at house Number 17 Aberdeen Road in Matsheumhlophe, formerly Dr Nkomo's house. Dr Nkomo's residence was converted into a museum and opened to the public at the end of January in 2012.
Monday 01 July will be 20 years since Dr Nkomo's death in July 1999.
The love letter, a must-see at the museum, was also a way by Dr Nkomo of expressing his everlasting love for MaFuyana.
To twenty-first century teens, the artefact captures the lost fantasies of love letters that were used to bridge long distance relationships that was very common in those pre-independence days.
So, to kill the long distance and rekindle the affection, Dr Nkomo had to write a love letter showing his love for MaFuyana.
The one funny characteristic in it is the kind of words used in composing it, a testimony of how Dr Nkomo had learnt the art of flattery and creating fantasies of romance.
"My dear Joana,
"Please accept the white Benz that I brought towards the end of last year, it was meant to be a present for you from me on the 1st of October 1976 which was the 27th anniversary of our wedding. …Please my darling accept this gift from me as a little token of love from me after 27 years of our wedding.
"You have been a good wife to me and a very good mother to our children. Use this car and keep the maroon car as your spare car. Please look after my cars. Don't send them to anybody; they are meant for my private work only.
It is clear that the gift was a medium to express his love to MaFuyana.
Inside the 10 rooms of the previous main house that make up the museum are also portraits, newspaper cuttings, photographs, clothes, tools, kitchen utensils, including all movable household property that belonged to Dr Nkomo and MaFuyana.
Also noteworthy is a portrait of MaFuyana's humorous way of advising young wives on how to romantically treat their husbands.
It reads: "Perhaps you might know how to cook delicious foods, but you do not know how to cook a husband. Here is the method: some women keep their husbands in hot water and some keep them in deep freezers by their carelessness and indifference and some keep them in a stew with irritating words and ways and others waste them.
"Husbands can become delicious and tender if aged well. When seeing your husband do not use pepper or salt but add little sugar of kisses.
Stir him gently, if so treated well you will find him very digestible agreeing with you perfectly and he will keep you as long as you choose.
"You must become careless and do not allow home fires to grow cold by this life, you will live a good life in your family".
Commenting on the significance of the love letter and MaFuyana's portrait, chief executive director of the Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo National Foundation (JMNNF), which set up the museum and superintends over it, Mr Jabulani Hadebe said:
"It was important for Umdala Wethu to dedicate his feelings to MaFuyana through a love letter since he was not always at home with his family and MaFuyana is one person who has been with him through hard times and that is why he chose their 27th wedding anniversary as a special occasion to express his endless love for her.
"As for MaFuyana's portrait it was and it's still a formula to young wives on what they should do in their marriage for it to survive through tough times. According to MaFuyana one of the best qualities a woman can have in her marriage is resilience since every couple goes through their share of ups and downs," said Hadebe.
Source - bmetro
