38 pages • 1 hour read
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Margaret Cadmore’s life is peaceful and quiet, along with her heart. She knows she and Moleka love each other, and she is content with that knowledge. She believes he will never approach her for a relationship because she is a Masarwa. She has no existence in the village except as the friend of Dikeledi. Most of the villagers have forgotten about the Masarwa teacher. Living in the deserted library, Margaret observes the lives of others for her own entertainment, including the antics of a mother goat and her kid, whom she names the Queen of Sheba and the Windshield-wiper. These simple things and the visits of Dikeledi comprise her entire life. She is happy and content, and most of all, not lonely.
Dikeledi asks Margaret to draw another picture of her, claiming that she lost the first one. In reality, Maru had taken the picture for himself. He has Dikeledi take a huge parcel of art materials to Margaret during a two-week school break.
In a whirlwind of creative activity, losing sleep and forgetting to eat, Margaret spends the school break creating pictures and paintings—all taken from visions in her mind’s eye. These visions are primarily of the village, and the Queen of Sheba and her kid’s humorous behavior.
By Bessie Head