Good People Can be Cruel Sometimes

Characters: Lusanda, Sinazo Mapayi, Tina, Mrs N (teacher and netball coach), the principal, delivery man.

SCENE ONE

[Lusanda and Tina are walking to school. On their way they meet Sinazo. When they walk into school they see Mrs N is parking her car.]

Mrs N: Molweni, bantwana bam!

Lusanda and Tina: Molo Mam!

Mrs N: (smiling) How are you this morning?

Lusanda: We are fine, I think. Right guys?

Tina and Sinazo: Haibo! Of course. We are always.

Lusanda: I am not feeling well today. My legs are sore because of the running we did last Friday.

Mrs N: You see. If ugqibile kudala to train at netball or gym then you will have sore legs.

Tina: Hiyo! Ma’am. Can I tell you something about our English teacher. He is always using ‘rather’ and ‘or’ at the same time. So ma’am ‘rather’ means ‘or’, and ‘or’ means ‘rather’.

Sinazo: (quickly) Why is he using synonyms all the time?

Mrs N: Sweethearts! I really don’t know. But if I had the power I would teach every subject by myself. The whole entire school. If I had the power to do that.

[The school bell rings. The principal drives up and parks his car. He gets out and greets the learners and Mrs N.]

SCENE TWO

[The lunch bell rings. Mrs N does not like going to the teachers’ staff room for lunch. She prefers to stay in class with her learners, Sinazo, Tina and Lusanda. They go to buy food and come back with their goodies for Mrs N.]

Lusanda: There ma’am. We bought this for you.

Mrs N: No, you didn’t have to. I have my lunch box.

Sinazo: We don’t take no for an answer.

Tina: Yes. We’d rather you take it.

Sinazo: Tina, chommie. You sound like our English teacher, saying ‘rather’ all the time.

[They laugh. They open their food and eat together.]

Mrs N: You know what? Do not ever give birth to a boy. Boys don’t know. They think they are super cool. They want this and that. And they are cheeky. Me, I prefer girls.

Lusanda: So now I get it. You like us because we are not boys and we are like you. That’s the reason.

Mrs N: That is not the reason why I love you guys. It is because I see a brighter future for you guys. You are almost like my own children.

Lusanda: Mrs N, do you really see us as your children?

Mrs N: Yes, my baby girl.

[They give Mrs N a hug]

Sinazo: But Ma’am. I prefer boys to girls. Girls need special attention.

Tina: Hiyo! Children will make me grow old by the time I am 25 I will have grey hair. I will rather give birth to an alien that give birth to boys or girls in this world.

Sinazo: You can say that again, chommie. I am a nightmare in front of my mother’s eyes and my brother is worse.

Tina: My mother always says, ungumlingo. It’s like you are sent by Satan to destroy me. But Lusanda’s father loves her because she listens. She cooks. She is a mother at home. She even washes her sister and makes sure she eats and is clean.

Mrs N: How are you living without your mother?

Lusanda: It’s hard because I don’t get the warm arms to cry on. I just have to be strong and be a wise girl.

Mrs N: Does your dad know when you are crying?

Lusanda: He suspects and he asks me if I am okay. I just say I am fine. I just push him away so that he cannot know. Only my little sister knows when I am okay and when I am crying.

[Mrs N has tears in her eyes but Lusanda doesn’t see that she is crying, because she is looking down.]

Mrs N: Come here.

[She hugs Lusanda. And Tina and Sinazo also hug her]

Mrs N: Be strong my dear. Your father’s brother will be sorry for raping and murdering your mother. Men like him should be put in jail.

Lusanda: Good people can turn to cruelty.

[The bell rings for the end of lunch]

SCENE THREE

[After school. Mrs N speaks to someone on the phone. She hears that a team from another school is coming to challenge their school. The winning team will get lots of money. She thinks that with the money she can buy new kit for the girls. She organises a team and calls out to Tina, Lusanda and Sinazo to come. She tells them about the team that is coming and that it is not coming empty handed but with lots of money. (About R 65 000.)]

[The team comes and the game starts. The school are cheerful because Lusanda is in the centre. She can play and control the ball.]

[Lusanda’s school wins the game by 35 – 27 and they get the money. The principal is so happy and greedy at the same time. The money goes to the school account. One week later, Mrs N wants to go and buy new kit for the school and the money cannot be found. She rushes to the principal’s office.]

Mrs N: Um, principal. Remember the money that was won by my team.

The principal: Yes

Mrs N: I don’t see it.

The principal: Yes

Mrs N: What! Do you mean it’s gone? I don’t know.

[Just then there is a delivery for the principal. It is a large and very expensive plasma-screen, TV.]

Delivery man: The car that you bought for your wife is at your house, sir. It is in your garage. Can you just sign here.

[The principal signs the paper, and the delivery man leaves.]

Mrs N: Where the hell did you afford to buy your wife a car?

The principal: I can explain.

Mrs N: Answer me! Dammit!

[The other school teachers come into the principal’s office because of the noise.]

A teacher: What’s wrong?

Mrs N: He ate the money that my children had to be burned on their skin, playing netball, to earn. Mr Principal here is buying a flat screen and a new car for his wife. Now tell me what I am supposed to tell my team.

[In amongst the teachers are two people from the Department of Education. The principal is reported to the Department and fired. Mrs N was refunded the money that was stolen by the principal. She told the whole team how she lost and found the money again. Mrs N became the school principal.]

The End