Time and again we always hear that we will inherit the sins of our four fathers; well, it’s a statement that should not be taken lightly as their genes run in our blood.

Our behaviour sometimes reminds our parents of an uncle, father, aunt or grandfather who did bad or strange things. Most of the ideas are investigated and scientifically or logically proven. Some of the ideas are left unattended while some are denied the opportunity to enter the market due to hidden secrets behind the idea.

Well, my brother, Mduh, did strange things but it made sense according to the statement. It was a usual day full of hope that our mother would be back from work just in time for supper, she had promised to buy something different for a surprise.

I hate surprises; it’s the same as death for me, there is no difference between the two. Time seemed be lost, the sun was stuck somewhere in the middle of the sky. It was a surprise itself that time appeared to move slowly when expecting something. Finally, she came home, her hands tightly holding four plastic bags from Woolworths, which was indeed a surprise to my brother Mduh and me. Mother’s surprise spread a big grin across my face.

The meal that mom bought was unforgettable, but Mduh still acted strange; he wasn’t his normal self. His strange behaviour went unnoticed to our mother. I, however, knew that there was something going on with him and became determined to find out what it was.

Mduh, the eldest of five children my parents had, three of which died over the years, was a fun and talkative person. He was always full of jokes or poking fun at family members, but he also smoked weed (Marijuana.) No one in the family knew about his habit, which is why he was always high when he was jolly and making everyone laugh. I was the only one that knew why he acted out of character sometimes.

This day was one of those days; he was high and agitated. His expression and body language said that he wanted to say something, but something else was holding him back. I poked him with my feet, trying to make him laugh, but he gave me an anxious stare which said ‘not today!’

I was half way through my meal when I noticed that Mduh hadn’t even touched his. He was talking to his food as if it was normal for him to do so. Mom and Dad took no notice of him; they thought he was still joking around. I did however. I didn’t say anything because I wanted more of that food. He was playing with something that I would wait until mom got her salary; juicy and tender roasted chicken. Mduh looked like he was itching to leave the dinner table but we were raised to stay seated until our parents finished their supper first.

Mduh nibbled at his fingers, a sign that he was becoming even more impatient than he already was. Our parents finally excused themselves from the dinner table and asked us to do the dishes. The relief of our parents’ departure was evident on Mduh’s face; he shoved his plate in my direction and rose to go to our room. He seemed a bit relaxed so I made a sly comment in hopes of getting a reaction out of him. When he turned around in mid walk and stared at me, I realised that it would be a foolish act to take advantage of an angry soldier.

I finished washing the dishes and doing the last chores to impress the old lady but stayed in the kitchen a little bit longer. I was thinking about various ways I could help my brother get back to the person he was before he started smoking weed but came up with nothing. Mduh made everyone, including me, laugh but I couldn’t do the same for him. When I entered our bedroom he was lying flat on his back on his bed. As I came closer to him, I saw that his eyes were open but he couldn’t see me. I’ve seen corpses on television which had open but cold eyes, that’s what his looked like.

I waved my hand back and forth across his eyes and still he didn’t flinch.

***

Tell us: What do you think is happening with Mduh?