From 28^th June until 4^th July 2008 Thandanani Children’s Foundation co-facilitated a Memory Box Camp at Highover with Sinomlando. Memory work aims to give opportunity to the children to grieve and deal with their losses they have experienced in their early lives. Memory work falls under TCFs emotional well-being programme.

43 children from Richmond area were taking part in this camp. One of them is Thulani Dlamini* from one of the areas TCF serves in Richmond, a boy of 13 years who is attending grade 4 in the local primary school. The first thing that made us pay attention to him is the fact that he is still doing grade 4 at an age 13, and his first physical development and behavior seems a lot younger than his actual age. He was always seeking attention; approval and entertaining everyone close by. It was very difficult for him to concentrate during sessions.

After a while we realised that his short concentration span was not only due to what seems ‘hyperactivity’, but more especially to cognitive, physical and emotional problems. Thulani has severe visual and hearing problems, which was why he was acoustically not able to understand the instructions given to him. He was also unable to read and write properly. In order to be able to participate in activities, he was taken to a different room and given one-on-one session. It was then in personal conversations that he told the facilitator about his life. He has seen his whole family passing on and is very worried about his future and who will take care of him. While talking about his life he seemed like a different person, grown up and a lot older than 13 years. He mentioned more than once his gratitude to the facilitator for giving him the chance to talk and how good it felt to express his feelings.

After the camp we informed the volunteer from Thulani’s area to speak to his caregiver and make sure that he will be taken to the clinic to get treatment for his eyes and ears. We also asked the volunteer to continue memory work with him at home. It was beginning of August when I was paying a visit to his home to see how he was doing. He had been taken to the clinic, which referred Thulani to the hospital. Unfortunately the treatment did not help. Furthermore a couple of weeks earlier, the teachers had sent him home, as his hearing problem was getting worse and he could not see anything. He stayed home for one week.

Luckily TCF had enough budgets to take Thulani to the specialist. On 7^th October the volunteer took him to Edendale Hospital in Pmb to see the ear doctor. He was given a second appointment for 14^th October to clean the ears. He also saw the optometrist and did an eye test for his visual problem. The optometrist is now suspecting that the boy might be HIV positive, as he is suffering from shingles around his eye. We don’t know what the result will be, but Thandanani will continue serving Thulani. We will always be on his side and serve his needs no matter what case arises.

Follow-up

Thulani’s HIV test came back negative and he received his spectacles which has improved his eyesight. He is currently going through various appointments to further investigate his hearing problem.

*Not his real name.