By Miranda B. Joubert The mansion was deathly quiet. Elijah’s wife and children were away on vacation in Namibia. He sat next to his longtime friend, personal traditional doctor and diviner, Tshiamo. Tshiamo held an ice pack to his pulsating face. Elijah had just punched him and wasn’t going to apologise. He probably felt justified.... Continue Reading →
By Amantle Gabolekwe You hate me. Which is tragic, because Gladys and your mother already decided you’re my therapist. Not officially, that would be a boring man named Dr. Matsheka, who runs group sessions at my university where the posters read Wellness is a Journey. Never mind that you’re only an undergraduate student in sociology... Continue Reading →
By Lauri Kubuitsile Week 1 If you see her lying there you might think for a moment she’s sleeping; sleeping on the sandy bottom, her hair flowing in the water back and forth, back and forth, gently blowing in the watery breeze. She is still, locked in place by the stone tied at her waist... Continue Reading →
By Dr. Teedzani Thapelo Kabelo closed the thick case file and rubbed his eyes. Another not guilty plea for another client whose innocence he doubted. Through the window of his small law office, Gaborone’s late afternoon sun cast long rectangles of light across the cluttered desk. Dust motes swirled in the beams, dancing idly above stacks of... Continue Reading →
By Neelo Lentebanye A letter to my younger self-and to every boy child still running. Inspired by the story of a friend. Dear Lebang, You were five. Just a little boy with dust-coated heels and a wild imagination, growing up in Mosetse village, where the air always smelled of wood-smoke and cow dung. You often... Continue Reading →
By Moffat Matenge When he left the moody village of Motlhabaneng, Choza had not the slightest idea that this trip had in store for him precious memories that he would cherish for eons to come. It was during his last year at primary school, precisely the last weekend before the scheduled commencement of the final... Continue Reading →
By Boago Benedict Samakabadi The eatery was erected towards the North, out of Letlhakane towards Orapa, which was actually more west than north. There, beside the A14 highway, a few hundred paces from the junction to the Karowe mine. Almost isolated among the mopane, it radiated its own unique brilliance in the auspicious Boteti kimberlite... Continue Reading →
By Kewagamang Dakamo The people of Beetsha village had long believed that the moon was a living being. Not just a ball of light floating above their thatched roofs, but a watchful elder who guarded the secrets of the night. They said it listened to whispers, drank dreams, and returned them as light. But no... Continue Reading →
By Samuel Rubadiri Love the LORD your God and serve him with all your heart, and he will send rain on your land in its season. Turn away and worship other gods, then the LORD’s wrath will be kindled against you, and he will shut up the heavens that there will be no rain. Deuteronomy... Continue Reading →
By Angel Joseph I. The Dare It began the way most bad decisions in a small village do — with a dare around a late-night fire. “You won’t even last an hour,” Kabo said, holding the paraffin lamp under his chin to make himself look like a ghost. “That place eats people.” “Eish, stop lying,”... Continue Reading →
Petlwana Journal of Creative Literature and the Arts 