The Stalker

Sometimes what you’re looking for is right under your nose, as Thembi learns.

- Pamela Muyoba

THEMBI was a hardworking, beautiful woman who seemed to have everything – everything except a man in her life.

She had a good job as a copywriter at an advertising firm, good friends and a kind and caring mother who she lived with.

But when she turned 30, the reality of being single started to make her feel miserable. She hated being alone and spent hours daydreaming about getting married and having a family of her own. She didn’t want to end up an old maid like her aunt, Mavis, who looked so sad all the time.

“Why can’t I find a man?” she turned to her mother for help one morning. “Even Nomasonto who is always so bitter is getting married. In fact, most of my friends are getting married – everyone except me.”

“You can’t rush into love,” her mother advised. “And perhaps if you looked in the right places, you would find yourself a nice man.”

Thembi smiled at her mother. She knew where this conversation was heading. 

“So where should I look, Mama?” 

“Look in places where you can actually meet people, not on that Facebook of yours,” her mom said firmly.

“People on Facebook are just as real,” Thembi laughed. “It’s just that I have had bad luck. All the people I meet through Facebook are losers and cheaters.”

Mama Shipo was very concerned about her daughter’s obsession with Facebook. Thembi chatted to a lot of potential suitors and often agreed to meet them.

But her mom had heard some terrifying stories about people on Facebook. Some didn’t use their real names, some claimed to be male when they were female, and some were lunatics who were a danger to themselves and society.

She was always telling her daughter it was a waste of time.