Book 28: Streets Paved with Gold

Granny Thato (pronounced Ta-toe) lives in an informal settlement in a shack made out of corrugated iron and wood. Squatter camps are found at the periphery of the big cities as people from all over the continent pour into the country in search of jobs. The expansion of the settlements is tremendously fast and councils and municipalities struggle to provide services for them with the resources at their disposal. Granny Thato dreams of owning a house made out of bricks and mortar, one which is properly serviced with electricity, sewerage removal and drinking water. One day, she is visited by a council official who offers to put her name on the waiting list for new houses which the council is building in the area. It is a dream come true. Only, in her excitement, Granny hands over her savings to the official without first checking his bona fides.
In the second story, the narrator reminisces about the olden days where man and nature co-existed peacefully. Expanding populations and habitat destruction has forced animals into game reserves so that encounters between humans and wild animals have become relatively rare nowadays. Families living in the countryside in the early days often have interesting stories to tell their grandchildren about their experiences. Here are three such family stories about encounters with lions.