Family and Memory

In Glory, Bulawayo details both Destiny and Simiso’s respective memories in order to position family as a fundamental source of support, love, and community. Midway through the novel, Destiny learns that Defenders brutally murdered Simiso’s parents and siblings during the Gukurahundi. Her mother proceeds to show Destiny her wounds from the violence; in response, Destiny takes off her clothes and reveals the scars from the protests against the 2008 presidential election. As they stand naked in front of one another, Simiso “gathers her child like she is gathering the kind of delicate flowers that fold to the touch… And then it is the daughter’s turn to gather her mother like she’s gathering the softest mushrooms… And they do this over and over, back and forth, over and over, until the ache and pain that have for so long been shut up...