Kwaunobva
Tsumo

Mhuri.

Family and the home

Tsvaga tsumo

Mhuri

Family and the home

Waita mbereko ada kusuka machira.Once someone becomes a parent, they know they must give up childish things and take on the responsibilities expected of a parent, facing whatever hardship comes to them and their family.Mupanje wekunze unodzivirira iri mukati.Do not speak ill of your own people to outsiders, because it shows disunity; family shields its own when they are in danger or being spoken about. It can also mean a chief or parent is the one who protects their children in times of danger.Kubaya tange hama vatorwa vakutye.To give orders that people will obey, you must first discipline your own household, so others see that even your own family follows your rule.Ndiro yechirema hairove.A disabled person has a designated plate known to the whole household; even a woman serving food knows to first find that plate for the disabled member of the home.Rukova rwizi kuyambuka unokwinya nguo.A child from a great household earns respect from others, however young they may be.Benzi kunge riri rako kudzana kwaro unopururudza. (M)When your relative does something people criticise, you do not criticise them too, but rather defend them while trying to correct them privately; no parent wants their child shamed.Chirango chehuku chiri mumusongora.Since ancient times it was known that the neck of a chicken is the tastiest part, so whenever a wife killed a chicken, she was expected to honour her husband by giving him the neck.Zuva rimwe haripedzi dura.Giving someone a single day's worth of food does not finish all the food in the house to the point the household starves.Aramba ukama apa huku yangu kurarama.If someone, even a relative, does not want to visit you or be close to you, do not complain; you lose nothing by it, since there is one guest fewer to feed.Akupa dhamba (rengavi) ndowako.Be grateful to someone who gives you something you can use right away to help yourself; in our culture, when rain has fallen, the person who gives you cattle to plough with is your true relative.Mharadzano dzakabva munzira.In conversations that build a household, people must learn to choose words that do not offend others; most quarrels are caused by the careless use of the wrong words.Akweva sanzu akweva namarara aro.If you take in and care for someone who has dependents relying on them, know that you are now responsible for caring for all of them too; in our culture, a man who marries a woman with a child must also care for both the mother and the child.Chawawana idya nehama mutorwa ane hanganwa.Always remember to help and support your relatives, because they are the ones who will help you when disaster strikes.Mhandakadzi ihonza varanda.Women's quarrels should not be imitated; anyone who tries to copy that kind of behaviour ends up with no one left who gets along with them. Women, especially mothers, who constantly quarrel bring disharmony to the whole family.Chakafukidza dzimba matenga.There are private matters that take place inside the house.Chirere chigokurerawo.Take care of the young so that they may take care of you in your old age.Kuudza mwana hupedzisira.Telling a child something is not enough on its own; teaching must be followed through, not just spoken.Kuwanda kwakanaka, kwakaipira kupedza muto.It's good to have numbers, but they also demand more resources.Kuwanda huuya.The more, the merrier.Mbeva zhinji hadzina mashe.Where there are many people, no one takes responsibility and things go undone.Mhembwe rudzi inozvara mwana ane kazhumu.People produce children with traits similar to themselves; the apple doesn't fall far from the tree.Muroyi royera kure vekwako vagokureverera.Don't be cruel to the people close to you.Nzombe huru yakabva mukurerwa.Great people are raised up by other people.Zviuya hazviwanani.Perfect people rarely find each other in marriage.Zingizi gonyera pamwe maruva enyika haaperi.Settle with one partner; there are many beautiful people in the world.Abereka otochena moyo.Real peace of mind comes only once an ordeal is fully over, just as a mother's anxiety lifts only after her child is safely born.Ane mhuri kwayo ndeane ndume ane mhurikadzi vaeni.In Shona kinship, sons remain within the family and carry its name forward, while daughters usually marry into another home, so within their birth family they come to be regarded, relatively, as visitors.Baba muredzi mwana kuchema anodaidza mai.Even though a father also plays a part in raising a child, a crying child instinctively calls for its mother, showing the especially close bond between mother and child.Chembere ndeyembwa yomunhu, inofa ichigurukuta.An elderly woman keeps faithfully serving her family right up until death, like a loyal dog that works on to the very end.Chikomba chinovirima kwacho.A secret lover does their own thing discreetly, out of everyone else's sight.Chirere, mangwana chigozokurerawo.What you nurture and care for well, such as raising a child, will in turn look after you when you need it.Hapana mhou inokumira mhuru isiri yayo.No one gives the same devoted care to what is not truly their own as they do to what is theirs.Mai musuva usingasevi muto.A mother often gives the best to everyone else while going without herself, always putting her family first.Mbudzi kudya mufenje kufananyina.Children tend to inherit and follow the habits of their parents, for better or worse.Mhembwe rudzi kuzvara mwana ane kazhumu.Offspring naturally carry the traits of their parents, marked out by their family line.Mugoni wepwere ndeasinayo.Those without direct experience of a hardship are often the quickest to judge those who are living through it.Mukadzi oda kuramba murume anoshereketa.Someone about to make a major decision often shows visible unease before they ever say it out loud.Mukwasha mukuyu haapere kudyiwa.A son-in-law is expected to keep contributing gifts to his in-laws over and over, the way a wild fig tree keeps bearing fruit.Munhu haarerwi nebonde.Raising a child well takes far more than simply providing food and shelter; it takes real guidance too.Munyai mutumwa, muridzi wesoko ndiwe.A mediator only carries the message; the real responsibility and final say stay with the person they represent.Muramu inzungu yakateya gonzo.A playful in-law relationship can be tempting, but it carries its own risks, like bait hiding a trap.Murume akanaka asiri wako.It often seems that the most admirable man is never the one available to you; he already belongs to someone else.Musha mukadzi.The wellbeing of a home rests above all on the woman who runs it.Musikana isango rehuni rinotsvagwa naani nani.An unmarried young woman tends to draw many suitors, all hoping to be the one to marry her.Musikana ishavhi, anoteverwa neshiri.A striking young woman draws admirers the way a fruit tree draws in the birds.Mwana mudiki in’anga.Children often blurt out the plain truth without meaning to, the way a healer uncovers what is hidden.Mwana muduku kubvuma rwendo rwake ruri mberi.The young need to accept that they still have a great deal of growing and learning ahead of them.Mwana wengwe mwana wengwe kuona chikara haatizi.The children of the brave tend to inherit that same courage, unshaken by what would frighten others.Ndumudzani hadzidyi mundiro imwe chete.Rivals struggle to share and cooperate closely, even over the smallest things.Nhamo inhamo zvayo amai havaroodzwi.However severe hardship gets, there are lines that must never be crossed to escape it.Nherera inoguta musi wafa mai.An orphan eats its fill only on the day its mother dies, when the funeral brings plenty; after that it goes without.Nherera panorayirwa vana vevapenyu iwe inzwawo.An orphan must pick up guidance indirectly, listening in on lessons meant for others since there is no parent to teach them directly.Nhumbu mukadzi mukuru hairevi chayadya.The belly is like a grown woman: it never tells what it has eaten. A discreet person keeps what they know to themselves.Rinonyenga rinohwarara, rinozosimudza musoro rawana.A suitor keeps low and humble until they have won, and only then lifts their head and shows their true self.Tsvimborume kutandara nemvana mwoyo uri kumhandara.Someone can appear engaged with one thing while their real interest and intention lie somewhere else entirely.Ukama hahusukwi nemvura hukabva.Family ties cannot be erased by outside circumstances; they endure regardless.Ukama hunonhuhwa.Family connections have a way of making themselves known, even without being announced.Ukama igasva hunozadziswa nokudya.Family bonds are strengthened through the simple act of sharing meals together.Ukama urimbo kudambura haubvi.Family ties, once formed, cannot truly be severed, even when there is conflict.Umhandara idambakamwe.Certain stages in life pass only once and cannot be recovered, so they deserve to be valued while they last.Unaki hwemukadzi huri pamwana.A woman's true worth is measured not just by appearance but by how well she raises her children.Urombo hune nherera kudya ikarutsa.Poverty pushes an orphan into real hardship, going without the proper care a child needs.Vana vembwa havasvinure musi mumwe chete.Children of the same family do not all reach their milestones at the same time; each has their own pace.Vana vengwena havakuriri mudziva rimwe chete.Siblings from the same family often end up scattered as they grow, settling in different places.Wabereka sekera muchitende.Joy over good fortune should be shown with restraint, not paraded openly for everyone to see.Wanzi baba wada kamusha kake.Once you are called father, you have chosen your little home and all it asks of you: the duties of a parent come with the title.Wekwemurume ndewe kwemurume.Property tied to a particular family or household stays associated with that family alone.
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