In the Afternoon Glow

The soft, hazy afternoon light fell over Chitimba Beach, where the two sisters Forgive and Dora sat close together in the sand. Their mother had just bathed them in the clear water of Lake Malawi. Now they sat there, the warmth of the afternoon still surrounding them.

Forgive sat quietly, her African hair still wet from the water. She looked straight ahead at me, her gaze deep and questioning. Her body was still fully wrapped in the colourful Chitenge cloth, the colours standing out sharply against the sand.

Dora sat opposite her, her head slightly turned over her shoulder. In her hand, she held her teddy bear tightly. Her cloth had come loose and lay in soft folds on the sand.