Onderwêreld deur Fanie Viljoen | Die soektog en gerugte van selfmoord | English Summary | Onderwereld

 

Onderwêreld deur Fanie Viljoen

Die soektog en gerugte van selfmoord

The television blares breaking news about the bird flu epidemic that has affected Asia, Europe, North Africa, and parts of the Middle East. Teachers’ voices can be heard in the corridor and when Greg asks the nearest guy about the commotion, he responds that Eckhardt is still not back. Boggom enters the sitting room to explain that the school has issued a search of the entire campus for anything that could give clues about the whereabouts of Eckhardt Wilken. Mr. Andersen then tells the matric students not to let this information out to students in the lower grades because they would like to first confirm facts and protect the school’s illustrious reputation. Boggom starts saying that the disappearance of a student is not something that they can keep hidden, but Mr. Andersen stops him mid-sentence and nervously darts his eyes around the faces in the room, as if he was trying to read the room. The students are sent out in groups to begin their search.

Greg is unsure of how much time had passed before rumours of the discovery of a suicide note made the rounds. People attempt to start conversations with Greg but his mind is preoccupied with repressed feelings coming to the surface – ghosts from the past. The talk of suicide reminded Greg of the unpleasant memory of his brother’s death. Greg was very close to his older brother, John, and considered him his best friend. John often encouraged Greg to rely on him and Greg owes much of his quirks to his exposure to his older brother. One example of this is John’s love for extreme sports, which Greg has now taken on for himself ever since they went bungee jumping together. The rumours of Eckhardt’s suicide have these unpleasant memories of his brother’s death swirling around in his mind. He thinks back to his mother screaming out for John after finding him unconscious in his room, pills on the bedside table, and remembers the ambulance arriving, emergency personnel pouring into and out of the house before the ambulance disappeared.

People often say that history repeats itself and that people are born on this planet to learn lessons which repeat themselves if they are not learned the first time around. Greg thinks about how he did not cry after John’s death and distances himself from the rest of the search party. By the evening, there is still no sign of Eckhardt. The teachers expand the search to the surrounding towns: Harrismith, Bergville, and Winterton. Exhausted from the long day, Greg gets back to his room, strips, and ties a clean towel around his body. His mother calls and they have a conversation about nonsense until she asks him out of the blue if he is alright. Greg does not want to mention Eckhardt, but he tells his mother that he thought about John that day.

SummariesKeroshan PillayComment