Missing son inspires mum to write book

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M– Brenda Ngonyama, a liSwati living in South Africa (SA) experienced what every mother dreads – a child going missing.

Brenda is now an author who is based in SA and has written a book titled ‘Rise above the storm’. The book is now available online including on Amazon and is falling off the shelves.

She wrote her book based on her diary in which she entered recordings every day since the disappearance of her son. Brenda believes that the book is an inspiration not just to her, but to every person who has experienced loss.

She revealed that she wrote the book when her son, Ashley Phila Ngonyama, went missing. Phila was a 30-yearold Rhodes University Graduate who was staying with his mother at the time of his disappearance.

A story about

Phila missing was also published by the Times of Eswatini in December 2020. He vanished on December 10, 2020. His grandparents from Thembelihle area were interviewed about his disappearance.

According to Brenda, she often went to the gym to keep fit but also to stay positive.

Brenda said her son was previously employed but due to the COVID-19 pandemic at the time, the company he worked for closed. “He then came to stay with me,” she said.

Vanished

She said it was when he was living with her that he vanished without a trace. Brenda said when she arrived home from work on a Friday, her son was not at home. She did not see anything unusual but little did she know that this was the last time she was seeing her son.

Brenda said she got into the kitchen and realised the dishes he had used were not washed. “I tried to call him thinking he had gone out but his cellphone rang from bathroom,” she stated.

She said when the phone rang from the bathroom, it did not make sense because it meant that he had left it behind. She said she thought he would return shortly, but this was not the case.

In an attempt to get assistance, Brenda stated that she later went to the police station to report a missing person but she was advised that she could not be immediately assisted because he was an adult and that it had not been more than 24 hours.

Brenda said when her son disappeared, her life became ‘a mess’. She said her health deteriorated because she became depressed while searching for him. She stated that each day, she realised that her son was still missing, her health deteriorated such that her high blood pressure rose and she was warned that she could suffer a stroke.

At some point, she was called by the police to identify the the body of a man who had died in a motor vehicle accident and fitted the description of Phila, However, it turned out to be someone else. “I refused to believe that he could die,” she said adding that she believes he is still alive somewhere.

ReViewed

Meanwhile, Brenda said she was now receiving calls to talk about her new book and that today (Saturday), she will be interviewed on Ikwekwezi FM at 6:30am. She said she was contacted by a producer from the station for a review of her book.

In December 2020, Brenda’s son disappeared without a trace. The family searched abandoned buildings, alleyways and under bridges, but finally only came to view a body in the morgue.

This book is Brenda’s call to anyone who has a missing loved one, experiencing challenging times or losing hope. It will provide the insights to finding your inner strength for self-counsel and taking charge of your life as she did.