The Stars are Different in Durban

This was Durban, South Africa. I could smell it in the air. Sweet, sweet scents of tropical flowers and fruit. And I could hear it and feel it and see it. The yellow weaver birds flitting in and out of their round nests, tweeting up a storm. Black workers greeting us with a “Sonbonani!” and bright smiles as they walked past us. And the sun, bright and warm so early in the day.Eleven year old Delphi Malusi comes home from school one day to find the happy, secure home she’s always known, gone forever. The Stars are Different in Durban tells the story of how she comes to terms with accepting a nontraditional family life. When Delphi learns that her parents would be splitting up because her mom has a girlfriend, she is devastated. Compounding her shock is the news that she will be accompanying her mom and her girlfriend, Vanessa Fisher, to South Africa. Vanessa, a doctor, has accepted a two month assignment to work with AIDS patients. Delphi, miserable about her lot in life, resolves to have a miserable time in South Africa. However, her attempts are constantly sabotaged. Against her will she gets drawn into exciting and unique experiences in Durban with an Indian girl, Jyothi, whom she befriends. Jyothi’s counter traditional views, and her zest for life are irresistible to Delphi. She and Jyothi develop a deep bond and become “best friends for life”. About a month after Delphi has been in Durban she and Jyothi have an unexpected adventure involving two homeless African kids. Petrus and Phumse, who use an abandoned neighborhood house as their shelter, have run away from a miserable home – an abusive father, and a mother too feeble with AIDS to care for them.Delphi and Jyothi become friends with Petrus and Phumse. They get involved with their problems and feel a responsibility to help them. This sets Delphi and Jyothi on a risk-taking path which opens up to Delphi a whole new way of seeing her own problems.