Now is the Time for Running

Deo carries a handmade soccer ball filled with money when he leaves Gutu. It remains one of his only possessions throughout the story. The soccer ball initially represents his connection to a home that he has lost forever. His grandfather made the soccer ball for him, and Deo has spent most of his childhood playing soccer with the other children in his village. When he and Innocent are forced to leave Gutu, the soccer ball filled with all the money he can find is the only thing that Deo brings with him.

Although the ball is stuffed full of money, it does the brothers little good because, due to hyperinflation, the Zimbabwean currency holds very little value. Deo carries billions of Zim dollars around with him, but the value of the money is only equivalent to a few US dollars or a few hundred South African rand. While the ball is full of money, Deo’s hopes for his future remain high, but his optimism deflates as he gradually comes to understand how dire his situation truly is. Ultimately, he feels as though he should not possess the money at all because owning anything is dangerous due to The Traumatic Effects of Political Violence that still threaten them every day, so he buries the ball with Innocent’s box.